Sandra,

Exactly where in my post was I questioning individual public health
researchers motivations?  I mentioned Landrigan's research on toxins because he is the
director at the Center for Children's Health and Environment, Mount Sinai
School of Medicine.  And because the particular statement that I quoted came
directly from the center and I assume that he must have approved of the statement.
I never stated any direct involvement just the fact that this very same
institution is patenting G-proteins which just happen to be human milk proteins.
Just plain ordinary irony with a dash of how strange.  The question that needs
to be asked is how regulated is donated human milk.  Is milk that is donated
to one institution shared among various research departments?  If so, then you
have an institution declaring breastmilk toxic yet at the same time reaping
financial profit from the patenting of a human milk component.  It seems to me
that this needs to be questioned.

I do not consider Landrigan's statements that you quote from the HANDBOOK of
PEDIATRIC ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH as supportive of breastfeeding.  Maybe others
find it supportive but I don't like them and view them as half-hearted.
According to alot of reports I have seen, dairy products are high in pollutants from
plastics.  Yet he states otherwise.  He states infant formula is free of
residues from halogenated pesticides and industrial chemicals. (I liked to know
exactly how the dairy industry keeps its mountains of powdered milk at the
factory pesticide-free.  In fact powdered infant formula is not a sterile product
and is easily contaminated ie. enterobacter sakazaaki cases of mortality and
morbidity) What studies is he taking this from?  Even if this was true, a
mother who uses powdered infant formula has to use water from her tap which may or
may not be contaminated depending on where she lives.  Cow's milk formula may
use coconut oils but it also has whey protein concentrates which have protein
bound fats from the cow.  Nor do I see any thought given to the fact that
infant formulas are in cans that are plastic-lined and equipment for feeding is
plastic.  The question is where is the data on infant formula.   The fact that
infant formula is given a clean bill of health without data to back it up (data
taken from independent research) only causes me to question this assumption.

Landrigan states, "Nursing infants feed from the top of the food chain."
This concept annoys me.  I learned that human milk was white blood, a live
substance.  Is it accurate to equate the breastfeeding relationship to eating off
the top of the food chain?  It would seem to me that breastmilk is the next step
in mammalian protection from the umbilical cord which provided red blood.
Human babies nursing at their mother's breasts are not one species eating
another species.  Human infants are feeding from human mothers, an extension of
prenatal existence.  If contamination has occured, it rightfully should be focused
prenatally.

Landrigan states, "Breastfeeding is good."  In my book good takes last
place--good, better, best....

Landrigan states, "there are few instances in which morbidity has occurred in
a nursling from a pollutant chemical in milk."  WHAT!!  Where is the proof of
this--an exclusively breastfed infant got sick from the pollutants in
mother's milk? It would have to be exclusive (babies were not getting any other food
and at birth they were pollutant-free right?)  Frankly I think that morbidity
from pollutants in breastmilk is impossible to prove but lets see the case
histories please!!

Yes, I would like Lactnet readers to go to the archives and view the comments
about the Dutch studies and hopefully my posts will be read, too.  The Dutch
studies were done with POOLED BREASTMILK.  And the labs that looked at infant
formula were connected to industries that would be financially effected if the
results looked bad.

Valerie W. McClain, IBCLC


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