MILQ-Publications

MILQ study publications

This page provides  key publications from the Mothers, Infants, and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers working in maternal and infant nutrition. It includes links to the reference value papers published in Advances in Nutrition, detailed methodological papers describing the analytical approaches used for human milk and blood biomarker assessment, a growing body of research that has applied MILQ data to address questions in maternal and infant nutrition, and a full list of the MILQ Consortium members.

Together, these resources reflect the scope and impact of the MILQ Study—from method development and data generation to global applications in research, policy, and programs.

Protocol & RVs

  • Allen LH, Hampel D, Shahab-Ferdows S, Adersson M, Barros E, Doel A, Farias D, Eriksen KG, Christensen SH, Islam M, Kac G, Keya FK, Michaelsen KF, Mucci D, Njie F, Peerson JM, Moore SE (2021); The Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study: A Multi-Center Collaboration. Current Developments in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzab116.
  • Allen LH, Moore SE, Kac G, Michaelsen KF, Mølgaard C, Islam, MM, Shahab-Ferdows S, Christensen SH, Lewis JI, Peerson JM, Tan X, Dror DK, Doel AM, Andersson M, de Barros Mucci D, Figueiredo AC, Schneider B, Khanam F, Torres Silva G, Nije F, Hassan M, Kurpad AV, Devi S, Hampel D, and The MILQ Study Consortium (2025); The Mothers, Infants, and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study: Introduction and Study Design. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100499.
  • Lewis JI, Dror DK, Hampel D, Kac G, Molgaard C, Moore SE, Peerson JM, Christensen SH, Islam MM, de Barros Mucci D, de Souza Campos AD, Hasan M, Allen LH, and The MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Reference values for macronutrients in human milk: the Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100501.
  • Allen LH, Shahab-Ferdows S, Moore SE, Peerson JM, Kac G, Figueiredo AC, Dror DK, Michaelsen KF, Islam MM, Nije F, Hampel D, and The MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Reference values for B vitamins in human milk: the Mothers, Infants, and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100500.
  • Kac G, Jones KS, Meadows SR, Hampel D, Islam MM, Molgaard C, Moore SE, Dror DK, Shahab-Ferdows S, de Barros Mucci D, Figueredo AC, Peerson JM, Allen LH, and The MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Reference values for fat soluble vitamins in human milk: the Mothers, Infants, and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100484.
  • Allen LH, Islam MM, Kac G, Michaelsen KF, Moore SE, Andersson M, Peerson JM, Doel AM, Dror DK, Shahab-Ferdows S, de Barros Mucci D, Torres Silva G, Hampel D, and The MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Reference values for minerals in human milk: the Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) study. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100431.
  • Corrigendum to Reference Values for Minerals in Human MIlk: the Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study [Advances in Nutrition Volume 16, Supplement 1 (Oct 2025) 1-15/100431]; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100578. 
  • Moore SE, Devi S, Kurpad A, Peerson JM, Christensen SH, Islam MM, Kac G, Michaelsen KF, Torrs Silva G, Allen LH, and the MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Breast Milk Intake from 1 to 8.5 Months of Lactation in the Multisite Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) Study. Advances in Nutrition, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100456.
  • Moore SE, Allen LH, Kac G, and the MILQ Study Consortium (2025); Future Applications of Human Milk Reference Values for Nutrients: A Global Resource for Maternal and Child Nutrition Research. Advances in Nutrition,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100429.

Methods paper

Water-soluble vitamins:
  • Hampel D, Shahab-Ferdows S, Allen LH (2025); Comprehensive analysis of B-vitamins, water-soluble cholines, and related compounds in plasma. ASN Nutrition Conference 2025, Orlando, FL.
  • Hampel D, Shahab-Ferdows S, Schulze K, Allen LH (2022); Comprehensive analysis of B-vitamins in human milk, Current Developments in Nutrition, 6(Suppl.1):766, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzac063.008.
  • Hampel D, Shahab-Ferdows S, Nguyen N, Kac G, Allen LH (2021); High-throughput analysis of water-soluble choline and related metabolites in human milk by UPLC-MS/MS, and its application. Frontiers in Nutrition, 7:604570, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzaa056_018.
  • Hampel D, Shahab-Ferdows S, Domek JM, Siddiqua T, Raqib R, Allen LH (2014); Competitive Chemiluminescent Enzyme Immunoassay for Vitamin B12 Analysis in Human Milk. Food Chemistry, 153, 60-65, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2013.12.033.
  • Roche cobas e411 - Elecsys Vitamin B12 II assay, plasma vitamin B12.
  • Roche cobas e411 - Elecsys Folate III assay, plasma folate.
Fat-soluble vitamins:
  • Jones KS, Meadows SR, Billing G, Koulman A, Prentice A (2025); The validation of an LC-MS/MS method for the quantification of vitamin D metabolites in human milk and their biological variability in Gambian women. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 245:106633, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsbmb.2024.106633.
  • Turner T, Burri BJ (2012); Rapid Isocratic HPLC Method and Sample Extraction Procedures for Measuring Carotenoid, Retinoid, and Tocopherol Concentrations in Human Blood and Breast Milk for Intervention Studies. Chromatographia 75, 241–252, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10337-012-2193-9.
  • Roche cobas e411 - Elecsys Vitamin D total III assay, plasma vitamin D.
Macro- & trace-elements:
  • Hampel D, Islam MM, Shahab-Ferdows S, Allen LH (2024); Human milk macro- and trace-elements: simultaneous analysis in sub-milliliter amounts by ICP-MS and application to assessing acute supplementation effects. Heliyon, 10:e34709, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e34709.
Iodine & iodine status biomarkers:
  • Stinca S, Andersson M, Weibel S, Herter-Aeberli I, Fingerhut R, Gowachirapant S, Hess SY, Jaiswal N, Jucic T, Kusic Z, Mabapa NS, Nepal AK, San Luis TOL, Zhen JQ, Zimmermann MB (2017); The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 102(1):23-32, https://doi.org/10.1210/jc.2016-2829.
  • Dold S, Baumgartner J, Susanne Dold, Zeder C, Krzystek A, Osei J, Haldimann M, Zimmermann MB, Andersson M (2016); Optimization of a New Mass Spectrometry Method for Measurement of Breast Milk Iodine Concentrations and an Assessment of the Effect of Analytic Method and Timing of Within-Feed Sample Collection on Breast Milk Iodine Concentrations. Thyroid, 26(2): , https://doi.org/10.1089/thy.2015.0317.
  • Pino S, Fang SL, Braverman LE (1996); Ammonium persulfate: a safe alternative oxidizing reagent for measuring urinary iodine. Clinical Chemistry, 42(2):239-243, https://doi.org/10.1093/clinchem/42.2.239.
Others:

MILQ Research

  • Torres Silva G, Campos ADdS, Polessa DP, Figueiredo ACC, Schneider BC, Mucci DdB, Nardi AE, Allen LH, Kac G (2026); Associations between postpartum depressive symptom trajectories and breastfeeding patterns: Results from the MILQ-Brazil study. Brazialian Journal of Psychiatry, https://doi.org/10.47626/1516-4446-2025-4624. 
  • Figueiredo ACC, Campos ADdS, Torres Silva G, Schneider BC, Mucci DdB, Polessa DP, Islam M, Michaelsen KF, Mølgaard C, Christensen SH, Hampel D, Allen LH, Moore SE, Kac G (2026); Longitudinal association between human milk macronutrient intake and infant growth throughout the first 8.5 months of life: A Multicenter Cohort Study.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 123(5):101279, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2026.101279
  • Campos AD de S, Silva GT, Ferreira ALL, Figueiredo ACC, Schneider BC, Kurihayashi AY, Mucci DdB, Lewis JI, Christensen SH, Mølgaard C, Michaelsen KF, Allen LH, Kac G (2025); Predictors of longitudinal changes in body composition and BMI in Brazilian lactating women during the first 8·5 months postpartum. British Journal of Nutrition.133(10):1350-1362, https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114525000935.
  • Christensen SH, Lewis JI, Frøkiær H, Johnsen PR, Peerson J, Tan J, Shahab-Ferdow S, Hampel D, Islam M, Kac G, Moore S, Mølgaard C, Allen LH, Michaelsen KF (2025); Cytokines and appetite-regulating hormones in human milk and associations with infant growth across the four countries of the MILQ cohort. PLoS ONE, 20:e0323204, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0323204.
  • Kurihayashi AY, Schneider BC, Figueiredo ACC, Silva GT, Campos ADdS, Paula DP, Mucci DdB, Allen LH, Kac G (2026); Trajectories of Dietary Energy, Macro and Micronutrient Intake From the Third Trimester of Pregnancy to 8.5 Months Postpartum Among Brazilian Women: The Mothers, Infants and Lactation Quality Study, Maternal & Child Nutrition, 22: e70089. https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.70089. 
  • Christensen SH,  Rom AL, Greve T, Lewis JI, Frøkiær H, Allen LH, Mølgaard C, Renault KM, Michaelsen KF (2023); Maternal inflammatory, lipid and metabolic markers and associations with birth and breastfeeding outcomes. Frontiers in Nutrition, 10:1223753, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2023.1223753.
  • Christensen SH, Lewis JI, Larnkjær A, Frøkiær H, Allen LH, Mølgaard C, Renault KM, Michaelsen KF (2022); Associations between maternal adiposity and appetite-regulating hormones in human milk are mediated through maternal circulating concentrations and might affect infant outcomes. Frontiers in Nutrition, 9:1025439, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.1025439.

The MILQ Study Consortium

Lindsay H Allen (USA), Sophie E Moore (The Gambia), Gilberto Kac (Brazil), Kim F Michaelsen (Denmark), Christian Mølgaard (Denmark), M Munirul Islam (Bangladesh), Maria Andersson (Switzerland), Setareh Shahab-Ferdows (USA), Sophie H Christensen (Denmark), Jack I Lewis (Denmark), Janet M Peerson (USA), Xiuping Tan (USA), Daphna K Dror (USA), Andrew M Doel (The Gambia), Daniela de Barros Mucci (Brazil), Bruna C Schneider (Brazil), Farhana Khanam (Bangladesh), Adriana Divina de Souza Campos (Brazil), Gabriela Torres Silva (Brazil), Fanta Nije (The Gambia), Mehedi Hassan (Bangladesh), Amanda C Figueiredo (Brazil), Daniela Hampel (USA)

MILQ Study  MILQ Team   Reference Values