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Title: Building bones in babies: can and should we exceed the human milk-fed infant's rate of bone calcium accretion?

Author
item Abrams, Steven

Submitted to: Nutrition Reviews
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/19/2006
Publication Date: 11/13/2006
Citation: Abrams, S.A. 2006. Building bones in babies: Can and should we exceed the human milk-fed infant's rate of bone calcium accretion? Nutrition Reviews. 64(11):487-494.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Increasing calcium absorption and bone calcium accretion to levels above those achieved by human milk-fed, full-term infants is possible with infant formulas. However, no data support such a goal or suggest that it is beneficial to short- or long-term bone health. Small differences in the bioavailability of calcium between infant formulas are unlikely to have long-term consequences. Long-term studies of the effects of infant feeding type on ultimate bone mass are needed. For now, the vitamin-replete breast-fed infant's rate of calcium accretion during the first year of life should be the standard targeted for infant formulas.