Infant Formula

Worrisome levels of arsenic have been found in two infant formulas that contain organic brown rice syrup as a main ingredient, researchers reported Thursday. Arsenic was also found in some cereal bars that contain organic brown rice syrup. The toxic element is a known contaminate found in rice because the crop absorbs arsenic from soil. According to the authors of the study, from Dartmouth College, the type found in the food products has been identified as a human carcinogen. Arsenic can also cause skin, lung and intestinal irritation as well as miscarriage and infertility.

I was disturbed but not surprised to read that central to retiring California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed's " new Master Plan ," as he wrote in his Times Op-Ed article last Tuesday, is a push for "year-round, online" education. As a full-time professor at Cal State Northridge, I am getting a bit worn out by this push (or should I say "shove"). What bothers me most about Reed's promotion of online education as part of the state's Master Plan for Higher Education is his absolute lack of candor.

In a Dec. 3 article, you go over several studies and list statistics about breast-feeding. In all cases it is superior to artificial infant milk (formula). Since that is the case, how come the article is titled "Breast or bottle? No final answer yet"? What will it take for the media to agree with the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization, among others, that breast-feeding is a far superior way to feed babies?

Swiss food and nutrition giant Nestle plans to shell out $11.9 billion to buy Pfizer's nutrition unit, whose products include baby formula brands SMA and Promil. The division is expected to reel in $2.4 billion in sales this year and gets 85% of its revenue from emerging markets, whose large and rapidly growing populations are a key target for Nestle. Pfizer has the fifth-largest infant formula business in the world, according to research group Euromonitor International, ranked behind Nestle, Mead-Johnson Nutrition Co., Groupe Danone and Abbott Laboratories, respectively.

It never ceases to amaze me that infant formula is still considered to be an ideal gift for a new baby. I am referring to your article (Jan. 1) regarding the New Year's baby born at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center. In light of all the research about breast milk being the far superior infant food, I cannot believe that hospitals still insist on being free advertisements for the formula companies! The money used to buy the New Year's baby four weeks' worth of formula could have been much better spent on the services of a lactation consultant for the new mother.

The Food and Drug Administration has asked Carnation Co. to submit new data to substantiate the claims that its new infant formula is less likely to trigger allergies after the agency found flaws in the company's original research. The questions surrounding the Carnation product, called Good Start, has led the FDA to request information from the makers of other formulas that also claim to reduce the chances of allergic reaction to cow's milk.

Wyeth Nutrition announced it is recalling nearly 1 million cans of powdered infant formula sold nationwide under various store brands after a bacterium was found in samples taken at a manufacturing plant. The brands being recalled include: Baby Basics, CVS, Home Best, Healthy Baby, Kozy Kids, Hill Country Fare, HEB, Little Ones, Parent's Choice, Safeway Select and Walgreens. The cans have expiration dates stamped on the bottom ranging from July 28, 2005, to Sept. 28, 2005.

State health officials are asking the makers of infant formula to grant substantial rebates on formula provided to needy women and children through a nutrition program. Their goal is to win up to $40 million for the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Supplemental Food Program, a federally funded program administered by the state, said Jo Ann Wray, chief of the state Department of Health Services' WIC branch in Sacramento.

A group of consumer activists said today it is resuming a seven-year boycott of the Swiss-based Nestle corporation because of its promotion practices for infant formula and is extending the boycott to the U.S.-based American Home Products.

In the arena of global trade, the issue of corporate accountability is becoming a major concern for public-interest groups. Multinational corporations are demanding more free reign in their trade negotiations--which can often allow them to abuse international health and environmental standards in the quest for profits. Douglas A. Johnson, 41, asserts, "Companies need to learn to be responsible. The public's concern should be how to hold them accountable so that they are responsible."

Swiss food and nutrition giant Nestle will shell out $11.9 billion to buy Pfizer's nutrition unit, which owns baby food brands such as SMA and Promil. The division is expected to reel in $2.4 billion in sales this year and gets 85% of its revenue from emerging markets, whose large and rapidly growing populations are a key target for Nestle. The Pfizer infant formula business is the fifth largest in the world, according to research group Euromonitor International, ranked behind Nestle, Mead-Johnson Nutrition Co., Groupe Danone and Abbot Laboritories.

Worrisome levels of arsenic have been found in two infant formulas that contain organic brown rice syrup as a main ingredient, researchers reported Thursday. Arsenic was also found in some cereal bars that contain organic brown rice syrup. The toxic element is a known contaminate found in rice because the crop absorbs arsenic from soil. According to the authors of the study, from Dartmouth College, the type found in the food products has been identified as a human carcinogen. Arsenic can also cause skin, lung and intestinal irritation as well as miscarriage and infertility.

Greeters decked out in blue vests are a familiar sight at Wal-Mart  store entrances nationwide. Now they are moving inside. In February, the nation's biggest retailer will pull greeters from the lobby and into the store so they can more actively help with customer service, Wal-Mart  spokeswoman Ashley Hardie said. Greeters have been around at the discount giant since 1980. Hardie said Wal-Mart  has expanded the duties of greeters over the years to include tagging return items and wiping down shopping carts.

Wal-Mart is recalling a single batch of the powdered infant formula Enfamil Newborn, sold in 12.5-ounce cans, as a precaution after a Missouri infant died of a rare bacterial infection. The 10-day-old Lebanon, Mo., baby died Sunday of Cronobacter sakazakii, which can come from powdered infant formula. The source of the infant's infection is still unclear, but Wal-Mart choose to remove the batch with the lot number ZP1K7G from its 3,000 stores nationwide as a precaution. The baby's family purchased the formula at Wal-Mart.

Giving that 24-month-old a bottle may seem like a good idea at the time. It's familiar, easy and reassuring to the budding toddler. But a new study suggests that prolonged bottle use may have repercussions down the road. Researchers from Ohio State University College of Public Health assessed data from a study of 6,750 children on lifestyle habits and height and weight, finding that about 22% still drank from a bottle at 24 months. By age 5 1/2, 22.9% of children who were drinking from a bottle at 24 months were obese, compared to 16.1% of children who were not drinking from a bottle at age 2. The results were published online Thursday in the Journal of Pediatrics .  The researchers wrote: "Prolonged bottle use may lead to the child consuming excess calories, particularly when parents are using the bottle to comfort the child rather than to address the child's hunger or nutritional needs.

Could mothers be putting their children on a path toward obesity from the very first days of their lives? A study published online Monday in the journal Pediatrics finds that babies fed a particular type of infant formula put on more weight than other babies and continued to gain weight faster than their counterparts during the first 7.5 months of life. Researchers from the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia wondered whether babies would respond differently to formulas based on cow’s milk (whose proteins are intact)

The $1.5-billion U.S. market for infant formulas may never be the same. Last week, Swiss conglomerate Nestle S.A. announced plans to shoulder its way into that business with two new baby formulas and a multimillion-dollar marketing budget. The move ended nearly 10 years of speculation about when and how Nestle would attempt to capture the fancy of American mothers. Now the question is: Can Nestle, which dominates the infant formula market outside the United States, make a dent in this country?

Federal regulators set a safety threshold Friday for the industrial chemical melamine that is greater than the amount of contamination found so far in U.S.-made infant formula. Food and Drug Administration officials set a threshold of 1 part per million of melamine in formula, provided a related chemical isn't present. They insisted the formulas were safe. The setting of the standard comes days after FDA tests found traces of melamine in the infant formula of one major U.S.

The baby formula recall is taking its toll -- online. Abbott Nutrition announced Wednesday that it was recalling certain types and lots of powdered formula under the Similac brand because beetles were found in one of its production areas. The Illinois-based company said there's no health risk related to the bug scare, but anxious parents overwhelmed the call center and crashed the website before the company shored up communication problems Thursday, according to media reports.

The California Assembly put off a final vote on whether to ban the chemical bisphenol A (BPA) from baby bottles and infant formula and baby food containers Wednesday after an emotional debate over children's safety. The measure, favored by a 35-31 vote, twice fell short of 41 necessary for passage. It was scheduled to come up for another vote today. A ferocious lobbying battle over the legislation pitted public health and education groups against chemical, pharmaceutical and packaging giants, and was closely watched around the nation amid similar movements to ban the chemical.