Maternal Vitamin C Supplementation Found to Increase Vitamin C Content of Breast Milk.

A Swiss study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (81, 5:1088-1093, 2005) found that the ascorbic acid content of human breast milk increases when a lactating woman receives supplemental vitamin C. The percent of increase was dramatically greater when a woman had low vitamin C status prior to supplementation.

Researchers stated that little was previously known concerning the influence of intake of vitamin C on human milk ascorbic acid content. 171 African women and 142 European women participated in the study. Prior to supplementation, analysis revealed that the mean ascorbic acid content of breast milk in the African women was 50 % lower than that of the European women. Matched subgroups of African and European women received vitamin C supplementation in varying forms and strengths. 18 African and 10 European women received 1,000 mg per day of vitamin C for 10 days. The ascorbic acid content of breast milk in the African women increased from 19 to 60 mg/kg, while the increase for European women was from 60 to 70 mg/kg. This was a three-fold increase in the African women as compared to a relatively modest increase in European women. Lower levels of ascorbic acid supplementation yielded correspondingly lower increases in breast milk content.

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