Do HMOs have a role in reducing the risk of NEC?

HMOs may play a role in reducing the risk of necrotising enterocolitis (NEC), one of the most common and life-threatening gastrointestinal disorders in preterm infants.

• Infants who are fed exclusively with human milk instead of infant formula are 6 to 10 times less likely to develop NEC
• Lower diversity of HMOs may be associated with the development of NEC in very-low-birth-weight-infants
• Low levels of disialyllacto-N-tetraose (DSLNT) in mother’s milk may be related with an increased risk of NEC in preterm infants
• Preclinical studies suggest that infant formulae, when supplemented with pooled HMOs, improved the NEC survival rate and reduced the symptoms of NEC