Project 467250

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a maternal intolerance to glucose (a simple sugar) that can develop during the second to third trimester of pregnancy (20-32 weeks). Human milk (HM) is considered the best source of nutrition for infants. This is for several reasons, including that it is composed of nutrients, easily digested by the neonate, antibodies and facilitates skin-to-skin contact. Oligosaccharides are carbohydrates, composed of three to ten simple sugars. In human milk, they exist as dietary fibers, and help development of the infant's immune system. Human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) are associated with lower risk of allergies and inflammation. HMOs have also been associated with reduced incidence of Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and associated complications. NEC is one of the most common and devastating intestinal disorders in preterm infants. Perhaps relevant, as GDM is associated with reduced gestational age at delivery (37-38 weeks). Several studies have looked at the effect of HMOs in pregnancy without diabetes, but research is limited on gestational dysgycemia. As part of a larger clinical trial, human milk samples will be collected at two timepoints, one week after birth (transitional milk) and again at 8 weeks (mature milk), in glucose intolerant women at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Thirty millilitres of each human milk sample will be aliquoted and analyzed through high-performance liquid chromatography to determine concentration of HMOs and compared to the literature. The findings from this study will add to the current research regarding HMOs and support hypothesis building.