Parents of newborns are being urged to take extra care when preparing powdered infant formula after new research revealed that the ambiguity of many current instructions may leave babies vulnerable to a deadly foodborne bacteria.

The study, published in the Journal of Food Protection by Cornell University researchers, highlights dangerous gaps in the guidelines printed on formula packaging.

According to the team, ambiguous instructions—such as "boil water and wait five minutes"—do not provide the precision needed to kill Cronobacter , a rare but life-threatening pathogen .

Cronobacter infections are uncommon, with only about 18 cases reported annually in the U.S. But for high-risk infants—including babies under two months, premature infants and those who are immunocompromised—con

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