Patterns of serum glucose and galactose concentrations in term newborn infants after milk feeding

Galactose and glucose concentrations were measured in peripheral blood in relation to ad libitum milk feeding in 11 healthy near-term infants. Galactose and glucose concentrations before feeding averaged 1.06 ± 0.21 and 60.3 ± 3.2 mg/dl, respectively. After feedings containing 0.76-2.68 g lactose/kg body weight, both galactose and glucose rose by approximately 35%. Galactose concentrations rose by 0.72 ±0.10 mg/dl at 30 min after feeding, while glucose concentration rose by 23.3 ± 2.5 mg/dl at 30 min after feeding. The 25-fold greater absolute increase in the concentration of glucose than galactose is consistent with efficient first-pass clearance of galactose by the neonatal liver.