Last week I read in the Norwegian papers that both manufacturers of infant
foods in jars here were forced to recall large amounts of it because the
monitoring authorities found pesticide residues in them.  I didn't see huge
headlines but the story was noticeable - I wasn't on the lookout for it and
saw it without even trying.  Apparently someone here is checking, and both
manufacturers failed the test.
We get news reports from time to time about the toxin loads in humans.
Sometimes you have to read the article very carefully to discover that the
basis for estimates of toxin load in the populace, is testing carried out on
human milk. The other ways of measuring toxin loads in humans are a lot more
invasive: fat biopsies, for example.  The procedure for collecting human milk
samples for such measurements is standardized and very specific.
PCBs and dioxins are declining since many of the offending compounds have been
banned since they were first found to be a problem in humans.  Now it is the
bromide compounds that are flame inhibitors, that are the prime culprit, and
the levels of this group of compounds are rising.  It is not always presented
as a breastfeeding issue, but as an environmental issue.  Our attitude should
be as Sandra Steingraber says.  The environmental contamination is the
problem, not breastmilk.  I think we could be more active when discussing
weaning foods.  For a long time here, parents were advised to give babies
liver paté on bread as a way of getting iron and B vitamins in the baby's
diet.  Since we don't have any great alternatives to breastmilk, we need to
look for alternatives to the other parts of our diets, to avoid the foods with
most contamination.
PCBs and dioxins are present in formula in lower amounts than in breastmilk,
and we don't do anyone any favors by denying that.  We can point out the many
other contaminants in formula, such as bacteria, pesticides and lead, and we
should never forget that formula-fed babies still come out worse off on every
health measure when compared to breastfed, even with the exposure to
contaminants in mother's milk.
Rachel Myr
Kristiansand, Norway

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