Acceptance of two liquid vitamin D3 formulations among mothers with newborn infants: a randomized, single-blind trial

Abstract

In Switzerland, children are prescribed 7.5-12.5 μg per day of vitamin D(3) dissolved in alcohol, but many families do not adhere to the recommendation. The aim of the trial was to compare the acceptance of vitamin D(3) dissolved in alcohol or in medium-chain triglycerides among mothers of Swiss newborn infants. The acceptance was tested in 42 healthy newborn infants (20 girls and 22 boys) aged between 2 and 7 days. Their neonatal body weight ranged between 2.225 and 4.150 kg, and the gestational age between 36 1/7 and 41 3/7 weeks. The blinded mothers rated the facial reaction of their children by pointing on a facial hedonic scale. Thirty eight of the 41 mothers, who brought the comparison to completion, assigned a better score to the oily preparation with no difference in the remaining three cases (P < 0.0001). The acceptance for the oily preparation was significantly better both among mothers whose babies were initially presented the alcoholic preparation and among mothers whose babies were initially presented the oily preparation. Furthermore, the acceptance for the oily preparation was better irrespective of gender of the infant or parity of the mother. In conclusion, from the perspective of mothers, Swiss newborn infants prefer the taste of the oily vitamin D(3) preparation over the alcoholic preparation.

A Systematic Literature Review on the Assessment of Palatability and Swallowability in the Development of Oral Dosage Forms for Pediatric Patients

“…The acceptance of 2 liquid vitamin D 3 formulations was assessed in 42 mothers with newborn infants 20 using the mother’s reaction to the hedonic facial reaction of the infant based on a 4-point facial scale (4 = good, 3 = not sure, 2 = bad, 1 = really bad). Between testing, the baby received some milk to rinse his or her mouth (the time between the tasting of the 2 formulations was at least 3 minutes).…”

Different Vitamin D Supplementation Strategies in the First Years of Life: A Systematic Review

“…Oral supplementation of 400 IU/day to all infants from few days after birth to at least 6 months of age is generally recommended [ 13 ]. However, a high prevalence of VD insufficiency is observed worldwide among infants, possibly due to caregivers’ poor compliance and acceptance of daily supplementation, with concurrent formulation heterogeneity [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]. Higher maternal postpartum supplementation or intermittent infant oral intake at higher doses could then represent a valid alternative [ 17 , 18 ].…”

Taste acceptance of Captopril and Furosemide Extemporaneous Oral Pediatric Formulations among Hospitalized Children

“…Immediately after the first test dose, without knowing the flavor, caregiver was asked to rate the child overall liking of the formulation [31,32] by pointing on a gender-specific facial-verbal hedonic scale with seven degrees of liking, ranging from 1, "hate it", to 7, "love it" (Figure 1) (Method 1). Over the next two days, the remaining flavors were tested at the same time of administration, if there was prescription of the formulation.…”