Report on Physiological Functions of Breast Milk Component Polyamines at Neonatal Nutrition Forum

Snow Brand Seed Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Masaya Matsunaga), part of the Snow Brand Milk Products Group, is pleased to announce its report on the physiological functions of "polyamines," a breast milk component expected to be related to the reduction of food allergy risk, at the 25th Neonatal Nutrition Forum held from June 20-21, 2026.

The "Neonatal Nutrition Forum" is an academic conference attended by doctors and medical professionals involved in neonatal medicine nationwide, aiming to disseminate and share the latest knowledge on neonatal nutrition, including for high-risk newborns. Our company typically reports on the results of national breast milk surveys in corporate sessions.

◆Presentation Content

Polyamines are a general term for substances such as putrescine, spermidine, and spermine. They are widely present in living organisms and are known to be involved in cell differentiation, proliferation, and immune regulation. They are also found in breast milk and are suggested to be involved in the maturation of the developing digestive tract in infancy, potentially suppressing the invasion of foreign substances by forming the intestinal barrier function. Their involvement in immune function has also been reported, suggesting they may contribute to balancing immunity while suppressing excessive inflammatory responses. Furthermore, the 3rd National Breast Milk Survey, conducted jointly with Snow Brand Milk Products Co., Ltd. since 2015, has suggested a possible link between higher polyamine concentrations in breast milk and a lower risk of developing food allergies in infants.

This presentation introduced the findings on the physiological functions of polyamines in breast milk, combined with epidemiological findings from the 3rd National Breast Milk Survey, and explained their potential role in the development of food allergies (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Assumed mechanism for reducing the risk of food allergy development by breast milk component polyamines.

◆Utilization of Survey Results

To realize a society where everyone can raise children with peace of mind, we will continue to advance research on the relationship between breast milk components, maternal lifestyle habits, and infant growth and development, and strive to accumulate and disseminate knowledge on infant nutrition. We will present and report these research findings at academic conferences and other venues, contributing to the development of the infant nutrition field through breast milk research, and also utilize them in the research and development of products related to infant nutrition, including infant formula.

◆Research Presentation Overview

Presentation Title: Relationship between Polyamine Concentration in Breast Milk and the Development of Food Allergies in Infants

Presenter: Keishi Nojiri

Product Development Department, Snow Brand Seed Co., Ltd.

Presentation Date: June 20-21, 2026 (Presentation Date: June 21)

Venue: Asakusabashi Hulic Hall (Asakusabashi, Taito-ku, Tokyo)

【Related Releases】

・Breast Milk Polyamines: A New Clue to Reducing the Risk of Food Allergy Development

(May 28, 2026: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/8171/)

・3rd National Breast Milk Survey: Factors Affecting Individual Differences in Breast Milk Components Revealed - Large-scale survey of 1,071 Japanese mother-infant pairs-

(November 26, 2025: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/7963/)

・Snow Brand Milk Products and Snow Brand Seed Breast Milk Survey: First in Japan Detailed analysis of concentration changes in human milk oligosaccharides

Presented at the "44th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Carbohydrate Research"

(October 6, 2025: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/7893/)

・Challenging Food Allergies: Latest findings unraveling the role and concentration changes of breast milk components Presented at the "24th Neonatal Nutrition Forum"

(June 24, 2025: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/%e6%9c%aa%e5%88%86%e9%a1%9e/7809/)

・3rd National Breast Milk Survey: Polyamines in breast milk shown to potentially reduce the risk of food allergy development in infants. (May 27, 2025: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/7783/)

・3rd National Breast Milk Survey: Research overview of cooperation from 1210 mothers and babies published in a paper

(June 11, 2020: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/5893/)

・Start of a nationwide breast milk survey

(July 24, 2015: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/news/873/)

【Regarding Snow Brand Seed's 3rd National Breast Milk Survey】

This survey is conducted to research the effects of maternal lifestyle habits and breast milk components on infants.

1 Purpose: To understand the relationship between breast milk components and maternal/infant background information

2 Subjects: 1,210 mothers breastfeeding

3 Method: Mothers provided breast milk and completed questionnaires on diet and lifestyle habits, as well as infant development and disease status.

4 Breast Milk Collection: 2015-2020, Follow-up Survey: 2016-2025 *For the 1st (conducted in 1960) and 2nd (conducted in 1989) breast milk surveys, please visit our website. https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp/labo/milk/

【Regarding "Bonyu Labo" (Breast Milk Lab), a website providing information on breast milk】

This website clearly explains the breast milk research that Snow Brand Seed has been engaged in for over 70 years, and provides information on breast milk components and their relationship to infant development and health, as well as topics and trivia related to breast milk.

URL: https://bonyuukenkyuu.com/

【Company Information】

Snow Brand Milk Products Group, Snow Brand Seed Co., Ltd. (Bean Stalk Snow Co.,Ltd.) Established: August 7, 2002 Representative: President Masaya Matsunaga

URL: https://www.beanstalksnow.co.jp