Human Milk: Fast Determination of Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA)

Abstract

Human milk provides all the nutrients required by babies during the first six months of their life. Human milk lipids represent the main source of energy, contributing almost 50% of the total energy content. Additionally, fatty acids ensure the correct development of children in the prenatal, postnatal, and infant phases. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is essential for visual and cognitive development, and its presence during childhood can affect long-term health. This study aimed to optimize and validate a methodology for the direct determination of DHA in human milk. We used 20 samples of human milk from lactating women living in the city of Itu, São Paulo, who attended Basic Health Units from September 2019 to September 2020, and a sample of certified reference material from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The proposed methodology consists of a validated mixed transesterification process without prior lipid extraction, optimized by factorial design. This methodology can be successfully used in human milk samples as it is both precise and accurate. The values of DHA in the sampled milks were similar to those in European countries and lower than those in Asian countries due to diet.

Keywords

• human milk
• polyunsaturated acid
• breastfeeding
• gas chromatography
• chemometric approach