Do HMOs benefit infant brain development?

According to a narrative review by research experts in human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), yes, they do.

Their work has just been published in a Nutrients Special Issue, Human Milk Feeding: Health and Nutrition for Term and Preterm Newborns – What’s New?

“Overall, findings revealed that greater concentrations of HMOs in human milk during the recommended window of exclusive breastfeeding, a period of dramatic growth and experiential learning, were associated with greater cognitive, language, and motor skill development later in infancy,” write the authors.

Their work to synthesize published literature on HMOs and neurodevelopmental outcomes also brought further clarity on precisely which HMOs are beneficial for neurodevelopmental outcomes.

Read the full review here (‘Human Milk Oligosaccharides and Infant Neurodevelopment: A Narrative Review’).

FLRF is proud to help support such work through the Larsson-Rosenquist Foundation Mother-Milk-Infant Center of Research Excellence at the University of California San Diego.

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