Breast milk contains a variety of growth factors that help the infant grow and mature properly.

These
growth factors include epidermal, neuronal, insulin-like, and vascular endothelial growth factors as
well as erythropoietin, somatostatin, calcitonin, and adiponectin. The growth factors work to regulate
the breastfed infant’s growth in several different areas. The growth factors appear to play a particular
role in the development of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract through maturation, repair, development,
and even by improving peristalsis (Ballard & Morrow, 2013). Proteins in the form of whey and
caseins are present in breast milk to give the infant the nutrition that it needs to grow properly. These
proteins offer beneficial antimicrobial activity throughout the body and aid in the absorption of key
nutrients (Piper, Berry, & Cregan, 2007).
There are other important macronutrients in breast milk, such as the lipid or fat portion of the
breast milk. The lipids found in human milk provide nearly half of the energy in the breast milk.
Lipids contain docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) which plays a significant role in neural and retinal
development. Carbohydrates are also found in human breast milk, most commonly in the form of
lactose. The carbohydrate components of breast milk serve as a significant energy source for the
infant as they are broken down into glucose. The oligosaccharides that are frequently found in
breast milk have shown the ability to protect infants against a variety of GI ailments, including
multiple causes of diarrhea (Piper et al., 2007).