Breast milk is the first food that enters the body of a newborn. It is a nutrient fluid that is produced by a woman’s mammary glands. There are situations that require an analysis of breast milk in order to determine its qualitative indicators and make sure that there are no pathological microorganisms in the composition.
What is it like?
The first few days after the birth of the baby, colostrum is excreted from the mammary glands of women, not milk. It is quite nutritious and less oily. With the help of colostrum, the child's body is populated with beneficial microflora and adapts to the external environment.
It has a laxative effect, promotes the rapid recovery of the child's body after physiological jaundice, gives rise to a strong immune system, contains the largest amount of proteins, immunoglobulins and ascorbic acid.
Actually milk appears 3-5 days after the birth of the baby. Its composition:
- water - up to 85%;
- proteins - up to 1%;
- fats - up to 5%;
- carbohydrates - about 7%;
- hormonally active substances;
- macro- and microelements;
- vitamins.
The composition of breast milk varies depending on the age of the baby. Up to six months, the baby has a high need for fats and proteins, which decreases after reaching 6 months. This means that milk also becomes less fat, the amount of protein is reduced. In parallel, an increase in carbohydrates, minerals necessary for the proper formation of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems.
Microorganisms in milk
It was believed that mother’s milk is completely sterile, however, numerous studies have shown that it contains conditionally pathogenic strains of microorganisms that can inhabit the skin, mucous membranes, intestinal tract of a person without harm to him. Under certain circumstances, for example, in the case of a decrease in immunity, during hypothermia, in the period after an infectious disease, bacteria pass into the category of pathogenic microorganisms, starting to multiply actively.
When the latter enter the baby's body during feeding, they provoke the development of a number of diseases:
- enterocolitis;
- inflammatory diseases of the skin and mucous membranes;
- dysbiosis.
How to determine the pathogen?
It is possible to clarify the nature and type of the pathogen, which provokes the development of pathological conditions in the baby, if you pass breast milk for analysis. This is a specific test that allows not only to detect the presence of pathogenic microflora, but also to determine its sensitivity to antibacterial drugs.
Breast milk for analysis should not be given to all women who breastfeed. Indications are the suspicion of the presence of an infectious process in the baby's body and inflammatory conditions on the part of the mother’s mammary glands.
Analysis of breast milk is carried out in the following cases:
- frequent purulent rashes on the skin of the child;
- manifestations of dysbiosis;
- regularly appearing impurities of mucus and green inclusions in the baby's feces;
- signs of an inflammatory process on the part of the mother’s mammary gland (pain, hyperemia, fever, the presence of purulent discharge from the nipple);
- low weight gain in a child in combination with one of the above conditions.
Milk Collection Rules
To pass the analysis of breast milk, you must follow certain rules when collecting it:
- Prepare a container for the material. These can be special glasses or jars made of glass purchased at the pharmacy, but previously boiled together with lids.
- Each breast should have an individual container marked.
- Wash hands and chest with soap.
- The first 10 ml are decanted separately, since they are not used for research.
- Then, 10 ml from each gland are pumped into separate containers and tightly closed with lids.
An analysis of breast milk will be with the most revealing results if the material is delivered to the laboratory within 2 hours after collection. Usually the result is ready in a week.
Feeding in the determination of microorganisms in milk
The World Health Organization does not consider the presence of pathogenic microorganisms in mother's milk as a reason for refusing breast-feeding, since all these bacteria stimulate the production of antibodies from the female body, and they, in turn, get into the baby’s gastrointestinal tract and protect it.
In the case of the presence of microorganisms, but the absence of inflammatory processes in the mother, breastfeeding is considered safe.
If staphylococcus is found, mothers are prescribed antibacterial drugs, while the least toxic ones are preferred (cephalosporins, macrolides, penicillins). At the time of taking antibiotics, the baby is recommended to be applied to a healthy breast, regularly expressing the patient.
In case of detection of signs of staphylococcal infection, both mother and child are treated with therapy. In a child, the pathological process is manifested in the following:
- conjunctivitis - the eyes turn sour, purulent discharge appears in the corners, accompanied by swelling and hyperemia;
- omphalitis - swelling and redness of the navel, the presence of purulent discharge;
- staphyloderma - vesicles on the skin with purulent contents, surrounded by a hyperemic corolla;
- enterocolitis - loose stools up to 10 times a day, feces with an admixture of blood and mucus, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting.
Evaluation of the results
Analysis of breast milk can have 4 options for results:
- There is no growth of microflora. This result is very rare, since in most cases milk is not sterile.
- The presence of opportunistic microflora in acceptable quantities. This means that there are a small number of microorganisms in milk that are not harmful to the mother and baby.
- The presence of pathogenic microflora in the number of colonies is less than 250 CFU / ml. This means that dangerous strains were seeded, but their level is within the normal range, and therefore safe.
- The presence of pathogenic microflora in the number of colonies is more than 250 CFU / ml. This option requires treatment and refusal of breastfeeding.
Of the representatives of pathogens, the following can be sown:
- salmonella;
- E. coli;
- cholera vibrio;
- Klebsiella;
- mushrooms of the genus Candida;
- Staphylococcus aureus;
- Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Whatever indicators are indicated on the analysis form, the attending physician should interpret the results.
Fat Analysis
Fat is an important indicator on which the saturation and well-being of a child depends. Its insufficiency leads to the fact that the baby is gaining weight poorly, and high fat content can be a provocateur of dysbiosis.
For the correct result, you need to collect the "back" milk. This is the nutrient fluid that enters the body of the child after the "front" containing a large amount of water and lactose. Milk is treated with sulfuric acid, which causes the precipitation of fats in the sediment. Fat level is determined using a butyrometer. Analysis of breast milk for fat content has the following normal indicators: 3.5-3.8%.
Other studies
There are a number of analyzes of breast milk to determine the qualitative and quantitative indicators of composition:
- assessment of specific gravity indicators;
- antibody level.
1. Determination of the specific gravity of breast milk
The indicators specify the ratio of proteins and fats. Depending on how mature the milk is, the numbers may vary. Material for the study is collected 1-1.5 hours after feeding the baby. In the laboratory, milk is poured into a glass tube and the hydrometer is immersed in it. Evaluation of the results depends on the temperature of the room in which the study is conducted.
Normal values are 1.026-1.036, provided that the temperature is 15 ° C. With an increase or decrease in temperature with each degree, 0.001 is added to or subtracted from the results, respectively.
2. The level of antibodies in breast milk
The level of immunoglobulins in mother’s milk differs at different periods of the baby’s life. In the first days after birth, while the mammary glands produce colostrum, the amount of immunoglobulin A is greatest. It decreases by the end of the first week and keeps at this level for 8-10 months.
A small amount contains immunoglobulins M, G, interferon, interleukins, macrophages, lymphocytes.
Where to get breast milk
Research is conducted in private clinical laboratories. Their cost depends on the method used and the technologies used. You can submit the material on your own initiative or on the recommendation of a doctor who has prescribed a referral for analysis. Breast milk, the sterility of which is valuable for the mother, is an important part of shaping the baby’s future health, which means that every effort must be made to maintain lactation for as long as possible.