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Prolonged Exclusive Breast‐Feeding Results in Low Serum Concentrations of Immunoglobulin G, A and M
Author(s) -
SAVILAHTI E.,
SALMENPERÄ L.,
TAINIO V.M.,
HALME H.,
PERHEENTUPA J.,
SIIMES M. A.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/j.1651-2227.1987.tb10404.x
Subject(s) - medicine , breast feeding , immunoglobulin a , antibody , formula feeding , immunoglobulin m , physiology , immunoglobulin g , pediatrics , immunology
. Serum levels of IgG, IgA and IgM were measured in 198 infants at ages 2, 4, 6, 9 and 12 months. By age 9 months 30 infants were still exclusively breast‐fed; their IgG and IgM levels were significantly lower than those of infants weaned early to formula (before age 3.5 months). By 12 months 6 infants were still exclusively breast‐fed; their IgA levels were by then also similarly lower. There was no significant difference in the number of infections experienced by these groups of infants. After 2 months on formula feeding, the IgG and IgM levels of the infants who were exclusively breast‐fed for 9 months had caught up with the levels of the infants weaned early to formula. Only at 12 months of age prealbumin levels of the exclusively breast‐fed infants showed a positive correlation to IgG and IgA levels; no correlation was found between immunoglobulin levels and levels of serum iron and zinc.