Breastmilk for Healthy Development

Dear Colleagues,

It is well known that breastfeeding supports the optimal growth and development of infants and protects against the development of non-communicable and infectious diseases, overweight, and obesity across the lifespan. Often, those benefits increase with breastfeeding duration and exclusivity, as a consequence of higher exposure to breastmilk which contains all the essential nutrients and a variety of bioactive compounds, including hormones, growth factors, mRNA, and immunoglobins. Moreover, a growing body of evidence shows that breastmilk composition changes dynamically across the lactation period and each infant–mother dyad has a unique breastmilk composition that explains the effects of lactational programming.

We invite publications in the area of Breastmilk for Healthy Development, covering (but not limited to) the following topics:

1. Breastmilk composition with a special focus on bioactive components.
2. Factors affecting breastmilk composition, including the influence of expressing, handling, and storing expressed milk.
3. The role of breastmilk in supporting optimal growth, development, and shaping health across the lifespan.
4. The interactions between psychosocial, environmental, and dietary factors, as well as breastmilk composition with possible impacts on infant health and development.
5. The role of breastfeeding and breastmilk composition in shaping dietary habits and preferences.
6. Results of in vitro and in vivo studies exploring breastmilk components and their physiological function.

This Special Issue aims to welcome original studies, literature reviews, and meta-analyses exploring the composition and biological role of breastmilk.

Dr. Monika Zielińska-Pukos
Prof. Dr. Jadwiga Hamułka
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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