By Suzanne Rostler
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Infant formulas containing two fatty acids believed to aid in neurological and visual development will be available for the first time in the US early this year, manufacturers announced Thursday.
The new formulas, marketed by Mead Johnson Nutritionals, a division of Bristol-Myers Squibb, and the Ross Products division of Abbott Laboratories, are expected to cost about 15% to 20% more than formulas without the fatty acids, the two companies said.
The compounds that have been added, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA), are long-chain polyunsaturated acids that may boost brain development and improve vision. They are present in breast milk and in infant formulas in some European countries but are not currently found in formulas sold in the United States.
But while the addition of DHA and ARA to formulas has been shown to boost blood levels of the essential fatty acids, it is not clear whether higher blood levels translate into any medical benefit. According to Dr. Frank R. Greer, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, studies have been mixed.
"The overall strategy is to make formula more like human milk and by adding these long-chain fatty acids, you make formula, at least from a compositional standpoint, more like human milk," Greer told Reuters Health. "It doesn't do any harm but whether it helps term babies is questionable."
Dr. William MacLean, vice president of medical and regulatory affairs with Ross Products, said that two large studies conducted by Abbott Laboratories concluded that there was no difference in the neurological and visual development of full-term, healthy infants fed formula with and without the compounds. Pre-term infants, on the other hand, showed an improved rate of visual development when fed formula containing DHA and ARA, he told Reuters Health.
Other studies have shown a benefit. In one report, infants who had been fed formula supplemented with DHA and ARA scored better at 10 months of age on a test assessing problem-solving skills than did infants fed regular formula. And some studies have shown more rapid rates of visual development in infants fed DHA- and ARA-enriched formula, according to Mead Johnson.
"Since rapid infant brain development occurs in the early months of life, a number of researchers believe that a direct dietary source of DHA and ARA at that time can be beneficial for brain and retinal development," said Dr. James W. Hansen, a neonatologist and medical director for Mead Johnson Nutritionals, in a prepared statement.
Ross Products manufactures Similac and Mead Johnson makes Enfamil.
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