Stool Saponified Fatty Acid, Behavior, Growth, and Stool Characteristics in Infants Fed a High-OPO Formula: A Randomized, Double-Blind Clinical Trial
Lili Shen, Weihua Huang, Xuebing Xu, Li Wang, Qingyun Wang, Shengqi Li, Xuewei Yuan
Abstract
Objective: 1,3-Dioleoyl-2-palmitoylglycerol (OPO) is an ideal structured triglyceride for infant formula, with a similar structure to human milk fat. We conducted this randomized, double-blind controlled, single-center trial to evaluate the effects of an OPO formula in infants. Study Design: One hundred seventy-four healthy term infants <14 days old were assigned to the standard formula-fed group ( n = 55), high sn-2 palmitic acid (OPO) formula-fed infants ( n = 58), and breastfed (BF) group ( n = 61). The primary endpoint was the total saponified fatty acid content in feces at week 6 and week 12. Results: Infants from the OPO group had lower concentrations of fecal saponified fatty acids than those from the standard formula group ( p < 0.0001) at week 6 and week 12. The frequencies of crying per day and per night of infants in the OPO group were significantly less than those of infants in the standard formula group ( p < 0.0001). After 12 weeks of feeding, the length of infants was significantly higher in the OPO group than in the other two groups ( p = 0.002). Infants in the OPO group had a significantly lower stool calcium concentration and a higher stool frequency per day than infants in the standard formula group. Conclusion: In summary, a high concentration of OPO in formula is beneficial to the growth and development of infants.