Results of a 16-year study by the Medical Research Council [U.K.] have proved that nutrition plays a key role in early brain development, and that optimum nutrition for preterm babies can significantly influence their mental ability in later life. The first segment of the study assigned 400 preterm infants from birth to 18 months old to two groups, one receiving standard formula and the other a nutrient-enriched preterm formula. The biggest difference between the two groups was in motor development, but mental scores were also better in babies who had received the enriched formula. The benefits were particularly striking in small for gestational age infants and in boys.
In the second segment of the study, the same babies were tested again at the age of 7 1/2 and 8 years. Infants fed the standard formula had a significantly reduced verbal IQ, while those fed on the nutrient enriched preterm formula performed much better. Analyses on children of both genders showed that verbal IQ below 85 and cerebral palsy were both more prevalent in the group fed standard formula.
-Professional Care of Mother & Child, 9:1 1999
(Editor's note: Imagine the positive results if the babies had been given breastmilk.)
Reprinted from Midwifery Today E-News (Vol 1 Issue 24, June 11, 1999)
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