Vitamin C in human milk

Predominantly bottle fed infants (be it with human or artificial milk) may need to be supplemented with vitamin C. Depending on the type of bottle used Francis et al found that the amount of vitamin C during the course of a 20 minute feeding session can decrease moderately (10%) up till seriously (almost 100%).  A standard glass bottle with a screw-on standard nipple did best of all tested bottles (human milk lost ca. 10%, AIM ca. 15% vitamin C). Dr Brown (20-25% loss) and Avent (45-50% loss) bottles were barely acceptable. Apart from the loss during feeding, vitamin C amount in human milk will decrease during pasteurisation and cold storage as well. Molto-Puigmarti c.s. looked at differences between Holder pasteurisation and high-pressure processing (HPP) and found that the low temperatures in HPP kept the levels of vitamin C better than the higher temperatures for longer periods in Holder pasteurisation. Romeu-Nadal et al compared different means of storing human milk and they found that refrigeration (4°C), deep-freezing (-18°) and industrial freezing (-60° C) all led to a significant loss of vitamin C. Breastfeeding directly at-breast is the preferred feeding method for practically every infant. However, if for any reason a child needs to be fed pumped milk or donor milk one should consider the option of supplementing with vitamin C in order to prevent deficiency.

Francis J, Rogers K, Brewer P,  Dickton D, Pardini R: Comparative analysis of ascorbic acid in human milk and infant formula using varied milk delivery systems. International Breastfeeding Journal 2008, 3:19

Molto-Puigmarti C, Permanyer M, Castellote AI, Lopez-Sabater CM: Effects of pasteurisation and high-pressure processing on vitamin C, tocopherols and fatty acids in mature human milk, Food Chemistry 2011, 124 (3): 697-702

Romeu-Nadal M, Castellote AI, Lopez-Sabater MC: Effect of cold storage on vitamins C and E and fatty acids in human milk., Food Chemistry 2008, 106(1): 65-70