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BO LöNNERDAL, PHD; CARL L. KEEN, PHD; BRUCE HOFFMAN; LUCILLE S. HURLEY, PHD
Department of Nutrition University of California Davis, CA 95616

Am J Dis Child. 1980;134(8):802-803.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.—Recent results from our laboratory have shown that human milk, unlike cow's milk, contains a low-molecular-weight (LMW) zinc complex,¹ now identified as zinc citrate.² We have therefore hypothesized that the therapeutic value of human milk in the treatment of acrodermatitis enteropathica (AE), a genetic disorder of zinc metabolism, is due to the presence of this complex, which is thought to be highly available for absorption.^3,4

Assuming that human milk may contain LMW copper as well as zinc complexes, Williams et al⁵ have suggested that human milk may also be of therapeutic value in the treatment of Menkes' kinky hair disease, a sexlinked genetic disorder in humans that is manifested by abnormal intestinal copper absorption and many characteristics similar to those of copper-deficient animals.⁶ Despite the aggressive use of copper in infants with Menkes' disease, the prognosis for these patients has not improved. . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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