Technology that would allow hospitals to personalise the fortification of human milk for premature babies is being developed by Scientists from the Gdańsk University of Technology and the Medical University of Gdańsk.
The PreciousHMFstudy project aims to create a system that analyses the composition of breast milk and supplements missing nutrients according to the needs of individual newborns, particularly infants with very low birth weight.
“Human milk is the best food for them, but its composition is variable and in the case of preterm newborns, it often does fails to meet the nutritional needs such as protein or energy’, said Edyta Malinowska-Pańczyk from the Faculty of Chemistry at Gdańsk University of Technology, who leads the project.
She added that current fortification methods are largely based on estimation, while available milk fortifiers are usually derived from cow’s milk.
The new system uses devices designed to analyse breast milk composition and precisely fortify it directly in a hospital setting.
According to the researchers, the approach could improve nutrition for the most premature infants, supporting development, weight gain and reducing complications linked to nutritional deficiencies.
“This innovative solution is intended to be not only effective but also simple and applicable in everyday clinical practice, without the need for complex procedures’, Malinowska-Pańczyk added.
But she said that the project does not replace human milk with formula. Instead, it is based on breast milk and supplements it individually while preserving naturally occurring bioactive compounds important for development and immunity.
The project is currently in its early stages and focuses on developing and optimising the technology ahead of preclinical trials.
Clinical trials involving premature infants are planned in later phases of the research. (PAP)
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