"THE EFFECT OF HORMONAL AND NON-HORMONAL CONTRACEPTIVE METHODS ON THE ANTIOXIDANT CONTENT OF HUMAN MILK"

Abstract

Different contraceptive methods are used by breastfeeding mothers. In general, these methods are classified into two major groups, hormonal and non-hormonal. A number of studies have shown that combined oral contraceptive pills may adversely affect the quality and the quantity of human milk. In other studies it has been shown that estrogen and progesterone seem to reduce the risk of cardiac and ischemic brain injury by enhancing anti-oxidant mechanisms. Since infants are at increased risk of oxidative stress and free-radical mediated diseases are partly related to deficient antioxidant state, we performed a study to investigate if contraceptive method has any effect on the maternal milk total antioxidant content. A cross-sectional study of total antioxidant capacity of mature human milk of two groups of healthy breastfeeding mothers who were on the hormonal (Lynestrol) or non-hormonal contraceptive regimen with 92 mothers in each group was performed. The total antioxidant capacity was determined by ferric reducing antioxidant power method. The body mass indexes (BMI) of hormonal and non-hormonal groups were 23.67±2.88 and 22.93±3.33 kg/m2,respectively, with no significant difference. The hemoglobin concentrations of hormonal versus nonhormonal groups were 12.94±0.90 and 13.14± 0.76 g/dl which were not significantly different. The mean total antioxidant contents of the hormonal and non-hormonal groups were 575±139 and 583±135 µmol/l, respectively, with no significant difference. It seems that progesterone has no effect on the antioxidant contents of mature human milk; in other words, the Lynestrol has neither positive nor negative effect on the antioxidant capacity of the human milk.