[Hot Science] sn-2 palmitate may help improve crying and sleep patterns in infants
![[Hot Science] sn-2 palmitate may help improve crying and sleep patterns in infants](/sites/default/files/styles/header_image_article_mobile/public/2019-11/image%287%29.jpg.webp?itok=ihVvQDf0)
Latest: Results from a study found sn-2 palmitate supplemented in infant formula may help improve crying and sleep patterns in infants.
This is the first randomized controlled study to investigate the effect of a formula containing SN2-palmitate in Chinese babies and demonstrate that adding SN2-palmitate to a formula already containing prebiotics has an additive effect on baby comfort.
Background
- Infant sleep and excessive crying are of major parental concern, often being related to discomfort
- Due to sn-2 palmitate’s potential benefits such as gastrointestinal health in infants, the nutrient’s effects on sleep and crying were explored
Methods
- 171 healthy term Chinese infants (within 14 days from birth) were randomly assigned to the below feedings:
- High sn-2 palmitate formula (43% palmitic acid esterified to the sn-2 position) (n = 57)
- Control formula (13% palmitic acid esterified to the sn-2 position) (n = 57)
- Breastfeeding (reference) (n = 57)
Note: the only difference between the two formulas are the level of sn-2 palmitate
- Crying and sleep patterns of the different groups were analysed at different time points
Key Findings
- There were no significant differences observed in the growth or feed consumption between the groups
- Differences in crying and sleep characteristics are summarized below:
| Feeding | Crying episodes | Duration of crying (min in 72 hrs) |
Sleep duration during 24 hrs (hrs) |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 6 weeks |
At 12 weeks |
At 6 weeks |
At 12 weeks |
At 6 weeks |
At 12 weeks |
|
| High sn-2 formula | 2.0 | 1.0 | 25.1 | 11.2 | 15.4# | 14.7# |
| Control formula | 3.6* | 2.2* | 41.3* | 21.2* | 14.5 | 13.7 |
| Breast-fed | 2.1 | 1.0 | 19.4 | 7.5 | 13.6 | 14.2 |
*Crying episodes and duration in control group were significantly higher than high sn-2 and breast-fed groups (p < 0.05), while there were no significant differences between the latter two
#High sn-2 group had significantly longer sleep duration, as compared with control and breast-fed groups (p < 0.05)
Conclusion
- sn-2 palmitate supplemented in formula was able to improve crying and sleep patterns in the first few weeks of life, indicating the nutrient’s potential to improve the well-being of formula-fed infants and the quality of life of their parents
Reference
Bar-Yoseph F, Lifshitz Y, Cohen T, Malard P, Li Z, Cui H, Zhang A, Wu JL, Xu C. SN2-palmitate improves crying and sleep in infants fed formula with prebiotics: A double-blind randomized clinical trial. Clinics Mother Child Health. 2017;14:2.
WYE-EM-155-JUL-17
