ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the composition of the lipids in human milk, the physiologic role of lipids in infant nutrition, knowledge of the lipid requirement in infant food formulations, and the lipid composition of commercial infant food formulations. Lipids are the richest source of energy in human milk. Lipids of human milk comprise ~98% triacylglycerols (TAG), ~0.5–1% phospholipids and glycolipids, and ~0.5% cholesterol. TAG and other lipids of human milk contain long-chain n-6 and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are derived partly from the diet of the mother directly and partly from the maternal metabolism of linoleic (LA) and a-linolenic (ALA) acids. Like adult humans, infants are unable to synthesize LA and ALA; therefore these essential fatty acids have to be provided with the diet to ensure growth and development. Various approaches can be adopted to formulate fats and fat blends suitable for infant formulas having absorption and other nutritional properties similar to those of human milk fat.
