RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The infant's own mother's milk, fortified with proteins, minerals, and vitamins, is considered the best food for low-birth-weight infants. This paper describes the process to obtain a liquid human milk fortifier. METHODS: The fortifier comprises a protein concentrate, calcium, phosphate, and zinc salts, as well as vitamins A and D. A powdered whey protein extracted from bovine milk was concentrated from 31.5-76.8 g/100 g using repetitive dialysis. The protein concentrate was dissolved in a 0.2 M phosphate buffer pH 7.4 and mixed with calcium-glycerophosphate and calcium-gluconate, vitamins A and D, folic acid, and zinc. Each 10 mL of this liquid fortifier has 0.78 g protein, 53 mg calcium, 36 mg phosphate, and 0.93 mg zinc. RESULTS: Repetitive dialysis did not modify the protein structure as demonstrated by electrophoresis. A total of 95% of lactose content was discarded. Enriching human milk using this human milk fortifier increased the concentration per deciliter of all added nutrients; proteins increased from 1.68-2.35 g, calcium from 26-90 mg, and phosphorus, from 15-51 mg. CONCLUSIONS: A liquid human milk fortifier was successfully manufactured using a noncomplex procedure. An intake of 180-200 mL/kg/day of the fortified human milk by the premature infant would satisfy the infant's nutritional requirements and achieve expected growth and development.