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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2024.12.11.627965

Food-Derived Compounds Extend the Shelf-Life of Frozen Human Milk

Silpe, J. E.·Damian-Medina, K.·Bassler, B. L.
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Abstract

Breastmilk is known to provide optimal nutrition for infant growth and development. A cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative US data from 2016 to 2021 revealed that >90% of lactating mothers reported using breast pumps to express milk.1 We conducted a survey of n = 1,049 lactating or recently lactating individuals from a US nationally representative population to explore breastmilk storage practices among this group. The data revealed that 83% of respondents store breastmilk in their homes, with 68% using freezers to do so for >1 month. The lowest available temperature in most household freezers is -20 {degrees}C, a temperature that is inadequate to maintain human milks emulsified structure, leading to separation, degradation of fats, loss of key vitamins, and changes in palatability. We developed a first-of-its-kind high-throughput screening platform to identify food-derived compounds and combinations of compounds that, when added to human breastmilk, preserve fat content, retain antioxidant capacity, and reduce production of rancid-associated free fatty acids during extended freezer storage. These formulations represent leads for the development of safe and affordable frozen breastmilk shelf-life extenders for easy at-home use to increase the longevity of stored breastmilk.

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Silpe, J. E., Damian-Medina, K., Bassler, B. L.. 2024-12-12. Food-Derived Compounds Extend the Shelf-Life of Frozen Human Milk. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.12.11.627965

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