Background: Breastfeeding with mother's milk is the best form of nutrition not only for newborn babies, but especially for premature babies, due to the health benefits of taking human food.
Objectives: The aim of the study was to examine the basic composition, cortisol concentration and antioxidant status of breast milk samples from women giving birth before 37 weeks of pregnancy and comparing it with milk samples from women giving birth after 37 weeks of pregnancy.
Methods: The material for the study was milk taken from women giving birth before and after 37 weeks of pregnancy. The basic composition of breast milk was determined using a MIRIS analyzer, cortisol concentration in samples by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent test and their total antioxidant status was assessed by DPPH and FRAP methods.
Results: It has been shown that the concentration of cortisol in samples of human milk in the group of women giving birth before 37 weeks was 13.95 ng / ml [4,71-86,84], while in the group of women giving birth after week 37 of pregnancy-10.31 ng / ml [2.35-39-02] (p = 0.014), while% inhibition of DPPH was 65.46% and 58.30%, respectively (p = 0.014).
Conclusions: Milk from women giving birth prematurely is qualitatively different from the milk of women giving birth on time. The total antioxidant status of preterm milk is higher than term milk, which promotes the development of premature babies. Higher cortisol levels in samples from women giving birth before 37 weeks of pregnancy may stimulate the digestive system.