Melamine in baby

Melamine in baby

US Food and Drug Administration spokeswoman said: they have found trace amounts of the chemical melamine in one sample of infant formula.

The formula actually found in this year in China where thousands of children fell ill & lots of died.The chemical, normally used to make plastics, has been found in milk power, wheat gluten and other Chinese-made ingredients used in products ranging from pet food to candy. Melamine's ability to make foods appear to have higher amounts of protein during testing has made it a cheap but dangerous substitute that can damage the kidneys.

Leon declined to name the manufacturer of the sample found to contain melamine. U.S.-approved makers include Abbott Nutrition, Bristol-Myers Squibb unit Mead Johnson Nutritionals and Nestle USA.

Industry trade group the International Formula Council sought to reassure consumers.

Mead Johnson Nutritionals, the maker of Enfamil baby formula, said that by testing samples of its products and raw materials using published FDA methodology, it had not detected any level of melamine.
Mead Johnson spokesman Pete Paradossi said: "We maintain stringent standards at all our manufacturing sites to ensure the high quality and safety of our products."

Leon said the FDA has deployed more sensitive tests in recent weeks as it has expended tests for melamine in all food products, including infant formula.

FDA scientists conducted two tests of the formula sample, one finding a melamine level of 137 parts per billion (ppb) and another measuring 140 ppb. A level of 250 ppb or less is considered a trace amount, Leon said.
But some consumer advocates said it was premature to say there was no risk for infants.

The FDA's earlier determination that 250 ppb of melamine was a trace amount was intended for foods other than infant formula, said Sonya Lunder, a senior analyst with the Environmental Working Group.

Lunder said: "We need to have a zero-tolerance policy for contaminants in infant formula, Babies eat only formula for months and months on end."
Leon said the FDA was in the process of determining what amounts of melamine pose a risk to infants and would release a public advisory later. In the meantime, parents should not change their babies' feeding habits, she said.

"We found one positive test on one sample at a level so low that it has absolutely no impact on the health of babies whatsoever," Leon said. "So there's no reason for any parent to be concerned for any reason."
The FDA was not yet ready to release results of tests of other food products, including dietary supplements, Leon said.