Green Options

I consider myself a lactivist. I mean, if there is truly a place in the world for a woman who thinks that babies should be fed what nature made for them, instead of the breastmilk from a distantly related species.

That means I know that breastmilk is simply better than formula.

But now an author and feminist says that we should question the breastmilk/formula debate. Is breastmilk really better, or are the differences so minute that it doesn’t matter what you put in baby’s mouth?

Joan Wolf was interviewed by the Times in the UK, where she said,

The evidence to date suggests it probably doesn’t make much difference if you breastfeed.

She says that many studies contradict one another, and others which show no discernible difference in health benefits. There are numerous claims about breastfeeding, she says, which can’t be proven:

Breastmilk has less protein than formula, which may explain why nursers tend to grow more slowly than their formula-fed counterparts.

And for the formula-fed babies, that’s not a good thing. What researchers found worried them, as they said it could help predict obesity in children.

The randomized study of 1,000 children followed them for 2 years, comparing those fed “regular” formula and low protein formula with breastfeeding babies.

Kids who had used the low protein formula were approximately the same height as those fed the higher protein formula, but the latter group weighed more. Kids with low-protein formula weighed closer to what the breastfed babies weighed.

Researchers say that a few things should probably change…

The tragedy over the melamine tainted milk scandal in China continues.

Not only have six young Chinese children died from kidney stones and more than 290,000 made ill from melamine-contaminated milk formula, but now a Chinese court has issued death sentences for two men involved in the contaminated milk scandal.

The two men are executives from Sanlu Group, a Chinese firm that hid reports of deaths and sicknesses caused by formula that contained melamine.  Tian Wenhua, the former general manager of Sanlu Group, has plead guilty to charges of “producing and selling fake or substandard products”.  She has been sentenced to life in prison.

China is responding to the melamine crisis with strict sentences, as well as production controls.  According to Reuters, the Chinese government hopes to reduce the number of melamine producers:

Over the past year we have seen societal and parental concern grow about the possibility that many conventional feeding products for kids may have chemicals that can leach into food. As parents try to feed their kids healthy foods, the last thing they want to think about is that the dinnerware their kids are eating off is tainting the food!

Luckily over the past year we have seen companies old and new rise to the occasion and provide us with products that are safer for kids. We have options now, other than those plates and cups with BPA or questionable Melamine. Skip Hop Mate is one such new company that meets this growing demand for healthier children’s feeding products.

Their stay-put mat and plate is beautifully designed, very attractive, and safer for children. The plastics used have no PVC, phthalates, or BPA. It is a table setting that stays in place, which is a great idea for toddlers. It has a divided plate in the middle so that foods need not touch if you have picky eaters. The fork and spoon neatly attach to the mat so that they won’t get lost in the shuffle and the whole thing comes apart for easy cleaning. In fact if you need to remove the plate to fill it with food they are left to look at an adorable happy face on the mat.

Milk powder contaminated with melamine in China has killed six children and sickened nearly 300,000 children.  Now, those families are being offered pitifully small payouts from dairies to compensate for their children’s pain and suffering.

The affected Chinese families have rejected the compensation and are attempting to sue for a greater settlement.

Although the payouts total 1.1 billion yuan (US$160 million) for the melamine contamination, they are sickeningly low per child. A child who suffered kidney stones would get only 2,000 yuan ($290). Sicker children would get a higher compensation of 30,000 yuan ($4,380), and the death of a child would be compensated with $29,000.  Tian Xiaowei, an apple farmer and part-time truck driver, whose one-year-old child died from drinking melamine-tainted milk powder, explains is disgust:

2008 - what a year! As we get ready to draw the curtains on one of the most unsettling economic years in history, we the writers of the Inspired Economist are still wondering… was this year one that has left our battered economy begging for inspiration? Or have the sustainable events of 2008 spearheaded the initiation of what we believe is truly an Inspired Economy?

2008 was about the $700 billion bailout. Foreclosures. The plummeting stock market. As the year came [...]

On November 28, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it has established safe levels of melamine and an analogue, cyanuric acid, in infant formulas and associated products.

The FDA has come out with a “safe” level of melamine in Infant Formula. Just weeks ago, the FDA stated it couldn’t determine a safe level of melamine for human infants (Oct. 3, 2008- “the US FDA cannot establish a level of melamine and its analogues in [infant formula] that does not raise public health concerns.”).

Of course there isn’t a safe level, look what happened in China. (Melamine was added in China Formulas to fool protein content tests and was at a much higher level than what was found in U.S. Formula Brands. At least 3 infants died from contaminated formula in China.)
While watching CBS news this evening, I was SHOCKED to hear Dr. Daniel Rauch, a pediatrician at New York University’s Langone Medical Center state “We think it’s safe.” Since when is THINKING something is safe okay? Is this an innocent until proven guilty situation? Do CHILDREN HAVE TO DIE before our government steps up to the plate?

I’m confused. Yahoo news is reporting that there is Melamine in infant formula. The FDA says that there is no acceptable limit for Melamine in infant formula. The FDA also says that we (parents) shouldn’t overreact.

Traces of the industrial chemical melamine have been detected in samples of top-selling U.S. infant formula, but federal regulators insist the products are safe. The Food and Drug Administration said last month it was unable to identify any melamine exposure level as safe for infants, but a top official said it would be a “dangerous overreaction” for parents to stop feeding infant formula to babies who depend on it.

“The levels that we are detecting are extremely low,” said Dr. Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “They should not be changing the diet. If they’ve been feeding a particular product, they should continue to feed that product. That’s in the best interest of the baby.”

I get that I’m just a housewife (with a graduate degree) and I couldn’t possibly really understand what the scientists know…

Previously undisclosed tests, obtained by The Associated Press under the Freedom of Information Act, show that the FDA has detected melamine in a sample of one popular formula and the presence of , in the formula of a second manufacturer.

I used to love the foil wrapped chocolate gold coins when I was a child.  I don’t know why I thought they were so cool, but I coveted them.  I was recently sent an email from a friend warning parents not to let their children consume chocolate gold coins, because they contain melamine.  Snopes.com checked it out, and the Pirate coins have been recalled in Canada.

Melamine is has been found in Chinese milk powder and is responsible for kidney stones in infants.  Although melamine is considered nontoxic in low doses, it is described as, “Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Chronic exposure may cause cancer or reproductive damage. Eye, skin and respiratory irritant.”  The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued the following warning on melamine in chocolate coins:

The store shelved are flooded with “fun size” treats in orange and black bags. It’s Halloween season, and candy is certainly on the minds of every kid I know this time of year. It’s on my mind for different reasons.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a voluntary recall notice for the Sherwood Brands Pirate’s Gold Milk Chocolate Coins. The candy, manufactured in China, is the latest product thought to contain the melamine-contaminated milk powder. The product is primarily [...]