Nutrition plays a vital role in early child development. Isotope techniques can help determine if a baby is exclusively breastfed or not, as well as how much human milk the baby consumes.
A mother drinks a dose of deuterium oxide that is distributed throughout her body and is incorporated into her milk. The deuterium gradually disappears from her body and appears in the body of the baby.
Over a period of 14 days, samples of saliva or urine are collected from the mother and child, revealing the changes in isotope concentration.
A mathematical model is used to determine how much of the deuterium given to the mother appears in the baby’s saliva. This gives insight into the baby’s intake of human milk and whether the baby has consumed water from other sources, as well as the body composition of the mother.
1. IAEA Bulletin 55-1-March 2014, a small part can reveal the whole: How isotope technique help nutrition
