Abstract
Nutritional copper deficiencies have been described in breast-fed and formula-fed infants, yet balance data are scarce. We compared intake and retention of copper in three groups of infants: breast-fed (I), fed with adapted but not copper-supplemented formula (II) and fed with a supplemented formula. The mean copper concentration of these milks as determined by wet ashing and atomic absorption spectrometry was in breast-milk (I) 611 - 1128 (depending on stage of lactation!), in (II) 121 and in (III) 619 μg/l. Five balance periods with 72 hours each were performed in infants during the 3rd, 5th, 9th, 12th and 16th week resulting in a total of 84 balances. The following mean intakes and retentions (± s.d.) were found (number of balances = ba, number of infants = inf): Similar data were obtained in 21 balances of preterms fed with both formulas. Conclusion: Bioavailability of copper from breast-milk is best. Nutrition with formula milk unsupplemented with copper does not render a sufficient copper supply.
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