Food intake and growth of infants between six and twenty-six weeks of age on breast milk, cow's milk formula, or soy formula.
In 59 normal infants attending well-baby clinics, food consumption was registered until 26 and growth until 52 weeks of age. They were either breast-fed or formula-fed with a cow's milk product or a soy protein product. The average consumption of breastmilk was 746, 796, 722 ans 689 g/day at 6, 14, 22 and 26 weeks respectively. Bottle-fed infants received larger volumes, and at 6 and 14 weeks were the calculated total energy intakes significantly higher than in breast-fed infants. No differences were seen between the feeding groups with respect to length and the sum of four skin folds. The soy formula-fed children, who happened to be 200 g heavier at birth, had lower weight gains during the first 6 weeks than the other two groups. Thereafter, the average weights of the soy formula group did not differ from the other groups. At 3 months, the soy formula-fed children displayed a slower mineralisation and maturation of bone, but the difference was no longer significant when re-examined at 6 months. Formulas based on soy protein isolates seem to be acceptable as substitutes for cow's milk formulas in feeding normal infants.
D000818:Animals; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D001846:Bone Development; D001903:Bottle Feeding; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002417:Cattle; D004435:Eating; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D006128:Growth; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007225:Infant Food; D007227:Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008892:Milk; D008895:Milk, Human; D012885:Skinfold Thickness