MULTIELEMENT DETERMINATION IN SMALL SAMPLES OF HUMAN-MILK BY INDUCTIVELY-COUPLED PLASMA-ATOMIC EMISSION-SPECTROMETRY

Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) was used for routine analysis of small samples of human milk. The concentr ations of calcium (Ca), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), mangan ese (Mn), phosphorus (P), and zinc (Zn) were determined in 203 milk sa mples from postpartum women at different stages of lactation after ste pwise digestion in HNO3, HClO4, and H2O2 under heat. Validation of the procedure was achieved using certified reference material of bovine l iver (NBS 1577) with mean recoveries of 103.5%. The concentrations of the above elements in milk matrix were comparable with previously repo rted values. The analytical results from breast milk will provide refe rence information for mineral studies of Brazilian mothers and breast- fed infants.