What do premature babies need to supplement?

If the child is a premature baby, then the child's dietary requirements are relatively high. At this time, the child's physical constitution is relatively weak, and some nutrients must be supplemented in time, such as amino acids and proteins, vitamins and minerals, etc. During normal feeding, you must pay attention to some things. The child should eat small meals frequently, and it is best to breastfeed.

What do premature babies need to supplement?

Amino acids: Normal children have 9 essential amino acids, and premature children have 11. Because premature children lack the relevant converting enzymes, they cannot convert methionine into cystine and phenylalanine into tyrosine. Therefore, cystine and tyrosine become essential amino acids and must be obtained from food.

Protein: The protein intake of mature infants from breast milk accounts for 6-7% of total calories, while the protein intake of premature infants accounts for 10.2% of total calories, which is higher than that of normal infants.

Inorganic salts: Premature babies need more than mature babies, because the final stage of the fetus is the stage when inorganic salts increase, such as calcium, phosphorus, and iron. Premature babies will lack inorganic salts in their bodies.

Vitamins: Premature infants lack vitamin E and are prone to hemolytic anemia. Premature infants do not absorb fat as well as mature infants and may lack fat-soluble vitamins and other nutrients. Whether it is better for premature infants to eat formula or be breastfed remains to be studied. In short, the nutrition of premature babies should vary from person to person. Due to different situations and individual differences, nutrition should be carefully considered based on individual circumstances.

Precautions

Feeding: Start breastfeeding 6 hours after birth and try feeding the baby with sugar water 1 to 2 times before feeding. For those who are underweight or generally weak, breastfeeding should be postponed appropriately and intravenous fluids should be given. Those with poor sucking ability are fed through a gastric tube or an intestinal tube. Premature infants have large individual differences in their needs for heat energy and water.

Keep warm: Keep the room temperature at 24-26℃ and the relative humidity at 55%-65%. The lighter the weight, the closer the surrounding temperature should be to the premature baby's body temperature. Premature babies weighing <2000g should be placed in an incubator. For those weighing 1501-2000g, the incubator temperature is 30-32℃; for those weighing 1001-1500g, the incubator temperature is 32-34℃.

Daily care: Except for measuring weight once a day at a fixed time (before breastfeeding), all nursing work such as feeding, measuring body temperature, changing clothes and diapers are completed in the incubator to avoid unnecessary inspection and movement. Measure the temperature under the armpit every 2 hours initially, and then every 4 to 6 hours after the temperature becomes constant. The body temperature should be maintained at 36-37°C for skin temperature and 36.5-37.5°C for rectal temperature.

Prevent infection: Strengthen daily cleaning and disinfection of the room for premature babies and strictly implement the isolation system. If a premature baby has an infection, treat it promptly