Sugar in breast milk ‘ helps beat deadly bacteria’

A SUGAR found in breast milk protects newborns against a deadly bug, British scientists believe.

research from Imperial College London suggests the naturally occurring compound wards off group B streptococcal infection.

Also known as GBS, this is the most common life-threatening infection in newborns in the UK, causing meningitis, blood poisoning and pneumonia.

It claims the life of one baby a week and many others are left with long-term disabilities.

Many pregnant women naturally carry the bug and the number of infections in babies is rising. However, it has not been understood why some newborns pick up the bug and others remain healthy.

The Imperial scientists studied 183 women in the gambia and their babies. They tested the mothers’ DNA for a gene that is linked to blood group and also plays an important role in determining the type of sugar that her breast milk contains. Tests were also run for gBs.

The team found women with the gene were less likely to have the gBs in their gut, and their babies were also less likely to be infected at birth.

Those babies that were infected also found it easier to fight off the germ if their mother’s breast milk contained a sugar called lacto-n- difucohexaose I, which around half of women are thought to produce.

Finally, tests in a dish in the lab showed that breast milk containing the sugar was better at killing the gBs.

Lead researcher Nicholas Andreas said: ‘Although this is early- stage research it demonstrates the complexity of breast milk, and the benefits it may have for the baby.

‘Increasingly, research is suggesting these breast milk sugars may protect against infections in the newborn, as well as boosting a child’s “friendly’ gut bacteria.’

It is thought that the sugar allows ‘ friendly’ bacteria to flourish and out- compete any harmful bacteria that may be in the youngster’s gut, such as group B streptococcus.

The sugar is also thought to act as a decoy that fools the bacteria into thinking it is a type of human cell that can be invaded. The bacteria latch on to the sugar, only to be excreted by the body.

This may help protect the baby from infection until their own immune system is more mature to fight off the invaders at around six months of age.

The NHs advises that breastfeeding gives babies the healthiest start in life.

‘Benefits for the baby’