Stakeholder Attitudes towards Donating and Utilizing Donated Human Breastmilk

The promotion and support of human milk banks (HMBs) can enhance exclusive breastfeeding rates. The success and sustainability of HMBs depend on the support from relevant healthcare workers and related communities. This study aimed to determine attitudes of key stakeholders, including mothers, healthcare workers and grandmothers, regarding the donation and receipt of human breastmilk. This study was conducted at a public hospital and clinics in the North West Province, South Africa. Eight focus group discussions explored the attitudes regarding donating and receiving human breastmilk: three groups with mothers of infants (n = 13), three with grandmothers (>60 years old) (n = 17) and two with healthcare professionals working with infants (n = 11). Four main themes emerged: perception regarding breast and formula feeding; exposure to the concept of “wet nursing”; breastmilk donation; and utilization and opinions of community members and traditional healers. Specific barriers identified included the processes for donating and receiving milk, safety, human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV) screening and cultural beliefs. Mothers’ fears included having insufficient milk for their own infants, changes in the quality of donated milk during pasteurization and transportation and HIV transmission. Despite barriers towards donations to and the use of HMBs, sufficient information could enhance donations by mothers and breastmilk utilization

Plasma polyunsaturated fatty acids and liver enzymes in HIV-infected subjects: the prospective urban and rural epidemiology (PURE) study

Background: Omega-6 (n–6) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intake was previously reported to be adversely related to liver function in HIV-infected subjects, when compared with HIV-uninfected subjects, in a black population in South Africa. It was speculated that the use of heavily oxidized vegetable fats (abused fats) could have been responsible. Objectives: The objectives were to investigate the relation between plasma total PUFA concentrations (a marker of PUFA intake) and liver enzymes in HIV-infected asymptomatic compared with HIVuninfected black South Africans and to investigate the reuse of oil and the use of abused oils. Design: This was a case-control study nested in an epidemiologic study in 305 HIV-infected cases and 301 HIV-uninfected matched controls (matched according to location, sex, and age), as part of the PURE (Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology) Study, a prospective cohort study that includes a representative sample of 2000 apparently healthy black volunteers, aged between 36 and 60 y, from the North West Province of South Africa. Results: Plasma total omega-6 PUFA concentrations were negatively (P , 0.05) associated with liver enzymes (c-glutamyl transpeptidase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotranferase, and alkaline phosphatase) in both HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected subjects (r values ranged from 20.22 to 20.56). Almost all subjects (99%) reported that they did not buy oil that had been used before. Oil was only used a mean (6SD) of 2.23 6 0.85 times for deep frying before being discarded. Conclusions: The adverse relations between omega-6 PUFA intake and liver enzymes that were previously shown could not be confirmed in this study. In contrast, plasma omega-6 PUFA concentration was inversely related to liver enzymes in both HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected subjects. Subjects in this study did not use abused fats, which could partly explain these finding