ArticlePediatric research2026
Breast milk cytokines and infant growth trajectories in a low-income community in Bangladesh.
Article in Pediatric research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionBreast milk cytokines modulate immune function and may influence infant growth, yet longitudinal evidence remains limited, particularly in low-resource settings. This study examined associations between milk cytokines measured within six weeks postpartum and infant growth trajectories from 3 to 12 months in a low-income community in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
methodsData from 237 mother-infant dyads were drawn from a prospective cohort study. Cytokines were quantified in breast milk (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, IFN-γ). Anthropometrics at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months were converted to WHO z-scores. Associations were examined using linear mixed-effects models adjusting for key maternal and infant covariates.
resultsHigher milk IL-10 was associated with lower weight-for-age and weight-for-length at 9 months and lower length-for-age at 3 and 12 months. Higher IFN-γ was associated with lower weight-for-length at 9 months. IL-6 and IL-8 showed age-related variation but no associations at individual timepoints.
conclusionBreast milk IL-10 showed time-dependent associations with infant growth across multiple indicators throughout the first year, with similar age-related variation observed for some pro-inflammatory cytokines. These findings suggest that non-nutritive bioactive components of breast milk, and how their effects change across infant development, may contribute to early growth faltering in low-resource settings. IMPACT: Breast milk IL-10 showed consistent time-dependent associations with infant growth indicators from 3 to 12 months. Higher milk IL-10 was associated with poorer weight and length outcomes, while pro-inflammatory cytokines showed limited associations at individual timepoints. Adds to limited longitudinal evidence examining how milk cytokine-growth associations shift across infancy. Findings suggest that non-nutritive bioactive components of breast milk, and how their effects change across infant development, may contribute to growth faltering beyond nutritional factors alone. Further research integrating repeated cytokine sampling, multi-compartment immune profiling, and longitudinal growth assessment in similar settings could inform strategies to support optimal growth.
Identifiers
42332245What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.