Growth and milk intake of normal infants

Abstract

The growth of 94 normal term infants was studied from birth to 6 months. Thirty-three infants were breast fed and the others randomly allocated to 1 of 3 bottle feeds - Cow and Gate V formula, Baby Milk Plus, and Premium. The weight, length, and head growth velocities were similar in all 4 groups. The infants fed Cow and Gate V formula consumed a larger volume of feed at 3 months than the infants fed the 2 other formulae despite a slower weight gain. It is suggested that this is related to a loss of calories in unabsorbed fat. The weight gains of all 4 groups in this study were considerably less than infants fed unmodified milks and early solids, studied in the same region several years earlier.