title: Saturated fatty acid composition of human milk in Israel: a comparison between Jewish and Bedouin women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Breast milk is well established as the ideal source of nutrition for infants. Mature human breast milk generally contains 3.5-4.5% lipids comprising mostly triacylglycerols. In general, the fat composition of maternal human milk in developing countries shows higher levels of saturated fats, reflecting diets rich in carbohydrates.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the profile of unsaturated fatty acids in the breast milk of two populations in southern Israel--urban Jewish and rural tent-dwelling Bedouin women.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study involved 48 lactating Israeli mothers, 29 Jewish and 19 Bedouin (16-20 weeks postpartum), whose full-term infants were fed exclusively with breast milk. Total milk lipid extracts were transmethylated and analyzed by using an improved gas chromatographic method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The breast milk of the Bedouin women contained significantly higher levels of total major saturated fatty acids, lauric acid and palmitic acid (45.2 +/- 4.7% vs. 41.0 +/- 5.6%, P = 0.005; 5.2 +/- 2.1 vs. 6.8 +/- 2.0%, P = 0.03; and 22.7 +/- 2.4 vs. 20.6 +/- 3.8%, P = 0.02) respectively. No difference was found in the myristic acid level between the groups. The level of stearic acid was significantly higher in the Jewish group compared to the Bedouin group (5.7 +/- 1.1 vs. 5.1 +/- 1.1%, P = 0.04). There was a linear correlation between the levels of C14:0 and C12:0 in the Bedouin and lewish groups respectively (R = 0.87, R = 0.82, P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Higher levels of saturated fatty acids were measured in the breast milk of Bedouin women, an economically weaker population. The results emphasize the importance of diet among lactating women and its influence on milk quality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Soroka University Medical Center and Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel.
authors.forename: Tali
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Silberstein
authors.forename: Ariela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Burg
authors.forename: Jeanine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Blumenfeld
authors.forename: Boaz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sheizaf
authors.forename: Tamar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tzur
authors.forename: Oshra
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Saphier
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018912:Arabs; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002849:Chromatography, Gas / Q000379:methods; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D007585:Jews; D007774:Lactation / Q000378:metabolism*; D007850:Lauric Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D019814:Myristic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D019308:Palmitic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D012424:Rural Population; D013229:Stearic Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D014505:Urban Population; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D007850:Lauric Acids; D013229:Stearic Acids; D019814:Myristic Acid; C030358:lauric acid; D019308:Palmitic Acid; C031183:stearic acid