Table 12.
Human milk fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) composition (g/100 g of total fat) of the omnivore human milk donors with full-term infants (Donors) and vegetarian/vegan mothers (Veg).
| Fatty Acid (%) | Common Name | Donors (n = 88) | Veg (n = 20) | p Value | Reference Values | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European [88] 1 | World [89] 2 | |||||
| Saturated Fatty Acids (SFAs) | ||||||
| C6:0 | Caproic | 0.11 (0.00) | 0.10 (0.00) | 0.631 | 0.08 ± 0.02 | 0.13 ± 0.47 |
| C8:0 | Caprylic | 0.18 (0.00) | 0.17 (0.01) | 0.095 | 0.22 ± 0.06 | 0.21 ± 0.22 |
| C10:0 | Capric | 1.18 (0.03) | 1.05 (0.06) | 0.018 | 1.44 ± 0.34 | 1.37 ± 0.86 |
| C12:0 | Lauric | 5.38 (0.17) | 5.14 (0.36) | 0.719 | 5.46 ± 1.84 | 5.7 ± 2.81 |
| C14:0 | Myristic | 6.50 (0.30) | 5.45 (0.44) | 0.255 | 6.19 ± 1.93 | 6.56 ± 3.05 |
| C15:0 | 0.19 (0.01) | 0.08 (0.01) | <0.001 | |||
| C15:0 ai | C15:0 anteiso | 0.03 (0.00) | 0.02 (0.00) | <0.001 | ||
| C15:0 i | C15:0 iso | 0.04 (0.00) | 0.01 (0.00) | <0.001 | ||
| C16:0 i | C16:0 iso | 0.02 (0.00) | 0.01 (0.01) | <0.001 | ||
| C16:0 | Palmitic | 19.64 (0.27) | 15.24 (0.52) | <0.001 | 21.94 ± 2.92 | 21.5 ± 4.82 |
| C17:0 ai | C17:0 anteiso | 0.05 (0.00) | 0.01 (0.00) | <0.001 | ||
| C17:0 i | C17:0 iso | 0.27 (0.01) | 0.30 (0.02) | 0.102 | ||
| C17:0 | Margaric | 0.20 (0.01) | 0.09 (0.01 | <0.001 | 0.31 ± 0.15 | |
| C18:0 | Stearic | 5.83 (0.14) | 4.06 (0.22) | <0.001 | 6.68 ± 1.59 | 6.36 ± 2.07 |
| C20:0 | Arachidic | 0.16 (0.01) | 0.17 (0.03) | 0.733 | 0.17 ± 0.04 | 0.23 ± 0.17 |
| Monounsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFAs) | ||||||
| C14:1 cis-9 (n5) | Myristoleic | 0.08 (0.00) | 0.03 (0.01) | <0.001 | ||
| C16:1 cis-9 (n7) | Palmitoleic | 1.55 (0.05) | 1.32 (0.11) | <0.001 | 2.21 ± 0.64 | 2.3 ± 0.92 |
| C17:1 | Margaroleic | 0.07 (0.00) | 0.04 (0.00) | <0.001 | ||
| ∑ C18:1 trans | 0.27 (0.02) | 0.07 (0.03) | <0.001 | 0.66 ± 0.35 | ||
| C18:1 cis-9 (n9) | Oleic | 38.31 (0.53) | 41.38 (1.22) | 0.025 | 35.59 ± 4.17 | 32.6 ± 5.84 |
| C18:1 cis-11 (n7) | Cis vaccenic | 1.59 (0.03) | 1.66 (0.05) | 0.282 | 2.38 ± 0.53 | |
| C20:1 (n9) | Gondoic | 0.69 (0.06) | 1.42 (0.21) | <0.001 | 0.38 ± 0.12 | 0.46 ± 0.28 |
| n-6 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (n-6 PUFAs) | ||||||
| C18:2 (n6) | Linoleic (LA) | 15.29 (0.39) | 20.02 (1.15) | <0.001 | 14.00 ± 4.95 | 15.7 ± 7.15 |
| C20:2 (n6) | Eicosadienoic | 0.27 (0.01) | 0.32 (0.02) | 0.063 | 0.26 ± 0.07 | 0.37 ± 0.19 |
| C20:3 (n6) | Dihomo-γ-linolenic | 0.33 (0.01) | 0.36 (0.04) | 0.652 | 0.31 ± 0.09 | 0.37 ± 0.18 |
| C20:4 (n6) | Arachidonic (AA) | 0.55 (0.02) | 0.46 (0.03) | 0.012 | 0.44 ± 0.12 | 0.50 ± 0.25 |
| n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (n-3 PUFAs) | ||||||
| C18:3 (n3) | Linolenic (ALA) | 0.52 (0.02) | 0.61 (0.05) | 0.044 | 0.94 ± 0.55 | 1.11 ± 1.05 |
| C22:5 (n3) | Docosapentaenoic (DPA) | 0.08 (0.01) | 0.04 (0.01) | <0.001 | ||
| C22:6 (n3) | Docosahexaenoic (DHA) | 0.33 (0.02) | 0.15 (0.04) | <0.001 | 0.34 ± 0.35 | 0.37 ± 0.31 |
| n-7 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (n-7 PUFAs) | ||||||
| C18:2 c9, t11 (n7) | Rumenic | 0.09 (0.01) | 0.04 (0.02) | |||
| Fatty Acid Families | ||||||
| Not identified | 0.21 (0.02) | 0.18 (0.02) | 0.297 | |||
| SFAs | 39.78 (0.54) | 31.90 (0.91) | <0.001 | 42.23 ± 5.29 | 42.2 ± 7.73 | |
| MUFAs | 42.55 (0.56) | 45.91 (1.17) | 0.017 | 41.34 ± 4.48 | 36.3 ± 6.46 | |
| PUFAs | 17.46 (0.39) | 22.00 (1.15) | <0.001 | 16.43 ± 5.07 | 21.2 ± 8.18 | |
| SCFAs | 0.11 (0.00) | 0.10 (0.00) | 0.654 | |||
| MCFAs (C8-C15) | 13.59 (0.47) | 11.94 (0.82) | 0.317 | |||
| LCFAs (C16-C18) | 83.60 (0.48) | 84.81 (0.93) | 0.509 | |||
| VLCFAs (C20-C24) | 2.50 (0.09) | 2.96 (0.24) | 0.071 | |||
| n-6 PUFAs | 16.44 (0.39) | 21.16 (1.16) | <0.001 | 17.8 ± 7.51 | ||
| n-3 PUFAs | 0.93 (0.04) | 0.80 (0.06) | 0.104 | 1.88 ± 2.63 | ||
| n-6 PUFAs/n-3 PUFAs | 20.90 (1.20) | 29.32 (2.49) | 0.001 | |||
| LA/ALA ratio | 33.61 (1.64) | 36.46 (3.25) | 0.272 | |||
| ARA/DHA ratio | 2.47 (0.19) | 6.68 (1.05) | <0.001 | 1.68 ± 0.89 | ||
Variables are presented as means (standard error of the mean). 1 Data are presented as the mean ± standard deviation, from 223 lactating mothers at a lactation stage of 120 ± 5 days. 2 Data of the mature milk are presented as the mean ± standard deviation. Abbreviations: SCFAs, short-chain fatty acids; MCFAs, medium-chain fatty acids; LCFAs, long-chain fatty acids; and VLCFAs, very-long-chain fatty acids.