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94 percent of breastfeeding
mothers don't follow proper diet
London, (IANS) About 94 percent of breastfeeding mothers do not follow a proper diet, says a new study. The research conducted by the University of Granada (UG) revealed that nursing mothers did not consume the recommended dairy intake of fat, vitamins A, E and iron, while protein intake was too high. The results obtained will serve to enhance breastfeeding mothers' diet and increase nutritional supply to the newborn. This study was conducted by Jose Luis Gomez Llorente, paediatrician from the UG, and coordinated by Cristina Campoy Folgoso, a professor. Researchers collected 100 milk samples from breastfeeding mothers from the provinces of Granada and Almeria. The selected mothers were given a questionnaire on their dietary intake for a period corresponding to the three days before the sample taking. The aim was to compare their dietary intake with the recommended diary reference intake, in order to detect deficiencies and enhance babies' intake of nutrients. This study revealed some important data that 94 percent of mothers were found to consume a hypocaloric diet, mainly due to low consumption of fats. Conversely, they followed a diet rich in proteins, and their intake of proteins exceeded Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI). DRI is a system of nutrition recommendations from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the US National Academy of Sciences, said an UG release. The analysed mothers showed deficiencies in vitamin A and E; 88 percent of them did not meet DRI of vitamin A, and 99 percent presented deficient vitamin E intakes. The intake of iron was 13.8 mg/day, which means that 94 percent of breastfeeding mothers did not meet DRI. They were found to have a deficient intake of this important micronutrient that is essential for the neurological development of their babies. - IANS / Yahoo News
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