Can heridatory disease be passed on...

[Landladymews2]

through breastmilk? I’m just curious about whether there’s any evidence that anything could be passed on through donated milk. Obviously if
the birth mother has a risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer etc that risk is passed on through genetic material but what about where a woman is donating her milk to another baby?

Unless it's something like HIV then no. genetic conditions are in genes. they cannot be passed on through breastmilk

No. You can’t even pass HIV through breastmilk.

Thanks. Someone was trying to argue that there’s a possibility that genetic diseases can be passed on through breastmilk because there are studies that genetic material is passed through breastmilk? They did say it’s not established yet but it’s a possibility.

Even if genetic material like mum's cells and DNA is passed into breast milk, the baby will just digest it in their stomach. The baby can't "absorb" the genetic material!

@Glooorb That makes sense to me. Would love a scientist to confirm that’s accurate (if there is anyone reading this on here)

Microbiologist here.

No, you cannot absorb genes through breastmilk, or anything else.

This is the most absurd idea I’ve ever read.

Wait, so your friend thinks that say if you take donor milk from someone who has Down Syndrome the baby will then somehow develop Down Syndrome too?

As an aside: I’d probably go to Google scholar for questions like this rather than an anon Internet forum.

Do you think you absorb cow genes when you drink cows milk or eat beef? Or chicken genes when you eat chicken?
If not then why do you think you'd absorb human genes from breast milk?

If its hereditary then genes need to be altered - that ain't gonna happen through breast milk. Bonkers idea and scientifically absurd

@HandforthParishCouncilClerk

No. You can’t even pass HIV through breastmilk.

If the Mum is HIV+ and not on medication then HIV can actually be passed on through breastmilk.

I think they aren’t necessarily saying that genes are absorbed but it seems from my reading that there’s some genetic material like exosomes and stem cells that are found in breast milk. So I think they are saying these sorts of things may alter the existing genes of the child?!?The argument about these things being digested makes sense though, otherwise everything we injest would alter our genes.

This question actually arose because they mentioned that their mother was breastfeed by someone who wasn’t her biological mother. That woman later transpired to have some serious respiratory issues. Her own mother grew up to have asthma and they had theorised that this was because of the breastmilk and the genetic material it contains!

It sounded wrong to me but I wanted to understand scientifically.

There’s no scientific basis for her “argument”, she is stupid as fuck. Tell her a scientist said that.

And no, those papers aren’t saying that they can alter the genes of the child, ffs.

@MyGorramShip
Those papers don’t show any impact from whatever genetic material thats passed unlike for example antibodies that we know help with immunity right?

@Landladymews2

I think they aren’t necessarily saying that genes are absorbed but it seems from my reading that there’s some genetic material like exosomes and stem cells that are found in breast milk. So I think they are saying these sorts of things may alter the existing genes of the child?!?The argument about these things being digested makes sense though, otherwise everything we injest would alter our genes.

This question actually arose because they mentioned that their mother was breastfeed by someone who wasn’t her biological mother. That woman later transpired to have some serious respiratory issues. Her own mother grew up to have asthma and they had theorised that this was because of the breastmilk and the genetic material it contains!

It sounded wrong to me but I wanted to understand scientifically.

Exosomes aren't genetic material. Stem cell are but don't change your own genes.

Asthma is a multi factorial condition and can be triggered by a variety of environmental factors

@Veterinari Thank you so much! And would I be correct in saying nothing can change ones genes after conception?

[quote Landladymews2]@Veterinari Thank you so much! And would I be correct in saying nothing can change ones genes after conception?[/quote]
No lots of things can cause genetic damage - radiation, free radicals even stress can damage DNA or shorten telomeres and predispose to diseases such as cancer for example.

But breast milk doesn't change your genetic material as it doesn't penetrate cells

[quote Landladymews2]@Veterinari Thank you so much! And would I be correct in saying nothing can change ones genes after conception?[/quote]
No, of course there are many things that may change one's genes. For example, radiation or random mutations can cause changes in genes, leading to cancer. There are also environmental factors which may alter the expression of the genes as well, for example, stress.

But saying that a baby drinking breast milk from a mum with a hereditary disorder that causes hereditary genetic disorders in the baby are quite something else (and very incorrect).

With the asthma example, there are many factors which may cause both the mum and the baby to suffer from asthma. For example if they both lived in a damp house, then it is hardly surprising that both of them developed asthma.

Of course consuming DNA can’t change your genetics. If that was the case we would turn into cows after eating beef! facepalm

@HIVpos I should have clarified - assuming the mother is on ART.