Denny has talked to us about the pediatrician that stated the fatty acid
additives in Lipil are exactly the same as what is in breast milk. This
sounds like he or she has just attended an inservice by a formula salesman
and is parroting back the buzz words used to dupe health care providers into
recommending the formula! Actually these fatty acids are nothing like what is
in breast milk and pose a number of known and unknown risks to the infants
who consume them. The DHA is extracted from fermented microalgae and the ARA
is extracted from soil fungus. The breast does not use either of these items
to manufacture its fatty acids, and these sources are new to the food chain.
Each of the processed oils has its own fatty acid composition, adding a
number of fatty acids to formula that already are contained in the plant oils
mixed into the base formula. Human fatty acids are structurally different
from manufactured ones from plant sources. Human fatty acids interact with
each other in a special matrix. Just because they perform as they do in human
milk does not mean they will perform at all in an artificial construct. One
study has started to question if the large fat supplementation of formula is
contributing to the obesity epidemic (Massiera F. Arachidonic acid and
prostacyclin signaling promote adipose tissue development: a human health
concern. J Lipid Research 2002; published on line ahead of print November 4,
2002).

Side effects have been reported in animal studies of the DHA and ARA, such
as; oily soft stool (steatorrhea) and oily hair coat in rat studies. In four
week exposures, rat pups had higher liver weights, in three month exposures
they showed elevated serum alkaline phosphatase levels, and undeveloped renal
papilla. Fungal food sources have the potential of acting as opportunistic
pathogens in immunocompromised individuals. An extensive review of this topic
was done published in the Journal of Nutrition, November 1998 Supplement; Vol
128, Number 11S. It concluded that there was not enough evidence to support
the addition of these fatty acids to formula.

Varying or randomly adding fatty acids to formula does not always translate
into optimal delivery of these fatty acids to the infant. These fatty acids
were not approved by the FDA for use. They were simply allowed onto the
market with the stipulation of post market surveillance. This means give the
formula to as many babies as possible and see what happens. Since the
clinical trials (experiments on babies) were done on small numbers, this
allows the formula companies to have access to the entire population of
babies born in the US every year, 4 million. The formulas are under study by
the Institute of Medicine for safety. This represents an enormous
uncontrolled experiment that bypasses informed consent and is staunchly
defended by health care professionals who are wedded to the infant formula
industry.

NABA has received many, many reports of babies being fed Lipil and
experiencing watery, explosive diarrhea. This needs to be reported to the
manufacturer and the FDA as a side effect or adverse event of this formula.
This is so similar to the selling of olestra (the stuff in potato chips that
prevents a person from absorbing the fat which caused painful cramping and
diarrhea in many adults) that it is a scary comparison. We do not know if
babies lose fat, fat soluble vitamins or any other nutrients through the
stool when they consume this formula. As a matter of fact, we know very
little about this formula.

Formula salesmen have walked onto hospital maternity units and removed all of
the standard formula, lying that it is no longer being produced. This formula
is more expensive than regular formula so the companies have profited greatly
by making sure that the lower priced formula is not made available. How many
more babies have to be made sick in order for the health care system and
government regulatory agencies to pay attention to something put on the
market to make money. The only thing these additives do is help a company
capture a larger share of the formula market.

The latest issue of INFACT Canada's newsletter carries a great tidbit of
information from a few years ago when Martek Biosciences was recommended as a
strong stock investment:
" Infant formula is currently a commodity market, with all products being
almost identical and marketers competing intensely to differentiate their
product. Even if Formulaid (the name of the DHA/ARA fatty acid combination)
has no benefit, we think it would be widely incorporated into formulas as a
marketing tool and to allow companies to promote their formula as closest to
human milk." No mention is made at all about health consequences because it
is of no importance. Promoting formula in this manner is false and misleading
advertising and is against the law.

Health care providers who buy into the hype about this formula or Similac
Advance have not done their homework. Maybe we need a conference on this
topic to help people understand formulas and how to remove the marketing
barrier to breastfeeding that they present.

Marsha Walker, RN, IBCLC
Weston, MA

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