The document summarizes a consumer news article and primary research journal article on the relationship between human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) found in breast milk and infant body composition. The consumer article provided a brief overview of a study that found associations between specific HMOs and increased or decreased infant fat mass at 6 months. The journal article described a study that analyzed breast milk from 37 mothers and found that higher levels of certain HMOs correlated with lower infant weight and fat mass, while others correlated with higher fat mass. The implications are that nutrition professionals may educate mothers on HMO sources, and consumers may be intrigued but find the information inconclusive due to need for more research.

1. Marissa Uhlhorn
11/3/15
“I have not given, received, or used any unauthorized assistance”
____Marissa Uhlhorn_____
Consumer News Article: Published on Wednesday, October 28th
, 2015
Primary Research Journal Article: Published on September 24th
, 2015
Consumer Article: Preidt, R. Breast Milk Makeup May Influence Child’s Later Weight, Study
Says: Naturally occurring complex carbohydrates could play a role in obesity. HealthDay.
October 28th
2015. http://consumer.healthday.com/women-s-health-information-34/breast-
feeding-news-82/breast-milk-makeup-influences-child-s-later-weight-study-says-704642.html.
Acessed 11/2/15
Journal Article: Alderete, T L, et al. Associations between human milk oligosaccharides and
infant body composition in the first 6 mo of life. Am J Clin Nutr. 2015; 102(5): 1-8. doi:
0.3945/ajcn.115.115451
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/early/2015/10/28/ajcn.115.115451.full.pdf+html
Key Points:
Consumer Article
• The link between obese mothers and their overweight children is not clear.
• In the study referenced, 25 mothers and infants led the researchers to understand that
the variation in carbohydrates found in breast milk can play a role in an infant’s risk of
obesity and way in which they grow.
• Specifically the research team looked at human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) which aid
in immune system development for the infant.
• Higher levels of specific HMOs found in breast milk correlated with an increase in the
infant’s fat mass by 6 months of age.
• Other specific HMOs found to have protective properties, such as lowering the infant’s
fat mass by 6 months of age.
• This showed that each mother’s composition of breast milk plays a larger role in
prediction of their infant’s possible development of obesity than the mother’s weight or
weight gain throughout pregnancy.
• The article mentions that further research needs to be done in this area, such as
specifically determining which HMOs aid in prevention of obesity.
• This could also have a future impact on supplements given to both breast-fed and
formula fed infants.

2. Journal Article
• Study Purpose:
o To determine if infant growth at 1 month and 6 months is affected by breast milk
composition- specifically human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs)
• Type of Research/Research Design:
o Primary Research- Initial study with follow-up 6 months later
• Study Participants – How many individuals? What were their characteristics? :
o Thirty seven mother infant pairs were involved in the 1 month study
o Thirty one mother infant pairs returned in the 6 month follow-up study
o No formula supplementation was used
o Maternal age of 18-45 y/o
o Gestation > or equal to 47 weeks
o Singleton birth
o Postpartum hospital stay for mother and infant of < 3 days
o Could not be using tobacco
o Alcohol consumption must be < 1 drink/week
o Could not have type 1 or type 2 diabetes during or before pregnancy
o Could not have an infant with presumed or known congenital birth defects
• Types of data collected (methods) – surveys? Interventions? Etc. :
o Mother’s age, BMI, pregnancy weight gain, gestational age, presence of secretor
o Infant’s sex, age, birth weight, birth length, weight at 1 month, length at 1
month, fat mass, total fat mass, lean mass, total trunk fat mass
o Same as above but measured at 6 months
o Breast milk composition (HMOs) for analysis- mothers encouraged to pump milk
from a single breast entirely

3.  HMO concentration and specific types of HMOs
• Results (what are the primary outcomes from this research?):
o Mothers were ~29.5 y/o, overweight (BMI: 27.9 +/- 7.5) before conception,
gained an average of 10.8 kg during pregnancy
o Infants length, weight, fat, and lean mass increased over 6 month period (as
expected)
o Higher HMO varieties at 1 month resulted in a lower total and percentage of fat
mass in the infant
o Specifically an increase in lacto-N-fucopentaose (LNFP) corresponded with a 0.40
kg lower infant weight at 1 month and 1.11 kg lower weight and 0.85 kg lower
lean mass at 6 months.
o An increase in LNFPI corresponded with a 0.79 g lower fat mass at 6 months
o An increase in disialyl-lacto-N-tetraose and LNFPII corresponded with a 1.92g
and 0.42 g greater fat mass at 6 months
o An increase in fucosyl-disialyl-lacto-N-hexaose and lacto-N-neotetraose
corresponded with a 0.04% higher and 0.03% lower body fat at 6 months.
• Conclusions drawn by the researchers about their results:
o The original hypothesis that variation in HMOs found in mother’s breast milk are
associated with the infants overall growth and body composition was supported
through this study.
o Specifically: 6 month increase in LNFPII and DSLNT was associated with a 16%
and 35% increase in fat mass (compared to the average fat mass at 6 months)
o Altogether LNFPI, DSLNT, and FDSLNH showed 33% more variance in fat mass of
infants than did sex, prepregnancy BMI, weight gain throughout pregnancy, and
the 6 month age of the infant.
o Specifically: An increase in LNFPI was associated with a 677 g lower weight, a 519
g lower lean mass, and a 482 g lower fat mass.
o At 1 and 6 months- LNFPI showed 18% and 5% more variance than did the other
maternal factors (BMI, weight gain, etc.)

4. Strengths/Weaknesses:
Consumer Article
This article’s topic and content was appropriate for being found in a HealthDay News
article. An average person, looking to read new information from recent research, would be
able to understand this content, but may not feel content with what is provided. The consumer
article is very brief, vague, and inconclusive. There wasn’t necessarily one “side” being
presented by the author, nor was there consistency in the way the information was presented.
The article is written in 12 choppy paragraphs/sentences, giving bits and pieces of information
found in the primary journal article.
I think it was important for the author to not go into specific numbers or long names of
HMOs that were discussed in the corresponding journal article. This gives the reader a general
idea that HMOs found in breast milk could either have a positive or negative correspondence
with the infant’s weight, fat mass, or lean mass. I also think it was necessary to include that
further research needs to be done in this area. It is important to let the readers know that this
specific topic has not been fully studied. The journal article provides a brief introduction,
detailed methods, results, conclusions, and discussions along with a variety of charts and
graphs. The consumer article does not go into much detail at all, which can be beneficial, but
also may result in an unclear summary presented in the consumer article.
Journal Article
The purpose of this study was to either support or decline the researchers’ original
hypothesis that HMO variation could be associated with infant’s weight gain, lean mass, and fat
mass. This objective is rather broad, but it seems to be one of the first studies to research and
observe this particular area of nutrition. Therefore the study aims are worth investigating, due
to the newness of this field.
The sample size was fairly small, with only 37 mother-infant pairs in the 1 month study
and 31 mother-infant pairs in the follow-up 6 month study. For this type of research, though, I
would think the variation among mother’s HMO composition found in breast milk would be
slight. It may have been useful to include women who had BMIs that categorized them as being
underweight and see how that may have affected the infant’s weight gain, lean mass, and fat
mass over a 6 month period. Although the sample size was small, there were significant
statistical conclusions in regards to HMO variation. The article did not mention a specific
race/ethic group being studied, but had both inclusive and exclusive criteria that must be met
for the women and infant pairs before enrolling in the study.

5. The analysis of the physical characteristics of the infants (weight gain, lean mass, fat
mass) was explained, but the methods to milk composition analysis was unclear. The overall
research was conducted in a well-controlled manner, following up with the same means of
measurement at 6 months. The data is presented in a clear and concise fashion, making it easy
to understand the overall results and conclusions gained from the study. I like that the
discussion included statistics from other studies that were similar, and also pointed out that
there needs to be further research done in this particular area.
The authors provided significant statistics in their results section as well as in a variety of tables
and graphs. There are both positive and negative associations between HMO composition and
infant growth, weight, etc. presented throughout the results, conclusion, and discussion
sections of the journal article.
Implications:
Nutrition Professionals
The data presented in this article should not have too much of an impact on a nutrition
professional due to the fact that there is little research in this area. It could be overwhelming
to the client if inconclusive information was provided to them. On the other side, the dietitian
could educate their breastfeeding mother clients about the benefits to incorporating fibrous
plants and beans into their diet (containing oligosaccharides). With further research, the
dietitian could find out sources for the particular HMOs that show positive associations with an
infant’s weight gain, lean mass, and fat mass.
Consumers
The overall message that the consumer news article provides is that some HMOs are
associated with an increase in fat mass and some are associated with a decrease in infant fat
mass. This vague information will not necessarily benefit the reader in a significant way. In
fact, the reader may be a bit confused and frustrated that there is no major take away message.
The article also states that there should be further research done in this particular field of
nutrition. The consumer may be interested in this topic, ask a dietitian for further information,
and/or continue looking up similar articles about HMOs and their impact on infants when
breastfeeding. In addition, the article suggests there is no significant link with obese mothers
and increased fat mass among their infants over time. This may intrigue the reader, especially
if they are an obese mother possibly worried about the impact this may have on their infant.

6. The analysis of the physical characteristics of the infants (weight gain, lean mass, fat
mass) was explained, but the methods to milk composition analysis was unclear. The overall
research was conducted in a well-controlled manner, following up with the same means of
measurement at 6 months. The data is presented in a clear and concise fashion, making it easy
to understand the overall results and conclusions gained from the study. I like that the
discussion included statistics from other studies that were similar, and also pointed out that
there needs to be further research done in this particular area.
The authors provided significant statistics in their results section as well as in a variety of tables
and graphs. There are both positive and negative associations between HMO composition and
infant growth, weight, etc. presented throughout the results, conclusion, and discussion
sections of the journal article.
Implications:
Nutrition Professionals
The data presented in this article should not have too much of an impact on a nutrition
professional due to the fact that there is little research in this area. It could be overwhelming
to the client if inconclusive information was provided to them. On the other side, the dietitian
could educate their breastfeeding mother clients about the benefits to incorporating fibrous
plants and beans into their diet (containing oligosaccharides). With further research, the
dietitian could find out sources for the particular HMOs that show positive associations with an
infant’s weight gain, lean mass, and fat mass.
Consumers
The overall message that the consumer news article provides is that some HMOs are
associated with an increase in fat mass and some are associated with a decrease in infant fat
mass. This vague information will not necessarily benefit the reader in a significant way. In
fact, the reader may be a bit confused and frustrated that there is no major take away message.
The article also states that there should be further research done in this particular field of
nutrition. The consumer may be interested in this topic, ask a dietitian for further information,
and/or continue looking up similar articles about HMOs and their impact on infants when
breastfeeding. In addition, the article suggests there is no significant link with obese mothers
and increased fat mass among their infants over time. This may intrigue the reader, especially
if they are an obese mother possibly worried about the impact this may have on their infant.