Exploring the association between human breast milk lipids and early adiposity rebound in children: a case-control study

Objectives

Adiposity rebound (AR) corresponds to the start of the second rise in the body mass index (BMI) curve during infant growth. Early AR (before age 5) confers increased risk of adiposity and metabolic disorders but is less likely to occur in breastfed infants. Although lipids in breast milk is important in child growth, information is limited regarding which lipids involve in AR. The object of this study was to explore breast milk lipids associated with the AR status in children.

Methods

We designed a case-control study of 184 mother–child pairs (AR cases: n = 93; controls: n = 91) included from the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation (TMM BirThree) Cohort Study. Breast milk was collected one month postpartum and comprehensive lipid analysis was performed. Partial least square-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was used to explore candidate lipids, and multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate associations with the AR status of children.

Results

We detected 667 lipid molecules in 12 lipid classes in breast milk. PLS-DA revealed an association of fatty acid-hydroxy fatty acid (FAHFA) and cholesterol ester (ChE) with AR status. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that, in pairs with exclusive breastfeeding at one month postpartum, FAHFA (OR 1.57 [95% CI, 1.06–2.32]) was positively associated with early AR, and ChE (OR 0.55 [95% CI, 0.36–0.86]) was negatively associated.

Conclusions

Breast milk lipids (FAHFA, ChE) associated with the AR status of children, indicating the potential to regulate child's adiposity and possible metabolic disorders in adulthood.