Growth of Newborn, Term Infants Fed Soy Formulas For 1 Year

Abstract

Few studies have measured long-term growth in infants fed soy protein-based formulas. The effect of nucleotide (NT) supplementation of soy protein-based infant formulas on growth is unknown. Growth was therefore evaluated in healthy term infants fed a soy protein-based formula (SOY; n=73), SOY with added NT (72 mg added NT/L) at human milk (HM) levels (SOYN, n=73), or mixed feeding (MF, n=67) in a randomized, masked, parallel 1-year feeding study. The MF group (a nonrandomized reference group) was fed HM exclusively from birth to 2 months of age followed by HM and/or a standard milk-based formula (Similac® with Iron with no supplemental NTs) to 1 year of age. Results indicated that growth (weight, length, and head circumference) was normal and comparable among the three groups. All three groups had similar plasma albumin (at 2 months of age) and hemoglobin levels (at 12 months of age). Thus, this study demonstrated similar growth in the first year of life among infants fed MF feeding or soy formula with or without supplemental NTs.