HMOs

Human milk oligosaccharides(HMOs), are diversely-structured carbohydrates or glycoconjugates existing in human milk in high concentrations. They are the third most plentiful solid ingredient in human milk and the second only to fat and lactose. In natural human milk, fucosyllactose (FL) accounts for above 30% or so of the ingredients of HMOs.

Sialylated HMOs, accounting for 12%-14% of the total of HMOs, are mainly 6'-Sialyllactose (6'-SL). 2'-Fucosyllactose (2'-FL) is the most abundant HMO in human milk and the most adequate HMO for scientific research. It supports the healthy development of babies at their earliest stage of life.

HMOs for Whole Life Cycle

For children, HMOs promise to be applied in children’s food products for its many functions, e.g. immunity enhancement, promoting probiotic growth, inhibiting harmful bacterial adhesion, and maintaining the intestinal microbial balance. Today, 2'-FL and lacto-N-tetraose (LNnT) have been approved as nutritional fortification substances for children-intended milk powder in China market.
For adults, HMOs promise to be applied in gut flora regulation and gastrointestinal conditions because of their functions as prebiotics. It has been found in some study that 2'-FL clinically improves the gastrointestinal symptoms of patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or ulcerative colitis (UC). In the Western market, relevant laws have approved the use of HMOs in many adult foods, but in China the laws are yet to be released.