And as another note on most of these studies ( including the O'Conner) While at least O'conners study stated it did include some premies under 1000gm. the actual numbers I never saw. All the studies I have seen so far also EXCLUDE from them preterm infants who generally are less than 1000- 1500 gms, have BPD/RDS, sepsis, GI issues and genetic anomolies, etc. WOW, I'd like to work in thoses NICU's! Can you imagine the utopian NICU that all premies never have these issues? Yet the manufacturers have decided that these studies are soooo well done and represent soooo much of the premature population that all preterm formulas will have DHA/ARA. SO the big question I have is- what about the possiblility of the premie who is unable to tolerate these or future additives? What do we feed them IF for whatever reason breastmilk is not an option? I guess then they don't get fed? What if it appears that this promotes allergen sensitivity? What will non breastfed infants eat? How do we "promote" preterm infant growth as suggested by utilizing additive formula feeds when alk phos levels indicate the need in our discharged breastfeeding premies? Why haven't we heard much out of some of our leading physicians that specialize in preterm nutrition? I still think it is very sad that the medical community is appearing to essentially let manufacturers tell them how they will provide nutrition for the infants and families under their care. The strongest statements I have seen come out discussing this via the physician groups have been articles with wording such as " appears to have some benefit" and " should be a additional alternative".... "appears"- whew- what a wimpy endorsement if that's what it is or what a wimpy word to suggest concern... not sure what the authors meant. And revamping ALL infant formula to include this classifies as an "additional alternative"? So where is the AAP in this? AAFP? Have we really evolved into a society that has been so beaten down by the HMO's that there's no longer any fight left? I don't care if they say " Hey- we believe this to be a great idea and stand behind this decision to use this for EVERY infant no matter what".... I just expect the medical community to quit hiding out on this topic which affects all infants who are not going to be breastfed exclusively. And then we get into the plans to add it to baby foods, etc.........is there a toxicity point? anyone have any idea on that topic? For me , the silence from the medical community over this issue is extremely frightening...... Lisa Jones RN RLC IBCLC *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html