What is the macronutrient composition of human milk in women with PCOS compared to women without PCOS?
The composition of milk from women with PCOS has not been studied. Could the potentially high carbohydrate composition of human breast milk contribute to insulin resistance in children? This is highly unlikely. Mammalian milk is species-specific, providing the exact nutrients necessary for optimal growth of each species. The majority of the carbohydrate in human milk is in the form of lactose, which serves to enhance calcium absorption as well as provide a ready energy source for the rapidly growing infant brain. It is interesting to note that human babies make large amounts of lactase, enzymes which break down lactose, for the first couple of years of life, after which the production of these enyzmes diminishes greatly. This suggests that lactose is an important nutritional source for the human infant, but not for older humans. This raises some intriguing questions. If we are not built to process a lot of lactose after infancy, what might be the ramifications of a diet high in dairy?
