Formula label misleading vs. breastmilk??....

[jerseygirl07067]

I don't currently use formula and don't mean for this post to offend anyone.... However, I was at Eckerd today and was just browsing in the baby section. Sometimes I look at the formula and the price so I can add up in my head all of the money I have saved so far. Anyway, I picked up a can of Eckerd formula, and they had a comparison chart showing "mothers milk", and the Eckerd formula, both highlighted in pink, along with Similac and Enfamil.

It really bothered me because if someone not really knowledgeable about breastfeeding picked up the can and read the label, it would look like the formula is far superior to the breastmilk because it has a higher concentration of vitamins, minerals etc. (Many people out there don't think about the properties of breastmilk that are NOT on the label....)

I am so sick of this kind of stuff, it just gives the public the wrong impression.....Why do we feel like we constantly have to justify human nature??

Marcy

[sntm]

Yeah, don't get me started on marketing practices of formula makers...

Have you read Milk, Money, Madness? A must read.
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shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03
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Breastfeeding 15 months and counting

[jerseygirl07067]

Wasn't a link to that posted a while back? If so, I think I did read it......If not I will do a search on it. The formula companies have very questionable marketing practices.

Marcy

[kijip]

I have to say that I really don't think most people shopping for formula are unaware that breastmilk is the optimal food for babies. They are buying formula by choice or necessity and would prefer that people left them alone about their situation rather than pitying them for being dumb enough tricked by formula companies. While I am not offended by your post per se I continue to be offended by the prevalence of pity I recieved while using formula with Toby. I think it is great that you are saving money and giving your baby nature's food but there is no reason to cruise the formula aisle feeling smug about how much money you are saving. You are doing a great thing and the price of formula has not changed greatly in a year so no need for price checks. People who use formula are not any less intelligent than you and can see a formula grid for what it is...an advertisment.

In my case breastfeeding was far more expensive than formula and I gladly spent every penny (In excess of around $1500) until I quit to save my sanity. Then I saved money by using formula. Everyone has a different situation.

[tarahsolazy]

I think that, until recently, everyone did not know that breastmilk is the optimal food for babies. And, from my dealing with new moms in the NICU, there are still a lot of folks who don't know.

You, and all of us here, research things, otherwise we wouldn't be at Baby Bargains. Lots of other parents, don't, and, unfortunately, there are a lot of medical folks (who are seen as experts) out there that still think that formula is superior.

Sometimes, like in your case, moms wanted to BF, and were not able to make it work. I know you tried really hard. Some women research the issue, and decide formula is the choice for them from the get-go.

A potential problem is the mom who doesn't do any research, and is unaware of BM's benefits. I think informed decision-making is the most important goal. There are still tons of moms out there who just have no idea! They deserve the knowledge, and then they can make an informed choice. There are no breastmilk commercials or magazine ads like the formula ones(until recently, anyway. Who makes money on BM? Well, Medela and Bravado, I suppose...

I do think the formula companies use questionable marketing practices, though. We need formula, I'm glad its out there. If I am unable to continue to BF Forrest for some reason, I'll be using it in a second.

[kijip]

I believe, plain and simple that people are basically well meaning and intelligent. In the circles that new parents must navigate in my city, information is 100% positive about breastfeeding in my experience. Even the formula ads and cans say "breastfeeding is best...". Read Don't Kill your Baby for a look at how long this debate has been going on.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

Unfortunately, formula cans and ads do not say "breastfeeding is best" anymore. This trend started last year.

The problem is that not all new parents travel in a "circle" at all. Some parents, many parents, maybe even most parents, are just out there alone having a baby and maybe not even going for prenatal care let alone well baby care. The very babies who are most susceptible to the risks of formula are the ones born to the parents who are not in a position to easily get the information about those risks. These are the people the ad council is trying to reach with their new breastfeeding campaign.

...Karen
DS Jake Feb 91, DD Logan Mar 03
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[tarahsolazy]

ITA Karen, the women, often young, often alone, that I talk to every day, have literally no idea. They figure WIC gives them free formula, no one they know BF, etc. But, they all have TV, so a positive BF campaign could really educate folks, I think. There are plenty of commercials about "comfort proteins", after all.

[miki]

I just wanted to give an example of someone who really didn't know about the benefits of breastfeeding. My OB suggested a class since I wanted to BF. At the time we lived in Silicon Valley. All the couples in the class except for me and DH were in the tech industry. They were all very highly educated. One of these women asked the instructor what formula to use. She was under the impression that you have to give formula even if you are breastfeeding because formula has nutrients that a baby needs but can't get from BM. If someone can sit through part of a BFing class and still think that, there really needs to be a lot of education on this subject.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

I can give another example. I am an educated woman with a career and when I had my first baby at the age of 28, I had no idea about breastfeeding. No one I knew had breastfed, no one around me ever talked about it. I just assumed that everyone gave formula and that you just picked whichever one was on sale that week. I went to a baby care class and the instructor said that everyone should attend a breastfeeding class whether they planned to do it or not. So I did. Wow. I am so glad that I did. I had no idea about all the risks of formula to both the baby and to me as well.

And since then, my grandmother had breast cancer and a mastectomy (she's fine now) and I am so thankful that I breastfed both my babies so that my risk of breast cancer is lowered. Back then, I said "no, it doesn't run in my family" so I might not have cared about that risk of not breastfeeding, but it turns out that no women in my family have lived long enough to get breast cancer, so now we know it does indeed run in my family.

But I digress.

My point is that sometimes even well educated intelligent women from good families don't know anything about breastfeeding and the risks of formula.

...Karen
DS Jake Feb 91, DD Logan Mar 03
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