Prior to birth, infants receive maternal DHA and ARA across the placenta.
After birth, breastfed infants continue to receive maternal DHA and ARA from breast milk. Researchers believe formula-fed infants should receive
these nutrients from lipid-fortified formulas until they start solid foods in the second half of the first year.
(Foods high in DHA include meat, fish and eggs. Consult your pediatrician about an appropriate age to give solid foods.)
In the United States prior to 2002, DHA and ARA were not added to formulas. It was thought that infants could synthesize adequate amounts of DHA and ARA from vegetable oils in formula. However, it is now known that many formula-fed infants have lower levels of DHA and ARA than breast-fed infants.
Researchers now believe that many infants cannot make sufficient amounts of DHA and ARA from the vegetable oils and unless DHA and ARA are added directly to formula, researchers contend, formula-fed infants will not receive adequate amounts of these lipids.
Bright Beginnings milk-based formula provides DHA and ARA in amounts that have been proven to produce lipid levels in infants similar to those observed in breast-fed infants.
The DHA and ARA in Bright Beginnings are from vegetable sources - the only source which has been recognized as "safe" for
inclusion in infant formulas by the Food and Drug Administration. |
