The oligosaccharides are produced purely for the benefit of the baby’s gut microbes—as bribes, in effect. As well as nurturing symbiotic bacteria, breast milk is full of antibodies. There is some evidence that a nursing mother absorbs a little of her suckling baby’s saliva through her breast ducts and that this is analyzed by her immune system, which adjusts the amount and types of antibodies she supplies to the baby, according to its needs. Isn’t life marvelous?
