Published data on the fatty acid (FA) composition of breast milk (BM) of Sri-Lankan mothers are limited. Objectives: To report the FA composition in BM within the first 6 months of lactation and to study whether the fat mass of lactating mothers would influence FA composition of their BM. Method: During the present cross-sectional study, mid-stream milk samples from 48 exclusively breastfeeding mothers were collected and analysed by gas chromatography. Deuterium dilution technique was used to

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... asure maternal body composition. Results: Most abundant FA was lauric acid (22.3±5.2%). Oleic acid, palmitic acid and myristic acid were also found in high amounts (21.9±4.4%, 19.2±2.6% and 15.7±2.7%, respectively). C18, C14:1 and C20:3n6 percentages were significantly different in the three phases of lactation (0-2, 2-4 and 4-6 months). Percentage of docosapentaenoic acid showed a significant positive correlation with the age of the mother.