I just finished reading the MSNBC article entitled, "Figuring out your
child's meal plan" and sent them the following letter. I really wonder if we
are doing any good here, especially after the 3 day meeting that just took
place in Washington on soy.

Marsha Walker

As a registered nurse and lactation consultant, I was concerned with your
article entitled, "Figuring out your child's meal plan."  If a parent read
this, he or she would think that soy formulas offered some type of advantage
to a baby. When we look at facts and evidence regarding human milk and
formula we see that human milk is the norm for feeding babies. Babies fed
formula can have a 8-10 point IQ deficit, improperly developed immune system
that increases the risk for both acute and chronic diseases such as: ear
infections, gastrointestinal disease, asthma, cancer, allergies, diabetes,
etc. Obesity is much higher in children who were not breastfed. The US health
care systems pays millions of dollars for preventable diseases. AN HMO pays
an extra $400 a year for each baby who was never breastfed.

Soy milk (which is your heading for soy) is not the same as soy formula. Soy
milk should never be given to an infant. You may wish to make this
distinction to avoid adverse outcomes in infants whose parents read this
story and find that  soy milk is less expensive than soy infant formula.
Giving soy formula to infants has the following potential outcomes:
1. a high load of contaminants such as aluminum which is stored in the baby's
bones and brain
2. circulating phytoestrogen levels 13,000-22,000 times higher than normal
levels in early life. What type of a steroid imbalance does this create?
3. genetically engineered soy has been found in US formulas which have the
capacity to provoke new allergies, administer novel toxins, and induce
bacterial resistance to antibiotics
4. soy formula fed babies often do not mount an adequate response to their
vaccines that can be leave them under immunized and susceptible to vaccine
preventable disease
5. soy can be just as allergenic as cow's milk
6. soy formulas are devoid of lactose which is necessary for proper mineral
absorption and brain development

The advice to remove breast milk from the diet of a 12 month old baby is
incorrect and cannot be supported with any evidence. The weaning foods that a
baby that age consumes DO NOT have the brain enhancing ingredients that
breast milk does nor can they continue to protect the baby from disease. This
piece of advice can be dangerous and should be removed from this article.

Should you wish to provide accurate information on breast milk and formula,
please do not hesitate to contact me.

Marsha Walker, RN, IBCLC

254 Conant Rd
Weston, MA 02493
781 893-3553
Fax 781 893-8608
e-mail: [log in to unmask]

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