Risks associated with over-consumption of protein
There are no two ways about the fact that mother’s milk is the best for a baby. It’s not only nutritionally balanced but also contains disease-fighting properties and plays a significant role in developing your baby’s immunity. It also prevents the baby from later risks of developing obesity, diabetes, and asthma due to the adequate amount of proteins which not only fulfill the nutritional needs but also have long-term benefits for the baby.
It also contains hundreds of pre-broken down proteins along with fats, carbohydrates- lactose and minerals. It, therefore, could be said to be ‘partially hydrolyzed’, although the digested peptides represent only a minority of the total protein content.
The primary protein in Breast Milk
The whey: casein ratio in breast milk is 60:40 making it gentle on the infant’s immature digestive system. These proteins have great infection-protection properties.
As the digestive system of infants is immature, they do not secrete enough enzymes for the digestion. To support digestion, they should be fed with breast milk as it has protein-digesting enzymes in addition to other enzymes which plays an important role in the digestion of proteins by breaking them into small components making them easy to digest to provide the infant with the essential nutrients required for their growth.
Many times we are asked why we can’t replace Mother’s milk with Cow’s milk as it is a good source of protein.
For those who don’t know, cow’s milk contains high concentrations of protein making it hard- to digest for babies and puts a pressure on the immature kidneys and digestive system. It also lacks the proper amount of Vitamin C and Iron which is needed by the baby. The casein content is higher in cow’s milk, which is difficult to digest. Besides, cow’s milk has a significantly lower concentration of α-lactalbumin and contains 12% glycomacropeptide (GMP).
In short, cow’s milk contains an excess amount of proteins and can lead to diseases caused by high intake of proteins such as obesity, diabetes etc.
Importance of feeding the right quantity of protein
Infants are born with immature digestive systems and their gastrointestinal tract doesn’t produce all of the digestive enzymes. Breast milk contains certain enzymes that aid in protein digestion. The protein in breast milk is softer curds that get digested quicker than cow’s milk. The protein in breast milk also gets almost completely absorbed by the baby – the rest passing through as waste. This causes breastfed babies to produce softer stools. Breast milk is a natural laxative and reduces the risk of constipation
What’s happens if the child consumes the higher amount of proteins
WHO recommends a protein intake of 1.43 g/100 kcal (5.7% of energy intake) at 1 year of age and 1.2 g/100 kcal (4.8% of energy) at 2 years, whereas the protein content in human milk ranges from 1.4–1.6 g/100 mL, to 0.7–0.8 g/100 mL after six months of lactation. Mothers generally feed their baby with an extra dose with the misconception that they are not full. Higher protein intake in infancy has been associated with higher risk of obesity, diabetes and other diseases later on in life.
If proteins are not fed in the right quantity, it can lead to long-term diseases which we talked about earlier. It is therefore essential to identify the right sources and the quantity of proteins these sources are giving to the baby.
That’s why breast milk is the perfect nutrition for the first 6 months to give your baby a healthy start that leads to a healthy growth.
Disclaimer: Start Healthy Stay Healthy programme is for educational purposes only, in partnership with doctors. Always consult a doctor if you have any questions related to your own health or the health of your child