Profile of triacylglycerols and percentage of palmitic acid at the sn-2 in breast milk substitutes

The aim of this study was to analyze the percentage of palmitic acid at sn-2 position on triacylglycerols in infant formulas. We studied 6 infant formulas in the Argentinean market that are used as breast-milk substitutes during the first six months after delivery: 2 formulas with vegetable oils as basic source of lipids (F1, F2); 1 formula with milk fat and vegetable oils (F3); 1 formula with structured lipids and vegetable oils (F4); 2 formulas for pre-term infants, one with milk fat and other oils (F5), and the other with vegetable oils (F6). Results showed that F1, F2, F3 and F4 presented 14.6%, 14.8%, 48.1% and 44.5%, respectively, of palmitic acid at sn-2 position, whereas formulas F5 and F6 had 49.5% and 14.6%, respectively, of palmitic acid at sn-2 position. Milk-based infant formulas had the highest concentration of palmitic acid at sn-2 position.