Have you had a recent COVID-19 infection?
Turns out, research now shows that antibodies against the virus can be found in your breastmilk for up to 10 months after infection!
Researchers, led by Dr. Rebecca L. Powell, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, examined the breastmilk of 75 women recently recovered from the illness. They found that 88 percent of their breastmilk samples contained antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and in most cases the antibodies were capable of neutralizing the virus when transferred to their infants. This is big news for breastfeeding moms and their infants who will not be able to receive a vaccination for COVID-19 for some time yet. It is not surprising however, as we have similar research that shows mothers transfer their pertussis and influenza antibodies onto infants through their breastmilk as well. It is also very exciting for further research which is obviously needed due the limited size of this study.
Have you been vaccinated?
The University of Florida examined both the blood and breastmilk of 21 lactating women who had never been infected and were eligible to be vaccinated with either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. Their samples were tested three times: before vaccination, after the first dose and following the second shot with series completion. Dr. Joseph Larkin III, a senior author of the study and associate professor in the UF Department of Microbiology and Cell Science notes that after the second dose, there was a pronounced 100-fold increase of immunoglobulin A antibodies against COVID-19 in the samples. The breastmilk also still contained these antibodies after being frozen, which is super cool!
Likewise, researchers studied 98 women in Spain who had never been infected with SARS-CoV-2 and were breastfeeding at the time they received an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Ramirez et al., 2021). They compared the group to 24 breastfeeding women who had not been vaccinated. The results showed that about 89% of the milk samples had anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike protein IgA antibodies. IgG and IgA concentrations were higher in mothers breastfeeding beyond 23 months compared to those breastfeeding less than that. Authors also found women with higher IgG levels in their blood had higher IgG levels in their breast milk. The control group was negative for both types of antibodies.
Locally there are studies taking place at UCSF and Stanford .“We’re really happy to have something good to hang our hat on,” says Stephanie Gaw, a perinatologist at the University of California, San Francisco. “The studies are small, they’re still early, but very positive.”
These studies are just a few preliminary representations of an ongoing area of research that is extremely significant to infant and maternal health. Stay tuned!
References
Ramirez DSR, et al. Pediatrics. Aug. 18, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2021-052286
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