title: Correlations between Maternal, Breast Milk, and Infant Vitamin B12 Concentrations among Mother-Infant Dyads in Vancouver, Canada and Prey Veng, Cambodia: An Exploratory Analysis.
abstract: Vitamin B12 plays an essential role in fetal and infant development. In regions where animal source food consumption is low and perinatal supplementation is uncommon, infants are at risk of vitamin B12 deficiency. In this secondary analysis, we measured total vitamin B12 concentrations in maternal and infant serum/plasma and breast milk among two samples of mother-infant dyads in Canada (assessed at 8 weeks post-partum) and in Cambodia (assessed between 3-27 weeks post-partum). Canadian mothers (n= 124) consumed a daily vitamin B12-containing multiple micronutrient supplement throughout pregnancy and lactation; Cambodian mothers (n= 69) were unsupplemented. The maternal, milk, and infant total vitamin B12 concentrations (as geometric means (95% CI) in pmol/L) were as follows: in Canada, 698 (648,747), 452 (400, 504), and 506 (459, 552); in Cambodia, 620 (552, 687), 317 (256, 378), and 357 (312, 402). The majority of participants were vitamin B12 sufficient (serum/plasma total B12 > 221 pmol/L): 99% and 97% of mothers and 94% and 84% of infants in Canada and Cambodia, respectively. Among the Canadians, maternal, milk, and infant vitamin B12 were all correlated (p< 0.05); only maternal and infant vitamin B12 were correlated among the Cambodians (p< 0.001).
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. philipchebaya@gmail.com.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. philipchebaya@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chebaya
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. crystal.karakochuk@alumni.ubc.ca.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. crystal.karakochuk@alumni.ubc.ca.
authors.forename: Crystal D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Karakochuk
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. marchkmr@gmail.com.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. marchkmr@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Kaitlin M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: March
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. nnchen30@gmail.com.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. nnchen30@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Nancy N
authors.initials: NN
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Nutrition, University of Otago, Dunedin 9016, New Zealand. rosemary.stamm@otago.ac.nz.
authors.forename: Rosemary A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Stamm
authors.affiliation: Helen Keller International-Cambodia Country Office, Phnom Penh 12301, Cambodia. hkroeun@hki.org.
authors.forename: Hou
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kroeun
authors.affiliation: National Nutrition Programme, Maternal and Child Health Centre, Ministry of Health, Phnom Penh 12202, Cambodia. sophonprak@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Prak
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sophonneary
authors.affiliation: National Sub-Committee for Food Fortification, Ministry of Planning, Phnom Penh 12000, Cambodia. borathmam@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Mam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Borath
authors.affiliation: US Department of Agriculture, ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Centre, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. setti.shahab-ferdows@ars.usda.gov.
authors.forename: Setareh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shahab-Ferdows
authors.affiliation: US Department of Agriculture, ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Centre, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. daniela.hampel@ars.usda.gov.|Department of Nutrition, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. daniela.hampel@ars.usda.gov.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hampel
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. susan.barr@ubc.ca.
authors.forename: Susan I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Barr
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. yvonne.lamers@ubc.ca.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. yvonne.lamers@ubc.ca.
authors.forename: Yvonne
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lamers
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Nutrition, University of Otago, Dunedin 9016, New Zealand. lisa.houghton@otago.ac.nz.
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Houghton
authors.affiliation: US Department of Agriculture, ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Centre, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. lindsay.allen@ars.usda.gov.|Department of Nutrition, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. lindsay.allen@ars.usda.gov.
authors.forename: Lindsay H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. tim.green@sahmri.com.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. tim.green@sahmri.com.|South Australia Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia. tim.green@sahmri.com.
authors.forename: Tim J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Green
authors.affiliation: Food, Nutrition, and Health, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada. kyly.whitfield@msvu.ca.|BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada. kyly.whitfield@msvu.ca.|Department of Applied Human Nutrition, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, NS B3M 2J6, Canada. kyly.whitfield@msvu.ca.
authors.forename: Kyly C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Whitfield
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002160:Cambodia; D002170:Canada; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007774:Lactation; D016014:Linear Models; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D009035:Mothers; D011247:Pregnancy; D014805:Vitamin B 12 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood*; D014806:Vitamin B 12 Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014805:Vitamin B 12
keywords: Cambodia; Canada; human milk; lactation; vitamin B12 (cobalamin)