Fatty acid composition in breast milk from 4 regions of Thailand.

BACKGROUND: DHA contents in breast milk varied upon maternal dietary intakes. OBJECTIVE: To study DHA contents in breast milk in Thai lactating women from four diferent regions of Thailand. MATERIAL AND METHOD: 20 mL of hind milk from 40 lactating women from Bangkok, Chantaburi, Tak, and Surin were collected and analyzed for fatty acids contents by gas chromatography Dietary intake of lactating women after delivery until the present study was assessed by a food frequency questionnaire. Then, the average DHA intake was estimated from the diets by using the reference data. RESULTS: DHA contents in breast milk of mothers from Surin were higher than those from other areas. There were no correlations between history of DHA intake and DHA contents in breast milk. CONCLUSION: DHA contents in breast milk vary from region to region of the country. Local dietary intake and genetics might explain this contrast.