There’s no dispute that breast feeding is the best way to nourish growing infants. But research shows that even mother’s milk doesn’t contain enough of the key nutrients that premature babies need. 

To address this problem, a team of U.S. and Turkish scientists has developed an infant formula made from hazelnut oil that they say will not only boost nutrition for premature babies, but also for tots who are bottle fed rather than breastfed.

In a report published in the April 2012 edition of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the researchers discussed how they made a new healthy “designer fat” from hazelnut oil that can be added to infant formulas. The hazelnut fat mimics two key fatty acids that mothers naturally provide in the womb: omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and omega-6 arachidonic acid (ARA). 

Studies have linked these two fatty acids to healthy babies’ brain and organ development. But because these nutrients are only produced in the last trimester of pregnancy, premature babies may not get enough of them. In their report, the researchers note that mother’s milk has both DHA and ARA, but not in high enough levels for preemies to supplement what they didn’t get in the womb. Premature babies are born before 37 weeks are completed.

DHA and ARA from algae are currently added to some infant formulas, but because these fatty acids aren’t identical to those found in human milk, there is concern about their digestibility. The U.S. and Turkish researchers say they have conducted extensive research on their hazelnut-spiked formula, and have concluded that it more closely mimics the DHA and ARA in human milk.