DIAMOND Study

DIAMOND stands for DIfferent Approaches to MOderate & late preterm Nutrition: Determinants of feed tolerance, body composition and development. It's a study looking at different ways of providing nutritional support to premature babies who are learning to feed.

We’re trying to find out if the way nutrition is provided affects the way they grow, the amount of fat in their bodies and their brain development. These are all things that can influence their chance of becoming obese later on in life.

532 babies born at 32+0 and 35+6 weeks' gestational age across five hospitals in New Zealand have been enrolled in the study.

We know breast milk is best for babies, but because those who are born early have a hard time feeding, they need some help to make sure they get right nutrition until breastfeeding is underway.

This study will investigate the different ways of giving this nutrition to preterm babies to find out how it affects their fat stores and brain development. If we can improve the way we feed preterm babies and stop them losing too much weight, it might stop them developing extra fat mass that can lead to obesity later in life.

At the moment we don’t know very much about how the nutritional support we provide to preterm babies affects their growth and development. That’s why the DIAMOND Study is so important - it’s the first of its kind and the biggest study of preterm babies in the world.

Recruitment to the study has now concluded. Children recruited to the DIAMOND study are now being assessed at two years of age.

For more information, email the DIAMOND study team at diamond.trial@auckland.ac.nz