COMMENTARY | Almost every month, we find out more information about the critical importance of breastfeeding. Over the course of the last 30 years, dozens of scientific studies have linked infant formula to serious detrimental effects such as colic, malattachment, SIDS, reduced IQ, obesity, diabetes and anemia. All the while, formula-feeding mothers have returned to the comforting but false adage that infant formula is "just as good."
Unfortunately for these parents and their babies, a new report has raised one more red flag about the dangers of formula-feeding -- even when the formula used is organic in origin. In a recently released study published in the medical journal "Environmental Health Perspectives," scientists pointed out alarming levels of arsenic -- a toxic heavy metal linked to cancer and death -- in organic infant formulas.
The arsenic in the formula comes from brown rice syrup, used in lieu of high fructose corn syrup in products carrying the USDA-approved organic label. Brown rice, which is often grown in severely polluted soils, can contain frightening levels of the compound, but there is currently no regulation in place to limit or reduce the amount of arsenic found in our food supplies. The scientists concluded that we have an "urgent need" for government regulation of arsenic levels in food -- especially in infant formula, which ends up in the bodies of our world's most delicate individuals.
Baby formula is essential for the health and survival of millions of babies, including those who are unable to nurse or whose mothers are unable to produce sufficient quantities of breast milk. For that reason, it is indeed critically important that we make infant formulas as safe and healthy as possible. Parents who give their babies organic formula do so only with the intention of giving their babies the very best possible nutrition, and it is tragic and disturbing that even these formulas can be dangerous to the health of our children.
This should also stand as a reminder, however, for why it is important for mothers to breast feed their babies whenever it is at all feasible to do so. Organic infant formulas and other newfangled breast milk substitutes are not, and will never be, "just as good" as the real thing. While safe and appropriate substitutes must be available to parents and babies, it's important to remember that nothing can come close to matching the safety, nutrition and experience associated with breastfeeding.
Juniper Russo is a freelance writer, health advocate and dedicated mom living in Chattanooga, Tenn.
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