Energy Needs of Premature Infants

Premature infants -- infants born before 37 weeks of gestation -- have different nutritional needs than full-term babies. A preemie needs more calories but might have difficulty eating as much as he needs without tiring because of weakness, lung disease or heart conditions. Because a preemie lacks body fat, he uses more energy just keeping his temperature regulated. Helping your preemie grow takes close monitoring and coordination between medical teams.

  1. Calorie Needs

    • Premature babies need between 100 and 120 calories per 2.2 pounds of weight by the time they go home from the hospital, family physician Dr. Amy LaHood of Indianapolis states in the October 2007 issue of "American Family Physician." A premature baby at home should gain between 0.71 and 1.06 ounces per day, LaHood reports.

    Boosting Intake

    • Because preemies need calories but often can't eat enough to meet their needs, because of a small stomach capacity and decreased energy levels, your doctor might prescribe special high-calorie formulas. While regular formula supplies 20 calories per ounce, high-calorie formulas provide between 22 and 27 calories per ounce. While breast milk straight out of its natural container can't be fortified with extra calories, it's highly digestible and made for human infants. However, your doctor might recommend fortifying breast milk with additional calories to meet your baby's growth needs. Not all studies support the use of enriched formulas; a 2005 Cochrane review of seven studies found no evidence that enriched formulas improved growth rates.

    Minimizing Energy Expenditure

    • It's important that your baby conserve his energy for essential tasks such as growing. To ensure that he doesn't need to expend precious calories in other ways, keep his room comfortable so he doesn't have to use calories to keep warm. Don't overheat his room or overdress him, though. A room that's too warm increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome. Limit your baby's exposure to other people because preemies have underdeveloped immune systems.

    Long-term Weight Gain

    • Once your baby's catches up on his growth, which means reaching the fifth to 10th percentile of expected weight for his gestational age, your doctor will make the change to regular formula to avoid obesity and hypervitaminosis -- too high an intake of vitamins. Your baby's head circumference might catch up first, followed by weight and then length. Around 30 percent of preemies still lag behind in weight at 18 months; by age 7 to 8, around 20 percent still fall under the 10th percentile, according to a Gerber for Medical Professionals article.

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