Palm olein in infant formula and nutrient absorption in babies
What it found
Babies fed formulas without palm olein absorbed more fat, palmitic acid and calcium, and had higher bone mass.
These findings come from a review of nine studies in infants.
What they found
Studies in people
Fat and calcium absorption
Across the nine studies, babies fed formulas without palm olein consistently absorbed more fat, palmitic acid and calcium. The differences for palmitic acid and calcium were at least 0.6 standard deviations.
Bone mass in infants
Total body bone mineral content was higher in babies fed formulas without palm olein. The difference was at least 0.3 standard deviations compared to the palm olein group.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that using palm olein in infant formulas to copy the palmitic acid in human milk leads to lower absorption of fat, palmitic acid and calcium, and reduced bone mass.
- They advise that avoiding palm olein or replacing it with a synthetic fat can prevent these effects.
How it was done
Infant formulas sometimes use palm oil or its liquid part, palm olein, as the main fat source to match the palmitic acid found in human milk. The authors wanted to see what published clinical data showed about how this affects babies.
The authors searched medical databases for studies comparing babies fed formulas with palm olein to those fed formulas without it or with a synthetic fat instead. They found nine publications covering infants born between 28 and 42 weeks of gestation. Babies were studied from birth up to 192 days old.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These studies looked only at infants up to 192 days old, so they cannot show long term effects on older children or adults.
- The results apply to babies drinking formula and may not reflect what happens when people eat palm olein in regular foods.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Detroit Medical Center, USA
The paper
- Title
- Palm olein in the fat blend of infant formulas: effect on the intestinal absorption of calcium and fat, and bone mineralization
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Koo WW, Hockman EM, Dow M (2006). Palm olein in the fat blend of infant formulas: effect on the intestinal absorption of calcium and fat, and bone mineralization. Journal of the American College of Nutrition. doi:10.1080/07315724.2006.10719521PubMed 16582027DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error