Hyped Up Infant Formula: Marketing Vs. Nature

"A recent study concluded that children who consumed infant formula fortified with the omega-3 fatty acid DHA had higher cognitive function than children who consumed unfortified formula. Breastmilk was not included in the study, and the formula used in the study was provided for free by a manufacturer.


Miriam Labbok of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill said she was doubtful about the study's findings.

"It might be reasonable from these industry-funded studies to consider that this would be a good additive to formula if you are forced to stop breastfeeding," she said. "However, 1) none of these studies compare to continued breastfeeding, 2) you could also get these [nutrients] from other sources if you stop breastfeeding, and 3) there are hundreds, if not thousands, of other components in human milk that cannot be replaced."
(Taken from naturalnews.com article Infant Formula Study Just a Marketing Gimmick to Push Formula Over Breastfeeding 02/03/2010)

Have you ever noticed how even though everyone knows that "breast is best" infant formula ads continue to push their product as a 'healthy' and 'effective' alternative to breastmilk? We don't see any breastfeeding advertisements and can you guess why? Because breastfeeding doesn't make any money for greedy corporate businesses! It still astounds me that people buy into the marketing schemes of formula companies that push their "DHA added" and "iron-fortified" fake powederd crap to consumers. It's not surprising that they forget to mention that the DHA and iron added to these formulas is not effectively assimilated into an infants body. All they have to do is label their product as containing these fashionable terms that symbolise health and nutrition and they have their target market wrapped up in the B.S. they're spouting. I'm still not quite sure how consumers can actually believe that the powerdered "food" they are mixing up is at all comparable to human milk. It is as simple as the old adage claims: "human milk for human babies".

Let me get a little more into the biology of this argument. First off, no other animal in the world besides humans drinks another species' milk. Not only that, but cow's milk is specifically designed to raise calves. Is your child a calf? Does your child need to grow fat and strong and walk soon after birth? No. Human's have evolved mainly as a superior intellectual species. Do you think that cows can claim this same advancement? No. Cows are built to grow big, hence the large amount of protein found in cow's milk. Human milk contains a large amount of fat, which is what the human brain is made of. See the pattern here? It's quite obvious once you begin to think of it from a natural point of view.

Now don't get me wrong, formula has it's place. For example, formula was developed as a medicinal aid to save infants whose mother had died in child birth or afterwards. Formula has saved lives in this manner. But, the problem lies when parents begin to believe that formula is an acceptable stand-in for human breast milk! Studies have shown that approximately 1% of women have a biological impediment that prevents breastfeeding. I know that many more women that that are both alive and do not fall into that 1%. The question is why are they not breastfeeding? Well, I have even heard parents claim that formula was "just the same as breastmilk"! I actually cried that day, I couldn't believe the distance that some people's belief systems had fallen from nature and into the corporate marketing scheme of these formula companies. I do understand that there are sometimes financial or other reasons that women do not breastfeed, but I also believe that the decision not to nurse is made much too lightly these days without really understanding the consequences.
I really hope that women will wake up and recognize that replacing nature has so many consequences,  both recognized and unrecognized. The more that we study infant development and nutrtion, the more clearly our fall from nature has been criticized. These formula companies will pull rabbits out of hats to maintain their customer base. Please, don't fall into the trap!

For more information on the far reaching benefits of breastfeeding please go to mothering.com, drjacknewman.com, or breastfeeding.com