Cow’s Milk-Induced Infant Apnea
The opiate-like effects of the casomorphin in cow’s milk may have a depressive effect on the respiratory center of infants and lead to “milk apnea,” in which babies temporarily stop breathing and are placed at risk for sudden infant death syndrome (crib death).
Topics
Supplementary Info
Cow’s Milk-Induced Infant Apnea,
Sources Cited
Acknowledgements
Images thanks to D Dinneen, Ion Chibzii, and Roshnii via Wikimedia Commons, and Charles Williams, MD, www.scenicreflections.com, and becomethevoice.com.
Transcript
Evolution devised an ingenius way to bond infant to mother. Select for milk proteins that break down into peptides that have opiate-like drug effects. But what if the breastfeeding mother is herself effectively suckling by still drinking milk as an adult. Evolution never counted on that, which may explain this recent report in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition.
Cow’s milk-induced infant apnea with increased serum content of bovine beta casomorphin 5-- that's one of the opioid compounds formed in our stomachs when we drink milk. Infant apnea means when a baby stops breathing.
They report a case of a breast-fed infant with recurrent apnea episodes, which have always been preceded by his mother’s consumption of fresh cow’s milk. A biochemical examination has revealed a high level of casomorphin in the child’s blood. They speculate that it is an opioid activity that may have a depressive effect on the respiratory centre in the central nervous system and induce a phenomenon they coin milk apnoea. The reason we ‘re so concerned is that ‘’about 7-10% of infants with recurrent apneic episodes cannot be saved and they die of sudden infant death syndrome.
The researchers hooked the kid up to a monitor and wanted to give him some cows milk to provoke a reaction on tape, but The boy’s mother did not grant consent for his oral provocation with cow’s milk because of her fears for the child’s life. She finally relented, though, and when the boy was 4 months old, attempted to provoke him with milk, after which the apparent life-threatening event reoccurred. Presently the 21 month old boy is kept on a milk-free diet and has no more symptoms.
The aim of the present report, they conclude, is to draw researchers’ attention to the possibility of occurrence of a systemic reaction with an apnoea seizure on the infant’s exposure to the proteins in cow’s milk. We are convinced that such a clinical situation occurs rarely; however, it is accompanied by a real threat to the infant’s life that can be avoided when applying a simple and not costly dietetic intervention, a dairy free diet.
To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by veganmontreal.
To help out on the site please email volunteer@nutritionfacts.org
Doctor's Note
Today is the first of a three-video series on the latest evidence implicating bovine casomorphin in apnea, crib death, and autism--stay tuned! In the meantime, help yourself to the 49 other videos on dairy, 44 videos on child health, and hundreds of other videos on more than a thousand subjects.
For more context, check out my associated blog post, Cow’s Milk Casomorphin, Crib Death, and Autism.
-
Michael Greger M.D.
-
HemoDynamic
-
-
Michael Greger M.D.
Next Video
-
Cow’s Milk Casomorphin and Crib Death
Bovine casomorphin from cow's milk is suspected to increase the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome, or crib death) based on the elevated blood levels in babies suffering acute life-threatening events and their relative inability to clear it from their systems.
Watch Now
Previous Video
-
Cheese Mites and Maggots
Cheese manufacturers use spider-like insects and fly larvae to impart particular flavors and aromas to certain cheeses.
Watch Now
Related Reading
-
Cow’s Milk Casomorphin, Crib Death, and AutismEvolution devised an ingenious way to bond infant to mother: proteins in milk that break down into.. -
Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board accused of making illegally deceptive claimsA two-part investigation (1 & 2) released last week by the Wisconsin Center for Investigative.. -
Vitamin B12: how much, how often?This week NutritionFacts.org celebrates the upload of its 300th video. Though the site is officially.. -
Protecting Our Babies From PollutantsFor those of us starting new families, one of the myriad concerns that come up is how we are ever going.. -
How Does Meat Cause Inflammation?The anti-inflammatory effect of plant-based diets is about more than just the power of plants. It’s..