Fifty years of research on mycotoxins in breast milk: A bibliometric analysis (1975–2025)

Mycotoxins such as aflatoxins, fumonisins, zearalenone, deoxynivalenol, and ochratoxin A are secondary metabolites produced by certain fungi and are risky contaminants due to their toxicity and frequency. Mycotoxins in breast milk have raised significant public health concerns, especially for infant health. This study aims to perform a bibliometric analysis of breast milk mycotoxin research published over the last fifty years (1975–2025). Data were mainly obtained from the Scopus database. Bibliometric analysis, a statistical method for analyzing the bibliographic data of scientific literature, was conducted using the R program, evaluating trends, key authors, countries, institutions, and keywords. This study analyzes 1,300 publications (1975–2025) on breastmilk mycotoxins, highlighting a sharp rise after 2010 and peak interest in 2020. Research focuses on human health, food contamination, aflatoxin M1, and chromatographic methods. China, the USA, and Iran lead in productivity and citations. The findings indicate a significant increase in scientific output since 2010, with research primarily focusing on human health, food contamination, aflatoxin M1, and chromatographic methods. More research on their health effects is needed, and regular breast milk monitoring should be implemented. Improving food safety is crucial to protect infants.