May 1984
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Nutrition Research
Folate content of human milk was determined in early transitional milk (4–7 days postpartum), transitional milk (10–14 days postpartum) and mature milk (36–45 days postpartum). Mature milk contained a mean total folate level of 4.9 μg/100 g. No diurnal variations were observed. At each stage, total folate was significantly higher (p<.05) than free folate. As lactation progressed to the mature milk stage, both free and total folate increased significantly (p<.05). The percentage of folate in the free form decreased as length of lactation increased. Based on folate levels determined in this study, a one month old breast-fed infant would have a folate intake of 6.7 μg/kg/day which is somewhat higher than the recommended dietary allowance for infants of 5 μg/kg/day.