Baby Formula Industry Misleads People With Its Marketing, World Health Organization Says

Makers of infant formula use misleading marketing and aggressive lobbying tactics to drive sales in a $55 billion-a-year industry, according to a three-paper series from the World Health Organization. Manufacturers make unsubstantiated claims about their products, such as that they are very similar to actual breast milk or can ease infants’ discomfort, say the WHO papers published Tuesday in The Lancet medical journal calling for an industry crackdown. New products, such as hypoallergenic or organic formulas or those derived from the milk of sheep and goats, are sometimes marketed with the implication that they have special benefits and are sold at premium prices, the authors said. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The reports also criticize the industry for targeting health professionals, caregivers and families through pervasive social media, promoting formula as a positive choice and devoting huge resources to lobbying against legislation to protect breastfeeding. The U.S. infant formula supply has been scrutinized since a recall by Abbott Laboratories that was linked to contaminated products led to a nationwide shortage. Yet concerns about the global industry’s outreach, particularly in developing countries, goes back to the late 1970s, when women were discouraged from breastfeeding their children, the WHO says, denying them key health benefits needed in childhood. That problem remains despite public-health efforts to get more women to breastfeed, ...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized bloomberg wire healthscienceclimate Public Health Source Type: news