HOW DO WE USE ENTERAL FEEDINGS TO PROMOTE GROWTH IN PREMATURE NEONATES?
Human milk is the physiologic norm for nutrition of full-term and near-term infants.66,67,68 The nutritional, immunologic, anti-infective, and developmental properties of human milk have been shown to be highly beneficial.69,70,71,72 Most of these benefits extend to prematurely born neonates, despite certain nutritional limitations of human milk for low-birth-weight infants.19,73,74,75,76,77 Specific benefits of breast-milk feedings include reduced rates of necrotizing enterocolitis and acquired infections both in the hospital and after discharge.69,70,71 The use of breast milk also reduces mortality and morbidity and can be attributed to decreased lengths of hospital stays and reduced health-care cost.78 In addition, clinical trials show that interventions that promote breast-feeding increased the duration and degree (exclusivity) of breast-feeding and decreased the risk of gastrointestinal tract infection and atopic eczema in the first year after birth.70,78 Based upon the compelling
