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                    Nothing 
                    can be more heart-wrenching to a mother and father than watching 
                    their newborn child from the confines of an incubator. Low-birth-weight 
                    infants can suffer from chronic lung disease, intracranial 
                    hemorrhaging, infections and numerous other complications 
                    that make their first few days a literal struggle for life. 
                   
                                    
 
A study of 807 extremely low-birth-weight infants (weighing 
                    less than 2 1/2 pounds and requiring respiratory support within 
                    24 hours of birth) assessed the potential for vitamin A to 
                    improve their chances for survival. Infants were divided into 
                    an intervention group and a control group, with the former 
                    group receiving intramuscular injections of vitamin A (5,000 
                    IU) three days a week for four weeks.  
                   By 36 weeks, the overall incidence of complications, namely 
                    chronic lung disease or death, was significantly lower in 
                    the vitamin A group (55%) compared with the control group 
                    (62%). The most pointed observation was that one additional 
                    infant survived without chronic lung disease for every 14-15 
                    infants who received vitamin A supplementation.  
                  If youıre expecting a child, consult your team of health 
                    care professionals regularly to ensure that your pregnancy 
                    and childbirth go as smoothly as possible. Following appropriate 
                    nutritional and exercise guidelines can help keep you and 
                    your newborn healthy and happy.  
                  Reference: 
                   Tyson JE, Wright LL, Oh W, et al. Vitamin A supplementation 
                    for extremely low birth weight infants. The New England 
                    Journal of Medicine, June 24, 1999: Vol. 340, No. 25, 
                    pp1962-68. 
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