Choosing milk powder for the baby is always a headache for the father and mother. There are many milk powder brands on the market, and each milk powder sells differently. So is it worth buying milk powder that now focuses on organic and A2-β casein?
Organic formula milk powder, the standard is indeed high, but it must be needed?
Baidu Encyclopedia said: Organic food is a more unified reference to pollution-free natural food in the world. Organic food usually comes from the organic agricultural production system, and is produced and processed according to international organic agricultural production requirements and corresponding standards.
So what are its benefits? The mineral content is higher than that of ordinary foods, the content of heavy metals is low, and there is no pollution. So does this work for infant formula? Contamination-free food is definitely good. However, from the perspective of national standards for infant formula, from the nutrient content to the excess value of heavy metals and consumption recommendations, food risks have been avoided for infants and young children.
However, because many of the "selective nutrients" in infant formula cannot meet the organic standard, organic milk powder is lower in formula than ordinary milk powder.
Finally, the price of organic milk powder is much more expensive than that of ordinary milk powder. Organic milk powder launched by Brands such as Abbott, QiFu and Feihe is about one-third more expensive than its ordinary milk powder.
Therefore, when we face organic milk powder, we still have to comprehensively measure the trade-offs from the three aspects of economic strength, nutritional value and product safety.
Is A2-β Casein Milk Powder Worth Buying? Depending on the treasure, intestinal sensitivity is optional
A1-β egg and A2-β casein are the two main types of β-casein, differing in the 67th amino acid in the protein chain. Differences in protein structure make their digestion process different, as follows: A1 can produce β-butterine-7 (BCM-7) during digestion, while A2 does not produce BCM-7, which is a kind of endorphin that can interact with various systems of the body.
Some studies have suggested that BCM-7 produced by A1 casein may be associated with gastrointestinal discomfort such as bloating, abdominal pain, or diarrhea after drinking milk, similar to the symptoms of "lactose intolerance." A2β-casein does not produce BCM-7 during digestion, similar to β-casein in breast milk. Therefore, formula based on A2β-casein may be closer to breast milk and more conducive to promoting the growth and development of infants and young children. From this point of view, for babies with more sensitive stomachs, it is better to choose A2 milk powder.
At present, the milk powder that advertises A2β-casein has milk powder and goat milk powder. The promotion of A2 milk powder is based on the selection of A2 cows from its milk source, and the A1 protein of dairy cows is genetically screened to eliminate the A1 protein; while the goat milk powder that claims A2β-casein is based on the fact that goat milk does not naturally contain A1β-casein.
Recently, the author has been following the declaration of A2β-casein in The Milk of Osta Sheep, and attached the test results they sent to a third-party authoritative testing agency. The report is based on the fact that it is a "pure sheep formula" milk powder that does not contain 1 drop of cow's milk. This also proves from the side that sheep milk really seems to contain only A2β-casein.
Sheep milk formula is an option for sensitive babies, how to choose a sheep milk formula?
Because of its inherent advantage of only containing A2β-casein, and the content of nutrients such as lactoferrin and calcium is also higher than that of milk, it is a good choice for sensitive babies. However, we should also note that the current sheep milk formula is also different. Let's take Osta as an example and take a look at its ingredient list:
The whole sheep milk powder and desalted sheep whey powder in the ingredient list clearly indicate that they come from sheep milk, and no longer contain other milk powder raw materials. However, in the ingredient list of some sheep milk powder, we can also see that there are ingredients such as "whole milk powder" and "desalted whey powder", and the word "sheep" is not marked. This can largely be tacitly accepted as the ingredient used is milk source, be sure to consult before placing an order when purchasing.