The Nation - News from Aug. 6, 1987

Health-conscious parents, fearing their babies will become obese or develop heart disease, inadvertently are starving the infants by feeding them skim milk and raw vegetables rather than the high-energy foods they need, researchers warned in the August issue of Pediatrics. This undernourishment is retarding the growth and development of these babies in a failure-to-thrive syndrome similar to one usually only seen in premature or low birth-weight babies, said Dr. Fima Lifshitz, professor of pediatrics at the Cornell University Medical College in New York.