Abstract
Maternal obesity is associated with metabolic changes in mothers and higher risk of obesity in the offspring. Obesity in breastfeeding mothers appears to influence human milk production as well as the quality of human milk. Maternal obesity is associated with alteration of immunological factors concentrations in the human milk, such as C-reactive protein (CRP), leptin, IL-6, insulin, TNF-Alpha, ghrelin, adiponectin, and obestatin. Human milk is considered a first choice for infant nutrition due to the complete profile of macro nutrients, micro nutrients, and immunological properties. It is essential to understand how maternal obesity influences immunological properties of human milk because alterations could impact the nutrition status and health of the infant. This review summarizes the literature regarding the impact of maternal obesity on the concentration of particular immunological properties in the human milk.
Highlights
In 2014, the number of pregnant women with overweight and obesity were estimated at 38.9 million and 14.6 million, respectively, worldwide [1]
An increased leptin concentration found in human milk is noteworthy because leptin may contribute to maternal obesity [9,10,11,12,13,14]
Lactoferrin concentration was significantly greater in colostrum of mothers who were greater than the 90% Weight for Height, an older surrogate measure for obesity [32]
Summary
In 2014, the number of pregnant women with overweight and obesity were estimated at 38.9 million and 14.6 million, respectively, worldwide [1]. Obesity in lactating mothers was found to be related to changes in the concentration of several bioactive components of their milk [8]. (oligosaccharide-enriched fraction along with secretory IgA), glycolipids, and high molecular weight protein), alpha-lactalbumin, gut microflora like prebiotic, haptocorrin (vitamin B12-binding protein), and nutrients for the infants’ immune system [20] The activities of these bioactive proteins need further study. Alterations of bioactive properties in the human milk of obese mothers could increase the incidence of obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and other adverse metabolic outcomes [27]. The primary aim of this review is to describe the immunological functions of specific factors in human milk and the alterations that occur in conditions of overweight and obesity mothers. The secondary aim is to explore the other influential factors that stimulate alterations of specific immunological properties that could influence their functions in human milk
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