Breast milk could be substitute for antibiotics, research suggests 

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Sugars in breast milk kill bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, scientists found.

Their research suggests that breastfeeding can help protect against drug-resistant superbugs.

They said the sugars could be used instead of antibiotics in the fight against antimicrobial resistance – which is when bacteria and other microbes change and stop responding to drugs.

The researchers isolated the sugars, called human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), from the milk of several mothers before testing it on human cells infected with group B Streptococcus (GBS).

GBS is a common type of bacteria that can cause blood poisoning, meningitis and stillbirth – and is increasingly resistant to drugs.