Organic and inorganic selenium supplementation to lactating mothers increase the blood and milk Se concentrations and Se intake by breast-fed infants.
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of selenium (Se) supplementation to lactating women on Se concentrations and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities in blood components of mothers and breast-fed infants and on milk Se levels and Se intake by breast-fed infants. Lactating mothers were supplied for 3 months with 200 micrograms Se/day in the form of yeast-Se (Y-Se) and sodium selenite. Initial blood and plasma Se levels of all women (n = 67) were 76.6 and 53.2 micrograms/L, respectively. After 3 months Se concentrations both in whole blood and in plasma from mothers and infants were significantly higher than the initial values. Y-Se exerts a stronger effects than selenite on blood and plasma Se levels. Initial milk Se concentration was 8.9 micrograms/L and after 1 month in both groups in reached a plateau at 14-16 micrograms/L. This resulted in an increase of Se intake in breast-fed infants from 6.1 to a plateau of 11-13 micrograms Se/day. GSH-Px activities in plasma and red cells of Y-Se group increased significantly and reached a plateau after 1 and 2 months, respectively, while in the selenite group the enzyme activities increased steadily throughout the entire period of the study. Selenite exerts a stronger effect on GSH-Px both in maternal and in infant blood components as compared with Y-Se. In milk the GSH-Px activity in the Y-Se group did not change during the study, while in the selenite group after 3 months it increased almost 2-fold compared to the initial value. In conclusion, this study shows that organic Se causes higher Se deposition than did the inorganic form.
Department of Biochemistry, University School of Medical Sciences, Bydgoszcz, Poland.
U
U
Trafikowska
E
E
Sobkowiak
J A
JA
Butler
P D
PD
Whanger
B A
BA
Zachara
D000328:Adult; D001942:Breast Feeding; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology; D005260:Female; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007774:Lactation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D016566:Organoselenium Compounds / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012643:Selenium / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D018036:Selenium Compounds / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000494:pharmacology*
D016566:Organoselenium Compounds; D018036:Selenium Compounds; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase; D012643:Selenium