Comparative Pediatrics and Nutrition, Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 Copenhagen, Denmark.
Department of Neonatology, Rigshospitalet, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
Nutrients. 2024 May 29;16(11):1676. doi: 10.3390/nu16111676.
Milk bioactivity refers to the specific health effects of milk components beyond nutrition. The science of milk bioactivity involves the systematic study of these components and their health effects, as verified by empirical data, controlled experiments, and logical arguments. Conversely, 'faith in milk bioactivity' can be defined as personal opinion, meaning, value, trust, and hope for health effects that are beyond investigation by natural, social, or human sciences. Faith can be strictly secular, but also influenced by spirituality or religion. The aim of this paper is to show that scientific knowledge is frequently supplemented with faith convictions to establish personal and public understanding of milk bioactivity. Mammalian milk is an immensely complex fluid containing myriad proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and micronutrients with multiple functions across species, genetics, ages, environments, and cultures. Human health includes not only physical health, but also social, mental, and spiritual health, requiring widely different fields of science to prove the relevance, safety, and efficacy of milk interventions. These complex relationships between milk feeding and health outcomes prevent firm conclusions based on science and logic alone. Current beliefs in and understanding of the value of breast milk, colostrum, infant formula, or isolated milk proteins (e.g., immunoglobulins, α-lactalbumin, lactoferrin, and growth factors) show that both science and faith contribute to understand, stimulate, or restrict the use of milk bioactivity. The benefits of breastfeeding for infants are beyond doubt, but the strong beliefs in its health effects rely not only on science, and mechanisms are unclear. Likewise, fear of, or trust in, infant formula may rely on both science and faith. Knowledge from science safeguards individuals and society against 'milk bioactivity superstition'. Conversely, wisdom from faith-based convictions may protect science from unrealistic 'milk bioactivity scientism'. Honesty and transparency about the potentials and limitations of both scientific knowledge and faith convictions are important when informing individuals and society about the nutritious and bioactive qualities of milk.
牛奶的生物活性是指除营养以外，牛奶成分对特定健康的影响。牛奶生物活性科学涉及到这些成分及其健康影响的系统研究，这些影响已通过经验数据、对照实验和逻辑论证得到验证。相反，“对牛奶生物活性的信任”可以被定义为个人对健康影响的意见、意义、价值、信任和希望，而这些影响是无法通过自然、社会或人文科学来研究的。信仰可以是纯粹的世俗的，也可以受到精神或宗教的影响。本文的目的是表明，科学知识经常与信仰信念相结合，以建立个人和公众对牛奶生物活性的理解。哺乳动物的乳汁是一种极其复杂的液体，含有多种蛋白质、碳水化合物、脂肪和微量营养素，具有跨物种、遗传、年龄、环境和文化的多种功能。人类健康不仅包括身体健康，还包括社会、心理和精神健康，需要广泛不同的科学领域来证明牛奶干预的相关性、安全性和有效性。这种牛奶喂养与健康结果之间的复杂关系，使得仅凭科学和逻辑就无法得出确定的结论。当前对母乳、初乳、婴儿配方奶粉或分离牛奶蛋白（如免疫球蛋白、α-乳白蛋白、乳铁蛋白和生长因子）的价值的信念和理解表明，科学和信仰都有助于理解、刺激或限制牛奶生物活性的应用。母乳喂养对婴儿的益处是毋庸置疑的，但对其健康影响的强烈信念不仅依赖于科学，其机制也不明确。同样，对婴儿配方奶粉的恐惧或信任也可能既基于科学，也基于信仰。来自科学的知识可以保护个人和社会免受“牛奶生物活性迷信”的影响。相反，基于信仰的信念的智慧可以使科学免受不切实际的“牛奶生物活性唯科学主义”的影响。在向个人和社会告知牛奶的营养和生物活性特性时，诚实地说明科学知识和信仰信念的潜力和局限性是很重要的。
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