Mother's milk - protective shield for the baby

Last weekend, I attended a conference sponsored by San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition.  During Q&A, a nurse-lactation consultant quoted her child's pediatrician telling her that "babies are allergic to mother's milk".

This got me thinking more about what's in human milk, besides all the necessary fats, proteins, immunoglobulins, sugars, and something else tremendously beneficial for the baby.

Today's article in the San Diego Union Tribune by Nicholas Wade describes a study by researchers at the University of California, Davis - Bruce German, Carlito Lebrilla and David Mills.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a review article of their work. 

The article said:
 1)  At least 21 percent of human milk is made up of "complex sugars".  Complex sugar (carbohydrate) molecules are sugars with 3 or more single sugar molecules bonded together.  Infants cannot digest complex sugars.  Think of the potato starch.  Complex sugars are starch.
 2)  Infants drinking breast milk get a helping hand from bacteria called Bifido (or Bifidobacterium Longum).  Bifido species get in the action and help break down the indigestible component of milk, such as lactose. 
3)  Human milk's complex sugars also fool the nasty pathogenic bacteria and viruses.  Instead of the pathogens binding to cell surface receptors (a necessary step in infection),  they bind to the complex sugars.  Mother's milk protects the infant from getting infected.

This doesn't sound like breast milk causing an allergic reaction.  It sounds more like baby's genes favor drinking mother's breast milk.

Dr. Elly Hann, creator of EPiBi antimicrobial washable nursing pads & hypoallergenic diaper liners