Patterns of Serum Glucose and Galactose Concentrations in Term Newborn Infants after Milk Feeding

Abstract

Galactose and glucose concentrations were measured in peripheral blood in relation to ad libitum milk feeding in 11 healthy near-term infants. Galactose and glucose concentrations before feeding averaged 1.06 ± 0.21 and 60.3 ± 3.2 mg/dl, respectively. After feedings containing 0.76–2.68 g lactose/kg body weight, both galactose and glucose rose by approximately 35%. Galactose concentrations rose by 0.72 ± 0.10 mg/dl at 30 min after feeding, while glucose concentration rose by 23.3 ± 2.5 mg/dl at 30 min after feeding. The 25-fold greater absolute increase in the concentration of glucose than galactose is consistent with efficient first-pass clearance of galactose by the neonatal liver.

Blood Galactose and Glucose Levels in Mothers, Cord Blood, and 48-Hour-Old Breast-Fed Full-Term Infants

“…And in eighteen 18-28-dayold normal neonates, levels were 0.05 8 0.039 mmol/l (0.96 8 0.71 mg/dl), with galactose determined by enzymatic methods [5] . Galactose levels in our 48-hour-old newborns are similar to those of Mizoguchi et al [5] and lower than those found by Siegel et al [4] ; however, differences in protocols must be considered, such as infant age, the time after milk ingestion when samples were collected, and type of milk. Galactose and glucose concentrations are higher in preterm or full-term formulas than breast milk [27] .…”

“…The absence of an association between galactose and glucose blood levels in the cord and 48-hour-old infant suggests that the newborn has established its own metabolism independently from the fetal metabolism and that blood galactose is very dependent on milk ingestion. Although it was not possible to demonstrate a direct association between ingested galactose, through maternal milk lactose, and blood galactose levels in newborns, there is indirect evidence in literature connecting milk ingestion and blood galactose levels [4,7] .…”

“…We found that for exclusively breast-fed, normal birth, 48-hour-old newborn infants, blood galactose levels 30 min after the beginning of feeding were 0.05 8 0.02 mmol/l with a range of 0.024-0.096 mmol/l and were inferior to cord blood levels (0.07 8 0.03 mmol/l). In 55 normal infants receiving more than 80 kcal/kg/day as breast milk or lactose rich formula, blood galactose levels in the 20 min after feeding were 0.08 8 0.01 mmol/l (1.5 8 0.2 mg/dl), ranging from 0.044 mmol/l (0.8 mg/dl) to 0.23 mmol/l (4.2 mg/dl) [4] . And in eighteen 18-28-dayold normal neonates, levels were 0.05 8 0.039 mmol/l (0.96 8 0.71 mg/dl), with galactose determined by enzymatic methods [5] .…”

A Typical Feeding Enhances Memory for Spoken Words in Healthy 2- to 3-Day-Old Newborns

“…[12][13][14][15] The aim of this study was to determine whether delayed recognition memory for spoken words is better after a typical feeding than before and whether blood glucose levels are associated with memory. Healthy 2-to 3-day-old infants were studied under naturalistic conditions; that is, memory was compared before and after a routine breast or formula feeding.…”

“…Newborn blood glucose levels after a feeding tend to be highest at 30 to 90 minutes and decline steadily to baseline values after 90 to 120 minutes. [12][13][14][15] Because previous studies suggested that only some infants have postprandial blood glucose levels that increase up to levels that are found after a memory enhancing dose of glucose (2 g/kg), twice as many infants were tested after a feeding as before (two thirds versus one third). Blood glucose was measured in all infants after the memory test (mean Ϯ SD: 16.4 Ϯ 8.8 minutes).…”