Selected vitamins, minerals and fatty acids in infant formulas in the United States

•The measured amount for some vitamins in infant formula was higher than label.•Nearly all nutrients in the infant formula were within United States FDA guidelines.•For minerals, analytical results for the infant formula were close to label amounts. Infant formulas (IF) are consumed during a short b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Journal of food composition and analysis Vol. 36; no. 1-2; pp. 66 - 71
Main Authors:	Pehrsson, Pamela R., Patterson, Kristine Y., Khan, Mona A.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Kidlington Elsevier Inc 01-11-2014 Elsevier
Subjects:	Biological and medical sciences Calcium Choline Essential fatty acids Food analysis Food composition Food industries Food labeling standards Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology General aspects Infant formula Iron Methods of analysis, processing and quality control, regulation, standards Minerals National sampling Vitamins United States North America America National sampling Calcium Choline Food labeling standards Iron Food composition Minerals Infant formula Food analysis Essential fatty acids Vitamins Samplings Vitamin Lipids Fatty acids Inorganic element Standards Analysis Tagging Sampling Food
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Summary:	•The measured amount for some vitamins in infant formula was higher than label.•Nearly all nutrients in the infant formula were within United States FDA guidelines.•For minerals, analytical results for the infant formula were close to label amounts. Infant formulas (IF) are consumed during a short but critical growth period and are the sole source of nutrition for at least part of this time for non-breastfed infants. The 1980 Infant Formula Act (IFA) and subsequent legislation mandate fortification of all IF at specific levels of vitamins and minerals; manufacturers must assure these levels in their products. In order to determine the actual amounts of nutrients in IF and to determine how closely these conform to the IFA and labels amounts, fifteen highly consumed milk- or soy-based infant formulas were sampled nationally at 12 retail locations. These IF were analyzed, and thiamin, vitamins C, A, D, E and K, choline, calcium, iron, and arachidonic, docosohexanoic and linoleic acids values examined. Within analytical uncertainty, all IFs except linoleic acid in one formula met label claim and were within allowed ranges. These results suggest IFs provide nutrition at the level of the label or more. For some vitamins, there was substantially more present in the formula than the label amount, e.g. vitamin C, 25±16 vs. 8mg per 100kcal (n=20), but the variability among brands was high. These data help researchers and consumers understand the nutritional impact of formulas in the diet of infants.
ISSN:	0889-1575 1096-0481
DOI:	10.1016/j.jfca.2014.06.004