Environmental Contaminants in Human Milk

Introduction:

Breast milk comprises fat, protein, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins, naturally enhancing the infant's immunity. Current studies have pointed out various contaminants affecting the purity of breast milk. This could be due to any diseased condition of the mother, infection acquired pre or post-natal delivery, drug abuse, toxins, and constant exposure to environmental pollutants like the pesticide through food, air pollutants, and water pollutants. Recent surveys have come up with the findings of microplastics also in human breast milk.

What Does Breast Milk Contain?

The composition of breast milk changes over the course of feeding.

• Colostrum: Post-delivery, the very first milk ejaculated from the mother's breast is thin and yellowy. This is called colostrum. It helps to build the child's innate immunity and helps develop gut flora for digestion.

• Mature Milk: After three to four days of delivery, the colostrum milk slowly changes into thin watery milk.

• Creamy Milk: Gradually, the milk gains thicker consistency and is tastier and sweeter. This milk is rich in protein, carbohydrates, sugar, minerals, and immunity to the infant.

Other components of breast milk are Ig A which is present from the tenth day of the lactation period and lasts up to seven and a half months. Ig A helps in building immunity in infants.

1. Proteins: 0.8 - 0.9 %

2. Fat: 4.5 %

3. Carbohydrates: 7.1 %

4. Minerals: 0.2 %

5. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA): 6 % (fat milk).

6. Non-Protein Compounds: 25 % (nitrogen, urea, uric acid, creatinine, amino acids, and nucleotides).

7. Neurotransmitter Cells: For example, anandamide and oleoylethanolamide help build infants' appetites.

8. Bacterias: For example, B. fidium and B.dentium bacterias are probiotic and aids in digestion.

9. Somatic Cells: This helps in the growth of tissues, for example, lactocytes and myoepithelial cells.

10. Human Milk Oligosaccharides (HMO): They contain a unique sugar component absent in formulated and infant milk. This helps to fight pathogenic bacteria.

Breast milk gives protection to the child from unwarranted infections. It builds a bond between mother and child and develops the cognitive mechanism in a child. Formulated products and breast milk sales in markets are unsafe and have adverse effects.

How Safe Is Mother's Milk?

Mother's milk is the safest as it contains nutrients for a child's development and immune cells to boost immunity. However, in the present civilization of man, nature is cut down, and many artificial or laboratory-developed products are marketed more than natural products. This has invited many uninvited guests like illnesses, immune-compromised patients, a global pandemic outbreak, increased use of pesticides, plastics, bio-hazardous products, formulated foods, hormone-injected farm products, and many more, which have triggered the equilibrium of nature. Some of the toxins in human breast milk lately are

• Pesticides and Insecticides: Many toxic components have invaded breast milk through farm vegetables treated with pesticides. For example, aldrin and dieldrin are absorbed from the soil and stored in the body's fat tissues. This product has been banned in twenty-eight countries. Another pesticide named chlordane is again used against farm termites. The presence of chlordane has been detected in breast milk and is toxic. Other pesticides are heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorocyclohexane, dioxins, and furans.

• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs): These are in plastic products such as textiles, furniture, and television and are flame retardants. They can evaporate in the environment and affect brain development and hormone variation on inhalation.

• Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT): This is a common household insecticide and has also been used against the spread of malaria. However, the presence of DDT in soil lasts more than fifteen years and has serious consequences on health. DDT has an affinity towards fat substances and is found in human breast milk rather than in blood.

• Heavy Metals: The presence of toxic metals has been detected in various products like paints used to house paints containing high levels of lead, mercury, and cadmium. Inhalation of lead during pregnancy can cause brain retardation in the infant. The presence of lead has also been found in food in communities with poor socio-economic status. People working in industrial places are found to be more contaminated with this toxic metal.

• Volatile Organic Compounds: Solvents used in varnishes, thinners, paints, and chloroform can easily be absorbed through the skin and contaminate the blood, cause cell damage and affect the breast milk constitution.

• Medications: Certain medications can travel through breast milk and affect the child. For example, Penicillins can cause oral thrush in infants and diarrhea, Tetracyclines can permanently stain the teeth, and cardiovascular drugs like beta blockers can affect the infant's pulse rate. The use of sedatives can induce sedation in infants as well.

What Are the Complications of Contaminated Breast Milk?

Exposure to environmental pollutants in human breast milk through water, air, food, and drugs has serious health implications. Some of the side effects are

• Lack of immunity.

• Frequent sickness.

• Loss of cognitive behavior.

• Mental retardation.

• Lazy.

• Gene replications.

• Physically handicapped.

• Decreased intelligence quotient (IQ).

• Early maturation.

• Hormonal variation.

• Physical deformities.

How Can Breast Milk Be Preserved From Environmental Pollutants?

The government health sector has taken many preventive measures to ban toxic products. Each individual can take a personal precautionary measure against such exposures, such as

• Avoid using unprescribed drugs by the physician.

• Avoid pregnancy while undergoing treatments for cancer or other debilitating illness.

• Use fresh organic products devoid of insecticides and pesticides.

• Avoid places of toxin exposure like newly constructed buildings or smelling products of toxin value.

• Eat healthy food.

• Avoid formulated eateries.

• Avoid using chemical-coated utensils for food preparation.

• Stop products rich in arsenic which is found to be the top ten most pollutants present in breast milk by the world health organization (WHO). The primary source is contaminated soil. Long-term exposure to these toxins can affect neurological dysfunction, cardiac problem, and diabetes. Women who take a diet rich in green leafy vegetable which grows on the ground has higher chances of arsenic poisoning.

• Cadmium poisoning is another toxin found to spread through cigarette smoking and warehouses. High levels of cadmium exposure can lead to kidney, liver, and lung disease. Hence, avoid such circumstances of cadmium environments.

• Another toxin freely available in the environment is lead. It is circulated through the water supply. Exposure to lead can damage multi organs. Therefore use purified waters for safe health.

• Environmental pollution has caused a drastic effect on marine beings as well. As a result, the fishes have high mercury content. Hence consumption of fish rich in mercury should be avoided while breastfeeding. Studies have shown that mercury causes cognitive impairment in children and can also negatively affect behavioral development.

Conclusion:

Many developed countries have banned toxic products from the market. A standard guideline should be strictly implemented against using such bio-hazardous products. Communities living under such toxin-influenced localities should be considered under epidemiological study, and regular screening of the people should be done. From the time of conception till the lactating period, a mother should be very prompt about the environment and food intake. Premises and products high in toxins should be avoided at any cost.