Ezekiel, born 21 weeks, beating the odds thanks to mom and Prolacta’s nutrition

As originally reported in the Tampa Digital Journal, Ezekiel’s life has not been easy. Even before Monica conceived him, he overcame the odds. Only one out of the frozen 7 embryos survived, which was implanted in mid-October 2021.

Fast forward four months, and Monica was admitted to Tampa General Hospital. After going through so much to conceive Ezekiel, Monica was determined to save him. She succeeded and delivered him the first day of March.

However, his journey in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) wouldn’t be easy. Ezekiel was born without mature lungs and weighed 1 lb 8 oz (816 g).

“It was very scary as I had to spend [129] days in the NICU. It was heartening to see the way the doctors and nurses helped me during that critical time,” said Monica. As a woman of color, Monica truly appreciates the help of the primary care nurses and medical providers. Black women in the US are more likely to die from complications of pregnancy than White women. Fortunately, the care team at Tampa General Hospital is committed to bridging the disparities and Monica worked as a strong advocate for her son and herself.

Monica was convinced that Ezekiel needed the best possible nutrition. After researching fortification, she advocated for our products and was able to get the hospital to agree. However, their protocol states to transition babies off our fortifiers at 30 weeks.

Monica used her influence when Ezekiel was reaching 30 weeks, convincing the hospital to extend the use of Prolacta fortifiers to 34 weeks before transitioning to cow milk-based formula and fortifier.

As a result of the tremendous care and optimal nutrition, Ezekiel was discharged on July 7th, two days after his original due date, weighing 10 lbs (4536 g) and has well-functioning lungs. (Please note, the news article incorrectly lists July 5th as his discharge date and 8-9 lbs as his discharge weight.)