Namoi,  You wrote, ". You need some
good lawyers to prove to a jury that it was the ABM that caused
the damage and that the hospital/formula company/HCP was responsible
for the choice the mother/parents made. It's not impossible, but
not easy. Until now, it's not the path the bf movement has chosen,
but a high visibility tragic (or near tragic) situation could change
that."

A tragic situation has already occurred and breastfeeding advocates have been
mostly silent about it.  Enterbacter sakazakii has contaminated powdered
infant formula since the 80's.  It has resulted in the infant deaths of
preterm infants in various countries (Belgium and USA) and the neurological
impairment of a full term infant in Iceland.  One can read about it at the
FDA web site, so it isn't rumor or hearsay. This contamination causes sepsis,
NEC(necrotizing entercolitis), and meningitis in newborns, particularly
premature infants.  Yet it does not get media attention.  No surprise there,
one does not rock the boat of corporate giants.

The pervasive silence from most of the breastfeeding community is interesting
and rather disappointing.  Yet, the infant formula industry is never silent
about the possibilites of infectious, contaminated human milk.  HIV/AIDS has
been very profitable for the infant formula industry, particularly in the
developing countries where infant formula is a death sentence.

Silence also extends to the patenting of human milk components. One would
think that this patenting would be a cause for concern, alarm, and even
protest to the US Government.  But silence surrounds this issue.  So one
wonders whether the silence denotes fear of a powerful industry or whether it
means that the breastfeeding community has ties to the very industry it
despises.  Valerie W. McClain, IBCLC

PS:  It is interesting that Agennix, (a biotech company with strong ties to
Baylor College of Medicine)maker of recombinant human lactoferrin, is
partnered with Martek Bioscience (maker of DHA and AA for infant formula) and
DSM (Dutch State Mines--maker of AA, a petrolem-based product) to produce and
market recombinant human lactoferrin.  Who benefits from all that wonderful
research on human milk and all those patents?



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