CLINICAL AND NUTRITIONAL IMPACTS OF REMOVING BISULFITE FROM NEONATAL PARENTERAL-NUTRITION

There is a general willingness to eliminate sulfites from the diet bec ause of adverse reactions. Because little is known about the biologica l effects of these antioxidants in vivo, we compared clinical and nutr itional parameters in newborn infants receiving two parenteral amino a cid solutions containing either 300 mg/dl or no metabisulfite. The pri mary objective was to verify whether decreasing the sulfur content of parenteral nutrition would diminish the calciuria of newborn infants. In a crossover design, 18 newborn infants received two regimens differ ing only in their metabisulfite content. Nitrogen and mineral balances ; clinical parameters such as mean heart and respiratory rates, body t emperature, and transcutaneous Po, and PCO2 (n = 7); and energy expend iture were similar in both regimens. Withdrawing bisulfites from the d iet did not change calciuria, put an extra burden on the infant's meta bolic adaptation, or cause short-term clinical repercussions.