title: Should there be a target level of docosahexaenoic acid in breast milk?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article examines the evidence for and against establishing a target level of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in breast milk.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two target levels for milk DHA have been recently proposed. One (∼0.3% of milk fatty acids) was based on milk DHA levels achieved in women consuming the amount of DHA recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for pregnant and lactating women (at least 200 mg DHA/day). Another (∼1.0%) was based on biomarker studies of populations with differing lifelong intakes of fish. Populations or research cohorts with milk DHA levels of 1.0% are associated with intakes that allow both the mother and infant to maintain relatively high DHA levels throughout lactation. Lower milk DHA levels may signal suboptimal maternal stores and possibly suboptimal infant intakes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Based on the current data, a reasonable milk DHA target appears to be approximately 0.3%, which is about the worldwide average. Although this may not be the 'optimal' level (which remains to be defined), it is clearly an improvement over the currently low milk DHA levels (∼0.2%) seen in many Western populations.
authors.affiliation: aOmegaQuant Analytics, LLC bSanford School of Medicine - University of South Dakota, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA.
authors.forename: Kristina Harris
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: William S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Harris
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001942:Breast Feeding; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007774:Lactation; D039382:Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D011247:Pregnancy; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D064167:Recommended Dietary Allowances
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids