Thanks S.B. Feldman for posting the study on DHA & AA wrt infant formula
fortification.
>
>More than 60 countries have approved supplementing formula with the DHA and
>AA. Officials at the Food and Drug Administration said the issue is under
>review and new regulations for U.S. formula makers may be issued within eight
>months.

Why was the U.S. so late to enter the game in adding DHA to infant formula?
Have they not known for all this time that human mothers's milk contains DHA
and that it is essential to the development of the brain, eyes and nervous
system of a human infant???

>Eileen E. Birch, first author of the study, said infants receiving the double=
>supplement, both DHA and AA, scored 105.6 on the mental development index of=
the Bayley Scales.Birch said this is virtually identical to the 106 score of
a separate group >of babies, in another study, who were breast fed only.
>>
>Birch said she thought the FDA was being "appropriately cautious" in its
>evaluation of the DHA and AA supplemented formula.
>"There are still some important questions to be answered" regarding the=
>long-term effect of artificially supplementing formula with the fatty acids,
>she said.

Come on!!! You know There are still some important questions to be answered"
regarding the long-term effect of artificially FEEDING BABIES INFANT
FORMULA.... They never tested that. But they are still very CAUTIOUS about
adding something to infant formula that is naturally in human mothers's
millk.  Why don't
they use fish oil which contains DHA???  Why were they not cautious in
promoting formula???  $$$$

Human mothers' milk also contains cholesterol, but do they add that to the
bottled formulas???  This may be a step in the right direction wrt to
understanding the fatty acid issue, but the real thing to consider are the
other long term effects of NOT breast feeding. Will they try to devise a
bottle nipple that will more closely approximate mama's nipple, requiring
more sucking force to develop the palate and dental arch next??? Will they
make the bottle furry and soft and warm too?? They are just too divorced
from nature!!!!!
  >
>Levine said there were many studies showing the superiority of breast milk
>for infants and that the goal has been to fortify formula "so that it is like
>breast milk."

Yeah, but many doctors don't know this. I had a friend whose husband was
worried that if his wife breast fed their baby might be missing out on some
important nutrients.  And this was a very bright guy!!!  The level of
ignorance
about human nutritional needs among most doctors, including pediatricians
is still astounding.

It is great that they are recognizing that there are things nature put into
breast milk that humans need that man has been ignorant about, but they can
never duplicate all of nature's wisdom nor her ingredients.
>
Rachel