Hydrolyzed baby food does not protect against autoimmune diseases

Special hydrolysed milk is no more effective than regular cow's milk
If parents fear that their baby might develop asthma, allergies or Type 1 diabetes, they are looking for ways to prevent them. Some parents then give their newborn a special cow's milk to reduce the risk of the disease. However, scientists from Imperial College London have now discovered that this hydrolyzed baby food actually has no protective effect on autoimmune diseases.

Parents are always concerned about their babies. Because of this, they often buy special products to promote the health of the child. The knowledge also the manufacturers of such products. But not infrequently, the effectiveness of the goods is not really proven. This also applies to special milk, which should lower the risk of autoimmune diseases in newborns. Researchers at Imperial College London have now found in an investigation that such so-called hydrolyzed baby food has no protective effect against asthma, allergies or type 1 diabetes. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "European Journal of Allergy to Clinical Immunology".

Hydrolyzed milk offered no better protection against asthma, allergies and diabetes than cow's milk. (Picture: runzelkorn / fotolia.com)

Hydrolysed formula does not give babies special protection against allergies
Parents increasingly give their babies hydrolyzed baby food to avoid autoimmune diseases. But a new review of the data revealed that this particular baby food does not provide any special protection against autoimmune diseases. We have found no consistent evidence that a hydrolyzed formula provides special protection Robert Boyle from Imperial College London. So far, hydrolyzed foods have been recommended for young infants with a family history of allergic disease in current international guidelines, says the physician. Experts from the United States also doubt the usefulness of these special products.

Researchers found no protective effect on hydrolyzed foods
According to the British researchers, many infant nutrition guidelines worldwide, including North America, Australia and Europe, instead of using standard infant formula to use hydrolyzed cow's milk to prevent autoimmune diseases. However, most experts believe that baby foods are not healthier than breast milk. However, current guidelines for baby food recommend that parents should feed hydrolyzed food if at least one close family member has a food allergy, the researchers explain. Older studies claimed that this would provide some sort of protective effect. However, the British scientists found no clear evidence to support the older statements.

Current guidelines should be revised
The new study examined the data of more than 19,000 participants. These data were collected between the years 1946 and 2015, the researchers could find no protective effect. When children receive the hydrolyzed cow's milk, the risk of asthma, allergies (such as atopic dermatitis, hay fever, food allergies) or type 1 diabetes does not decrease, the experts explain. In addition, the physicians found no evidence that hydrolyzed food lowers the risk of skin disease, reduces eczema or prevents allergy to cow's milk, the doctors continue. Therefore, it is time to revise the guidelines recommending hydrolyzed foods. Most children will have the best chance of a healthy life, if they were fed with normal breast milk, experts estimate. The recommendations should be revised in this direction. Although hydrolyzed foods do not cause any damage, they are often expensive and can not be found in all grocery stores. (As)