Hello All, Thought I would post my letter to Dr Joe Sanders, the executive director of the AAP. As long as we are all in fine letter-writing fettle, he might as well feel the fire of our wrath! --Martha Johnson RN IBCLC, Eugene OR Dr. Joe Sanders, Executive Director American Academy of Pediatrics 141 Northwest Point Drive Elk Grove Village, IL 60009-0927 Dear Dr. Sanders, 11/21/03 I am writing to urge you to reform your position, and use your authority in support of the release of the National Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign, as planned, without alteration of its content or scope. I learned just today that representatives of the infant formula industry have contacted DHHS, members of Congress, and the American Academy of Pediatrics in an effort to have the breastfeeding promotion campaign delayed or weakened. It is my understanding that your office sent a letter to Tommy Thompson, Secretary of DHHS, stating that the AAP had concerns regarding the campaign’s "negative approach." This action was taken without consulting the AAP’s Section on Breastfeeding, the leaders and members of which have expressed their disagreement with your stated views. Shame on you! Your organization’s continued acceptance of financial support from the infant formula industry has tainted the AAP’s reputation and belies its commitment to child health. This campaign is an important part of government efforts towards meeting the Healthy People 2010 goals, which aim to increase the initiation and duration of breastfeeding in the United States. Increasing breastfeeding will save a lot of money for our nation. The U.S. government’s own analysis of research on the economic costs of not breastfeeding finds that our nation spends $3.6 billion every year on treatment of just three of the illnesses and conditions that are preventable by breastfeeding. The U.S. HHS Blueprint for Action on Breastfeeding recommends that our government launch a public health awareness campaign to promote breastfeeding. The ads created by the Ad Council for this campaign came out of a rigorous process which included 36 diverse focus groups, and a stringent review of the medical and scientific literature regarding infant feeding and health outcomes. The Ad Council has had an excellent track record in determining how to frame public health messages for maximum effectiveness. In light of the above, I am deeply concerned to learn that DHHS may consider watering down the messages in this campaign. As a registered nurse working with mothers and babies for over 15 years, I am well aware that the majority of new parents in the U.S. consider the choice between formula and breastfeeding similar to a choice between regular coffee and a gourmet espresso drink. Everyone knows that breast is best, but most Americans believe that formula is just fine as an alternative. That is exactly why the Ad Council determined that the public needs to learn more about the risks of NOT breastfeeding. This is not just a choice between Brand Name and Generic, it is a health choice that has lifelong consequences. And that is exactly why I urge you to give your full support to the prompt launch of the media campaign, without any change in the content of the ads. The infant formula industry’s profit margin will certainly suffer if more parents choose to breastfeed, and continue breastfeeding longer. However, I believe that you will agree that the health of our nation’s mothers and babies is of greater importance than the preservation of corporate profits. Sincerely, Martha Johnson RN IBCLC 110 East Hilliard Lane Eugene OR 97404 ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html