Elite Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences. Volume 2 issue 3(2024), Pp.18-27 https://epjournals.com/journals/EJNHS Citation: Ogbu ISI, Amanze NC, Anya K, Ejike-Odeh EJ, Ogbu CC, Obeagu EI,. Protein and Lactose Content of Breast Milk of Lactating Mothers Attending Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki. Ebonyi State. Nigeria. Elite Journal of Nursing and Health Science, 2024; 2(3): 18-27 1 Protein and Lactose Content of Breast Milk of Lactating Mothers Attending Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki. Ebonyi State. Nigeria * Innocent Sidney Ikechi Ogbu 1 , Nneamake Chukwukamso Amanze 1 , Kingsley Anya 1 , Ezinne Jane Ejike-Odeh 1 , Chinemerem Chukwuka Ogbu 1 and Emmanuel Ifeanyi Obeagu 2 1 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Evangel University Akaeze, Ebonyi State, Nigeria. 2 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Kampala International University, Uganda. Abstract Human breast milk (HBM) is a food designed to fulfill the energy and nutritional requirements of babies. This study was designed to determine the protein and lactose concentration in breast milk. The lactose and protein concentration were estimated using Phenol-Sulphuric Acid and Biuret method respectively. Statistical analyses were done on data and expressed as mean ± S.E.M. using Graph Pad Prism software. The level of significance was placed at p<0.05. The protein and lactose concentration were categorized based on age of the mother, age of infant and parity of the mother. A total of 200 breast milk samples were analyzed. The study subjects consisted of women aged ≤20 (11), 20-24 (73), 25-29 (64), 30-34 (39), 35-39 years (13); based on age of lactating infant ≤4months (131), 5-8 months (53), 9-12 months (16); and based on parity one (34), two (74), three (57) and four and above (35). The protein and lactose concentrations of the breast milk samples were determined. The mean protein concentration of all the samples was 19.16 (± 13.02) g/l, while the mean lactose concentration of the all the samples was 10.09 (± 4.07) g/l. From this report, it would appear that the protein and lactose content of HBM correlate negatively in relation to the mothers’ age, parity and age of infant. Younger mothers had more protein while older ones had more lactose. Primiparous mothers had more lactose while multiparous ones had more protein and protein concentration of HBM increased with age of infant while lactose decreased. Keywords: human breast milk, lactose, milk protein, parity, lactation Introduction Mothers’ own milk is the best source of nutrition for nearly all infants and it is meant to fulfill the energy requirement of the babies. It contains both specific and non-specific immune factors that help newborn infants to consolidate their immature immune systems. 1-2 Bioactive proteins in human breast milk (HBM) are likely to contribute to the advantages of breast-feeding through enzyme activities, enhancement of nutrient absorption, growth stimulation, modulation of the immune system and defense system against pathogens. The main components of HBM are water, protein, carbohydrates and fats. It also contains an inorganic substance in the form of mineral and organic substances such as vitamins, acids, antioxidants, pigments and flavor components. 3-7 .