Fatty Acids in Infant Formula Infant Brain Work for Less

Fatty Acids in Infant Formula Infant Brain Work for Less

Current infant formulas are equipped with various fatty acids. But researchers revealed in these fatty acids did not provide significant benefits to enhance the ability of the infant brain.
The review of several studies indicate that infant formulas supplemented with fatty acids are made to imitate breast milk does not increase significantly the ability of the infant brain compared with formula without extra fatty acids.

Researchers reveal the results of these fatty acids does not necessarily mean the formula is not useful. But these fatty acids did not give prominence to the language and thinking abilities of children than with children who are breast-feeding.
The study, published in the journal Pediatrics showed that babies raised on breast milk tend to have higher scores on tests of mental development compared with formula-fed children.
Infant formula is usually derived from cow's milk enriched with fatty acids and other nutrients. Formulas are equipped with two fatty acids, namely docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (AA).
The study, led by Dr Ahmad Qawasmi from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut and Al-Quds University in Jerusalem tried to analyze this by using data 12 trials involving 1800 infants in the years 1998-2005.
These infants fed on formula from the age of 1 month and 1 year old baby when it underwent a test to measure motor skills, language and mental development.
Found only two studies that show milk formula with more fatty acids have better test results, while the remaining nine studies found no cognitive benefits in infants who received milk with added fatty acids.
As reported by CBS News on Thursday (5/31/2012), researchers revealed that the overall excess fatty acids do not provide a significant advantage of the ability of the brain, although there is the possibility of adding these fatty acids benefit the other factors such as vision or boost immune function.
For the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends women breastfeed exclusively for 6 months and followed by the provision of complementary foods to introduce solid foods.