breast milk and brain: the influence of iodine and neurotrophic and growth factors on children's neurodevelopment-a secondary analysis

Objective: this study targeted to investigate the potential role of breast milk iodine concentration (bmic), insulin-like growth factor-1 (igf-i), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (bdnf) during the early stage of lactation in child neurocognitive development. materials and methods: in this secondary analysis, we examined 122 breastfeeding mothers and their healthy children, all of whom were breastfed for at least six months. levels of bdnf, igf-1, and bmic were assessed in breast milk samples obtained between the third and fifth days after lactation began (before any iodine supplementation intervention). three-year-old children were administered the bayley-iii screening test to assess their cognitive, motor, and language development. results: the median (interquartile range) concentrations of iodine, bdnf, and igf-1 in breast milk during the starting few days of lactation were 285.0 (181.0-366.0) μg/l, 0.59 (0.52-0.76) ng/ml, and 12.5 (9.6-18.3) ng/ml, respectively. the mean (standard deviation) cognitive, motor, and language scores were 101.0 (10.8), 93.4 (14.6), 100.1 (13.5) and, respectively. linear regression models revealed a negative relation between breast milk iodine and children’s cognitive development ((β unadjusted = -0.004 (p = 0.010); β adjusted = -0.003 (p = 0.024)). however, no associations were found between breast milk bdnf and igf-1 and cognitive, language, or motor scores in three-year-olds. conclusion: our findings indicate that early exposure to iodine, bdnf, and igf-1 in breast milk, measured prior to iodine supplementation, has no substantial association with neurodevelopment in three-year-old children. the weak negative association between bmic and cognitive scores may reflect prenatal iodine status, warranting further research to explore long-term effects of supplementation.