Mother’s milk really is safe – it kills HIV.
Entered By: grant on June 19, 2012
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New Scientist makes one more argument for breast-feeding, with research that shows breast milk seems to wipe out the virus that causes AIDS:
Previous research had hinted at breast milk’s antiviral properties, but it was unclear if they would prevent transmission of HIV. “We have shown that milk has an intrinsic innate ability to kill HIV,” says J. Victor Garcia, who supervised the work [of Angela Wahl at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill].
The hunt is now on for the mysterious ingredient in breast milk that inhibits the virus. If it can be identified, it might even be used to prevent other forms of HIV transmission, such as sexual transmission.
Tags: epidemiology, microbiology
