HMOs
Our Human Milk Oligosaccharides (HMO)hub contains a wealth of evidence-based information including an array of studies on HMOs; what they are and what they do for babies; information regarding the benefits of HMOs; how they are beneficial in infant nutrition; a visual infographic on the benefits of HMOs in preterm infants; a selection of short educational videos to watch; and insightful learnings on HMOs and the baby gut microbiota.
Learn about HMOs here, what they are, what they do for babies and how, after lactose and fats, HMOs in breastmilk are one of the most common components. But only about 1% of the HMOs that a baby ingests is digested and absorbed in the gut.1,2 HMOs are a key driver in establishing a healthy community of gut bacteria in new-born babies1-3 and we now know that patterns of bacteria thrive on particular HMOs in breast milk.4 However, HMOs are more than food for bacteria.
Alternatively, watch a short 2-minute video that will explain more about HMOs on immunity, or download an infographic in our benefits of HMOs section.
HMOs are unique to breast milk and research suggests that they provide immune support to developing infants.5–8 HMOs have a unique structure which allows them to provide targeted benefits.
They do this in four main ways:
- Selectively feeding good bacteria within the gut, where 70–80% of the body’s immune cells live6,7
- Blocking bad bacteria from attaching to the gut and doing harm6–8
- Strengthening the developing gut barrier6–8
- Helping to balance the immune system6,7
Learn more about how HMOs are beneficial in infant nutrition here.
- Bode L. The functional biology of human milk oligosaccharides Early Human Development 2015;91:619–622.
- Bode L. Human milk oligosaccharides: Every baby needs a sugar mama Glycobiology 2012;9:1147–1162.
- Jantscher- Krenn E and Bode L. Human milk oligosaccharides and their potential benefits for the breast-fed neonate Minerva Pediatr 2012;64:83–99.
- Borewicz K et al. Correlating Infant Fecal Microbiota Composition and Human Milk Oligosaccharide consumption by Microbiota of 1-Month-Old Breastfed Infants Mol Nutr Food Res 2019, 1801214.
- Kunz C. Historical aspects of human milk oligosaccharides. Adv Nutr 2012; 3(3): 430S–9S.
- Bode L. Human milk oligosaccharides: every baby needs a sugar mama. Glycobiology 2012; 22(9): 1147–62.
- Jantscher-Krenn E, Bode L. Human milk oligosaccharides and their potential benefits for the breast-fed neonate. Minerva Pediatr 2012; 64(1): 83–99.
- Smilowitz JT, Lebrilla CB, Mills DA, et al. Breast milk oligosaccharides: structure-function relationships in the neonate. Annu Rev Nutr 2014; 34: 143–69.