Impact of an extract from the bran layer of rice on the nutrition of lactating mothers and growth of their exclusively breastfed infants: a longitudinal study | Functional Foods in Health and Disease - Online ISSN: 2160-3855; Print ISSN: 2378-7007 Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer Open Menu Functional Foods in Health and Disease - Online ISSN: 2160-3855; Print ISSN: 2378-7007 Home Food Science Publisher Functional Food Center Current Archives About About the Journal Aims and Scope Contact Editing Services Editorial Team Express Peer Review Graphical Abstract Journal Insights Privacy Statement Submissions Announcements Search Search Register Login Home / Archives / Vol. 12 No. 5 (2022): May 2022 / Research Articles Impact of an extract from the bran layer of rice on the nutrition of lactating mothers and growth of their exclusively breastfed infants: a longitudinal study Authors Guillermo E. Sanchez Sustainable Nutrition International, USA, and Central American Institute for Agriculture Development (ICADA), Guatemala, Central America Glenn H. Sullivan Nutraceutical Technologies International, USA Larry R. Miller Nutraceutical Technologies International, USA DOI: https://doi.org/10.31989/ffhd.v12i5.934 Abstract Background: The nutritional composition of the bran layer of rice (RB), a globally available product of the rice milling process, has attracted attention as a nutraceutical food source. However, to capitalize on RB’s nutritional properties for humans, it is necessary to achieve a level of bioavailability that increases the efficacy needed to impact the nutritional well-being of lactating mothers and their breastfed infants. To accomplish this, a hydrolyzed enzymatic extract (RBEE) with increased protein, vitamin, carbohydrate, and antioxidant bioactivity has been developed. Objective: To determine the impact of RBEE on the nutritional status of lactating mothers (LM) and the growth of their exclusively breastfed (EBF) infants, living in food-insecure environments in rural Guatemala.  Methods:  A RBEE daily ration was consumed by post-puerperium LM for 4.5 months of the EBF period. The nutritional impact on LMs was determined by body mass index (BMI). Anemia prevalence and packed cell volume (PCV) were obtained via hematocrit (HCT). Infant growth was determined monthly following World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, including weight-for-length (WHZ), weight-for-age (WAZ), length-for-age (LAZ), BMI-for-age (BAZ) and head circumference-for-age (HCZ). Initial, midterm and final growth indicators were analyzed by Student t-test for independent samples.  Results: While no significant differences were found between the initial and final BMI in LMs, anemia prevalence was significantly reduced from 12.1% to 4%. HCT results in LMs showed a significant increase (p<0.05) in PCV by the study’s end, from 40.55% to 41.42%. Following a student t-test analysis, infant growth indicators WHZ, WAZ and BAZ showed a highly significant (p<0.01) increase. A significant (p<0.05) improvement was detected in WAZ, while LAZ scores improved from -1.9 to -1.76. Conclusions: The dietary supplementation of lactating mothers with an RBEE during the EBF period significantly impacted the mother-infant dyad, with improved growth of the exclusively breastfed infants and a reduction in anemia prevalence in mothers. Further research will include the quantity and quality of the putative increased maternal milk synthesis.    Keywords: rice bran, bioactive, bioavailability, enzyme-treated extract, functional food, infants, exclusive breastfeeding, lactating mothers, anemia, chronic, acute, malnutrition, Guatemala, growth, nutrition, children.   Downloads [Abstract] [Full Article] Published 2022-05-31 Issue Vol. 12 No. 5 (2022): May 2022 Section Research Articles License Authors retain the copyright of their articles and grant the Functional Food Center (FFC) and its journals the right of first publication under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, including commercial use, provided the original author(s) and source are properly credited. Authors may post and share their published work freely, provided that the original publication in this journal is acknowledged. By submitting to this journal, authors confirm that their manuscripts are original, not under consideration elsewhere, and that they hold the necessary rights to grant this license. The Functional Food Center encourages open scientific exchange and allows derivative and extended works, provided attribution to the original publication is maintained. About the Journal      Editing Services      Graphical Abstract      Journal Insights        Submissions        Editorial Team       Privacy Statement        Contact        Current        Archives   Open Journal Systems Hosting and Support by: OpenJournalSystems.com