Table 4.
Summary of the association between human milk composition and maternal weight.
| Paper | Feeding type | HM measured time-point | HM component | Maternal weight measure time-point | Reported associations and correlations | Confounders adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cagiran-Yilmaz et al. (11) | EBF for 3+ months | 1, 3 and 6 months | Leptin (ng/mL) | 1, 3 and 6 months | Significant, positive correlation with weight (p < 0.01) | None |
| Ellsworth et al. (17) | EBF for 3+ months | Day 16 post-partum | Insulin (ng/mL) | Day 16 post-partum | Significant association with weight (p = 0.02), higher levels in OW/OB | Infant sex and feeding type (milk only or milk + formula), maternal weight status, pre-pregnancy BMI |
| Leghi et al. (24) | EBF for 6 to 20 weeks | NS | Adiponectin (ng mL−1) | NS | No association observed | None |
| Leptin (ng/mL) | Significant, positive association with body weight (p < 0.001) | |||||
| Insulin (ng/mL) | No association observed | |||||
| Pundir et al. (28) | EBF for 3+ months | 3 months | Cortisol (ng/mL) | 3 months | Significant, positive association with normal weight mothers (p = 0.01) | Maternal BMI, education, occupational class, family income, family structure, seasonal variation, maternal distress, pregnancy duration, delivery and gestational diabetes |
| SadrDadres et al. (31) | EBF for 3+ months | 1 and 3 months | Adiponectin (ng mL−1) | 1 and 3 months | No association observed | None |
| Leptin (ng/mL) | Positive association with GWG (p < 0.001, β = 0.3) and negative association with PPWL (p < 0.001, β = −0.18) | |||||
| Insulin (ng mL−1) | No association observed | |||||
| Young et al. (37) | EBF for 3+ months | 2 weeks and 1, 2, 3 and 4 months | Insulin (ng/mL) | 2 weeks and 1, 2, 3 and 4 months | Significant association with weight (p = 0.019) | Maternal pre-pregnancy BMI group, birth weight, gestational age at delivery, gestational weight gain, maternal age, breastfeeding exclusivity, infant sex and mode of delivery |
Where confounders were adjusted, data reported is from adjusted analysis. Significant results are depicted with the p value in bold. HM, human milk; EBF, exclusive breastfeeding; PBF, predominantly breastfeeding; BMI, body mass index; GWG, gestational weight gain; PPWL, post-partum weight loss; OW, overweight; OB, obesity; NS, not stated.