Do we need to rethink the protein level of infant formula?
April 24th, 2009
The protein level of ready to feed infant formula is significantly higher than that of human milk. This was a deliberate choice because firstly cow milk protein was considered not to be as well digested as human milk protein, and also the aminoacid composition which can be achieved with a mix of cow milk proteins [currently 60% whey and 40% casein] does not accurately match that of human milk proteins in terms of the blood levels of individual aminoacids produced in the infant. Indeed small amounts of some single aminoacids may be added to formula to try to correct this.
