Some current controversies on nutritional requirements of full-term and pre-term newborn infants

Many controversial topics have still to be resolved regarding the nutrition al requirements of the newborn, and in particular of the pre-term infant. T he term 'controversy' bears the connotation of prolonged dispute and such a situation has arisen for various reasons: (a) from inadequate research met hodologies; (b) from the misinterpretation of, or bias within, the results of studies undertaken; (c) from not taking into account the multifactorial etiology of physiopathological situations or illnesses suffered by suckling neonates and newborn infants. Nevertheless, controversy as such is not alw ays a negative factor, as investigation and discussion enable advances in t herapeutic methods. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reser ved.