Calls for national infant formula recall spread | KOMO News – Seattle, Washington | National & World News — I love the way things have changed in this country. Blame the messenger. Since this contamination was an accident due to crappy manufacturing as opposed to the Chinese intentional use of melamine, then it is OK. Ha. Unbelievable.
Disclosure that laboratory tests have detected traces of contamination in several major brands of infant formula generated concern and confusion Wednesday, with a national consumer’s group and the Illinois attorney general demanding a Food and Drug Administration recall and the federal agency saying it had released inaccurate information on what chemicals were found in which top selling products.
As worried parents called manufacturers looking for guidance about the presence of melamine and a key byproduct in U.S.-made formula, the FDA reiterated its position that the baby food is safe and parents should continue feeding it to their babies, contending the extremely low levels of contamination do not present a health danger.
Also, a spokesman for one major manufacturer criticized the FDA for its release of the inaccurate information.
“We’re getting inundated by calls from moms confused about the situation,” said Pete Paradossi, a spokesman for Mead Johnson, one of the three major manufacturers of U.S.-made formula involved in the problem detections.
Melamine is the industrial chemical found in Chinese infant formula – in far larger concentrations – that has been blamed for killing at least three babies and making at least 50,000 others ill.
The FDA and other experts said the melamine contamination in U.S.-made formula had occurred during the manufacturing process, rather than intentionally as was done in Chinese production. The manufacturers insist their products are safe.
“The levels that we are detecting are extremely low,” said Dr. Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “They should not be changing the diet. If they’ve been feeding a particular product, they should continue to feed that product. That’s in the best interest of the baby.”
Best interests of the baby? Man, these guys have a lot of chutzpah.
Found by Aric MAckey.
Golly, ghee, whiz==you do understand that anything in excess is poison and anything in minute (enough) amount is safe?
You do understand that????????
Evidently not.
What would be informative and interesting is just exactly “what” in the normal manufacturing process can introduce melamine and other poisons into food products ((as opposed to doing in intentionally)). I assume it would be either a break-down product of some process or a residue of cleaning the equipment.
Guess I’ll have to google for any useful information.
Don’t waste outrage–its legitimate only in small doses (yes, intended).
Oh man! Commie pinko military-industrial complex baby murderers at the FDA strike again!!
Sheesh.
The Chinese baby formula had up to 2500ppm melamine. The FDA says 2.5ppm is safe for sick infants in the hospital. Health Canada says that 1.0ppm is safe for anybody.
The “tainted” baby formula in the US had 0.25ppm melamine, 1/100th of the safe level, 1/1000th of the Chinese baby formula levels.
Damned, dirty, baby-killing FDA bastards.
Seriously John? 0.1ppm? I’d guess that a reaction between something the formula came in contact with during the manufacturing process can cause that amount to be detected. It’s not a contaminant at that level.
There’s more hazard from foam-filled crappy furniture leaching decomposition products into your house than from this.
Thanks Mustard for the orienting relevant facts.
Personally, I would still avoid any contaminated product DEPENDING on what the effect of the contamination is. For instance, don’t care if it can lead to sterility or interfere with fetal development. Anything leading to Alzheimers (aluminum arguably for instance) is a no-no.
Some poisons are needed in small amounts (selenium for instance).
Details.
#4 – Bobbo
Better watch out for cooking utensils, plates, industrial coatings, paper and paperboard, and flame retardant, then. Melamine is intentionally used in those products.
This is all Obama’s fault. Or else those guys supporting same-sex marriage.
If you have a sensitive enough test, you can find contamination of anything with anything. And the liberals are to blame. They’re the ones that supported the damned science that allows such things to be detected.
I like that the FDA is kept on their toes.
The last thing we need is another “..nah, don’t worry about it..” attitude from another Bush appointed government agency.
The Bush FDA was going to allow Chinese bred turkey’s that had three of fewer drumsticks and soundly defeated by the democrats. It’s TWO drumsticks per turkey or nothing.
#5–Mustard, Hah, Hah. A preemptive strike against James Hill. Well done.
I just saw part of the Barbara Walters interview of the Obama’s. Obama may turn out to be too liberal for me (it could happen what with the problems he is being handed) but it certainly is a pleasure to see someone who cares about the right things and can form a sentence. Right after that Bush came on to pardon a turkey. Birds of a feather, sticking together.
Pedro–you mean the stuff that is tap water waved over some curative substance? I’ve seen so many chemical analyses where the “active ingredient” claimed to be a cure is so minute as to barely be measureable==much less the grams three times a day that need to be taken according to disreputable Western Medicine.
Call it worship, but every new president deserves a break until he proves himself one way or the other.
I’m glad Mustard has something/someone to believe in===while it lasts. You should too.
#8 In my new line of work I hope to be using the venom of the bushmaster snake, for menopausal complaints, glandular diseases and bankers.
Evidently, melamine contamination in USA comes mostly from it being used/misused in animal feedstocks and traces remain as it filters up to us humans. Not a big risk under normal circumstances.
About one/third of the way in:
http://tinyurl.com/59nyq7
First, whatever happend to breast feeding!?! That way whatever’s dangerous to the baby is dangerous to it’s mother first. I mean, it’s all advantages, better defenses for the baby, bonding experience mother and child. That’s what they’re there for…
#8 – ‘dro
Better to worship Obama than Kuzco, cabrón. At least Obama is an honorable man.
Like those stories about “unsafe levels of lead” in toys, how much would be juuuust right?
Also, consider that the FDA recently took heat when large numbers of doctors said don’t give kids cold meds. Do they really know how much is safe for a baby?
One way of forcing higher standards in China is to enforce our own product safety regulations. It is also a market signal to companies willing to produce products without these chemicals.
Headline: “Sewage Kills Fish – Government Says Water Safe To Drink”
(Thanks, but I’m not thirsty anymore.)
Every independent scientist asked about the interactions between all those “safe” levels of crap we consume everyday says that it is IMPOSSIBLE to get a handle on the problem. Too many chemicals – too many variables – too many new ones being introduced at too fast a pace.
So, let me get this straight. All you scientists posting here know what is safe and what is not safe, right?
Good. You feed it your children.
I’ll take a pass on that, thank you.
The FDA has still not published any safe standards for malemine in baby formula. The proper question to be asked here is “why would the FDA dismiss ANY malemine when they are unwilling to set a safe amount.
As the article points out, especially premature babies get their sole source of nutrition from formula. Their kidneys are still quite fragile and developing. Damage at this stage could end up quite nasty down the road.
*
Mustard,
I don’t know where you got that 2.5 ppm standard as the article says the FDA has NOT set a standard. However, 0.25 ppm is 1/10 of 2.5 ppm. That would be 1/4 the 1.0 ppm you attribute to Health Canada.
Aside from the math, could you post your references, thanks.
#16–Stu==good comment. Does sewage killing fish in safe drinking water fairly characterize any other issue? ((Yes it does, but not generally.))
I’m left thinking how we as rational human beings use, and can only use, SCIENCE to understand the risks (ie, contamination) we face in life but then somehow we ignore SCIENCE as to other aspects of that very same risk (ie, concentration levels).
How/when do we do that?
#1 & #2
Thanks for putting it into perspective.
#17 – Fusion
“The FDA sets the legal limit for melamine in food at 2.5 parts per million. That amount is minuscule, a couple of sand grains in an expanse of desert that pose no real threat to public health.”
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/389425_melamine26.html
That’s for 132-pound grownups, granted, but even factoring in ” it’s likely this intensified ratio would at least double the impact of legal levels of melamine on toddlers., 0.25ppm is “equivalent to 0.50ppm, well below 2.5ppm, and 1/5000th of the levels found in the Chinese baby formula.
>>The proper question to be asked here is “why
>>would the FDA dismiss ANY malemine when they
>>are unwilling to set a safe amount.
The FDA assay for melamine only goes to 2.5ppm, no lower. You want better tests, write your congressman to increase funding for the FDA, not cut it. They’re already stretched about as thin as you can get.
#16 – Stu
>>Good. You feed it your children. I’ll take a
>>pass on that, thank you.
Cool. You grow your own food, make your own cooking utensils, plates, paper, etc.?
You may be melamine-free! Kudos to you.
0.25ppm of melamine is like having one criminal in the entire population of the Los Angeles.
Not a problem
#15 – ‘dro
>>que tiene que ver el culo con las pestañas?
Gee, I don’t know, ‘dro. The only thing that comes to mind is maybe you’re tickling Kuzco’s ass with your eyelashes?
Did I guess it? Huh? Huh?
Did you have a point? Or just more ‘drovian drivel?
[Har! Google translates that as “that has to do with your ass eyelashes?” – ed.]
#25 – ‘dro
>>Mine was the same point you were trying to
>>make by bringing Obama into this discussion:
>>Nonsense.
The only reason for “bringing Obama into this discussion” was to cut the Dittoheads off at the pass BEFORE they tried to blame him for the occurrence of almost-undetectable levels of melamine in baby formula.
They routinely blame him (even though he doesn’t take office for 53 days) for every past, current, and future problem faced by society.
So. The ass. The eyelashes. They had WHAT to do with anything?
Did you need to use the photo? Not your worst, but still, … yuck.
If it is made in China I will not eat it,put it on my skin or in my mouth same for the pets.The FDA does a pretty good job considoring the lack of support they have gotten in the last 8 years.BTW any USA citizen who doesn’t want Obama to do well doesn’t have their own best interest at heart.I didn’t vote for Bush but I wanted him to be a Great President.Happy Thanksgiving to John his elves at the blog and all you cranky readers.
#1
Eating apples in excess does not make them poisonous.
Poisons in very low quantity don’t do perceptible damage but that does not make them good for you.
There is a BIG difference between a poison that is NEVER good but can be harmless in minute quantities and food good for you but might cause side-effects in too much quantities.
They can detect traces way, way to low to matter to the human body.
They were putting enough of this stuff into food to make it look like it had more protein.
To continue a point many fruit including apple seeds contain a poison. If you ate an entire coffee cup of apple seeds at one go it would kill you. It doesn’t mean you need to call poison control just because your kid ate the core. Your liver can handle the trace of cynade.
This dosage is well below the toxicity level, and far below the LD50. It shouldn’t be there, but get it out in the next batch. . .
I guess it’s time to get rid of the “convenience” of manufactured mother-substitutes and haul out the breast. Unless those have traces of melamine, too.
I guess it’s time to get rid of the “convenience” of manufactured mother-substitutes and haul out the breast. Unless those have traces of melamine, too.
#26
Are you serious? Talk about Pot Kettle Black. Who is blaming Obama for anything?! He hasn’t even taken office. However, you regularly blame Bush for everything from belly button lint to global warming. Is this some sort of fear that everyone will treat Obama as well as they have treated Bush?
This story and Stars and Bars chicken little fluoride argument are ridiculous. The levels in question are minute. People ingest all sorts of dangerous chemicals everyday. Given that parents are prone to overreaction, I suspect that the baby formula manufacturers will probably lower the levels melamine just to appease panicked parents.