Breast milk best source of energy

Hyderabad: The energy needed for a newborn child comes from the fats in the breast milk.  It is found that 50 per cent of energy is from the fat in the breast milk which means that the mother must have adequate amounts of fat in her body to produce sufficient breast milk.  The lactating mothers require a good combination of fatty foods which will ensure the development and functioning of the central nervous system of the child along with the cardiovascular and immune functions.

Professor Sadhna Joshi who has carried out several studies on fatty acids in young mothers said, “Indian Council of Medical Research is looking at collecting data to understand where are we going wrong in the nutritional intake. The shift to highly processed and junk foods is a concern among the youth who need to be educated about the right kind of nutrition.”