What are the effects of living at high altitude on human milk? We know that individuals from high-altitude adapted populations have increased metabolic demands. How does this influence their milk, and the growth and health of their children?
Professor EA Quinn visited the research site of Professor Geoff Childs for a collaborative project in which they spent the summer of 2013 working with 130 mothers of Tibetan descent living either in high-altitude Himalayan villages or in Kathmandu, Nepal. They collected milk samples and growth measurements to investigate how maternal factors influence milk composition and how milk composition predicts differences in child health and growth.
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Professor EA Quinn focuses her research primarily on human milk and breastfeeding behaviors in a comparative context. She is also interested in the role of human milk in infant growth and development, specifically understanding how milk may contribute to human developmental plasticity and the potential role this may have played in human adaptation to novel environments.
Professor Geoff Childs is a demographer and anthropologist whose extensive research with several different Tibetan societies spans a broad range of topics including population regulation, resources and family management strategies, migration, fertility and family planning, and the impact of development on intergenerational relations.