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What we don't know about mother's milk

1,553,708 views |

Katie Hinde |

TEDWomen 2016

• October 2016

Breast milk grows babies' bodies, fuels neurodevelopment, provides essential immunofactors and safeguards against famine and disease -- why, then, does science know more about tomatoes than mother's milk? Katie Hinde shares insights into this complex, life-giving substance and discusses the major gaps scientific research still needs to fill so we can better understand it.

Breast milk grows babies' bodies, fuels neurodevelopment, provides essential immunofactors and safeguards against famine and disease -- why, then, does science know more about tomatoes than mother's milk? Katie Hinde shares insights into this complex, life-giving substance and discusses the major gaps scientific research still needs to fill so we can better understand it.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

About the speaker

Katie Hinde

Lactation researcher

See speaker profile

Katie Hinde is studying breast milk’s status as the first superfood, providing babies with invaluable microbes custom-tailored to their individual needs, via an incredible and unlikely dialogue between the mother’s enzymes and the baby’s saliva.

Sarah Blaffer Hrdy | The Belknap Press, 2011 | Book

Mother and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding

Dr. Sarah Hrdy has been revolutionizing our understanding of primate mothers and behavior since the 1970s. In this powerhouse synthesis, Hrdy explores how social support of mothers and infants shaped humans to cooperate in ways unparalleled in the animal kingdom. From our social insight to our capacity for empathy, the attributes that make humans human reflect the exceptional care of human infants.

Jennifer Grayson | Harper Paperbacks, 2016 | Book

Unlatched: The Evolution of Breastfeeding and the Making of a Controversy

Unlatched is journalist Jennifer Grayson’s barnstorming journey through the state of breast milk science. From evolutionary adaptations to cultural traditions to historical context to clinical practice to industry process, Jennifer Grayson explores the many manifestations of mother’s milk as she comes to grips with understanding motherhood.

Angela Garbes | The Stranger, 2015 | Article

"The More I Learn About Breast Milk, the More Amazed I Am"

Food critic Angela Garbes turned her culinary lens on the substance with which she was nourishing her daughter. She noted that breast milk "possesses subtleties in flavor that reflect its terroir—the mother's body." This essay explores the body politic as well as the science, and all deeply embedded within her own personal experiences of the rhythm and cycle of being a working, lactating mom. Garbes's first foray into breast milk went quickly viral precisely because it grappled with the nuances and complexities of breastfeeding.

Katie Hinde | SPLASH! Milk Science Update 2017 | Article

"Colostrum through a Cultural Lens"

Katie Hinde | Mammals Suck… Milk! 2016 | Article

"Bench to Bedside: Breastfeeding Best Practices Embrace Social Science"

Hinde K, Lewis ZT | Science, 2015 | Article

"Mother’s Littlest Helpers"

Hinde K, Skibiel AL, Foster A, Del Rosso L, Mendoza SP, Capitanio JP. | Behavioral Ecology, 2015 | Article

"Cortisol in Mother’s Milk across Lactation Reflects Maternal Life History and Predicts Infant Temperament"

Hinde K, Carpenter AJ, Clay J, Bradford BJ | PLoS One, 2014 | Article

"Holsteins Favor Heifers, Not Bulls: Biased Milk Production Programmed during Pregnancy as a Function of Fetal Sex"

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Full Scholarly Profile

Carl Zimmer | New York Times, 2014 | Article

"In a Mother’s Milk, Nutrients, and a Message, Too"

Ed Yong | Phenomena, National Geographic, 2014 | Article

"Study Of 1.5 Million Cows Shows Daughters Get More Milk Than Sons"

Robert Frederick | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2014. | Article

"Mother’s Milk Mysteries"

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.