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<\/div>\nMore than half of parents and pregnant women (51 percent) surveyed for a new WHO\/UNICEF report say they have been targeted with marketing from formula milk companies, much of which is in breach of international standards on infant feeding practices.<\/p>\n
The report, how the marketing of formula milk influences our decisions on infant feeding, draws on interviews with parents, pregnant women and health workers in eight countries. It uncovers systematic and unethical marketing strategies used by the formula milk industry now worth a staggering US$55 billion to influence parents\u2019 infant feeding decisions.<\/p>\n
The report finds that industry marketing techniques include unregulated and invasive online targeting; sponsored advice networks and helplines; promotions and free gifts; and practices to influence training and recommendations among health workers. The messages that parents and health workers receive are often misleading, scientifically unsubstantiated, and violate the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (the Code) a landmark public health agreement passed by the World Health Assembly in 1981 to protect mothers from aggressive marketing practices by the baby food industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis report shows very clearly that formula milk marketing remains unacceptably pervasive, misleading and aggressive,\u201d said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. \u201cRegulations on exploitative marketing must be urgently adopted and enforced to protect children\u2019s health.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the report which surveyed 8,500 parents and pregnant women, and 300 health workers in cities across Bangladesh, China, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Viet Nam \u2013 exposure to formula milk marketing reaches 84 percent of all women surveyed in the United Kingdom; 92 percent of women surveyed in Viet Nam and 97 percent of women surveyed in China, increasing their likelihood of choosing formula feeding.<\/p>\n
\u201cFalse and misleading messages about formula feeding are a substantial barrier to breastfeeding, which we know is best for babies and mothers,\u201d said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. \u201cWe need robust policies, legislation and investments in breastfeeding to ensure that women are protected from unethical marketing practices and have access to the information and support they need to raise their families.\u201d<\/p>\n
Across all countries included in the survey, women expressed a strong desire to breastfeed exclusively, ranging from 49 percent of women in Morocco to 98 percent in Bangladesh. Yet the report details how a sustained flow of misleading marketing messages is reinforcing myths about breastfeeding and breast-milk, and undermining women\u2019s confidence in their ability to breastfeed successfully. These myths include the necessity of formula in the first days after birth, the inadequacy of breast-milk for infant nutrition, that specific infant formula ingredients are proven to improve child development or immunity, the perception that formula keeps infants fuller for longer, and that the quality of breast-milk declines with time.<\/p>\n
Breastfeeding within the first hour of birth, followed by exclusive breastfeeding for six months and continued breastfeeding for up to two years or beyond, offers a powerful line of defense against all forms of child malnutrition, including wasting and obesity. Breastfeeding also acts as babies\u2019 first vaccine, protecting them against many common childhood illnesses. It also reduces women\u2019s future risk of diabetes, obesity and some forms of cancer. Yet globally, only 44 percent of babies less than 6 months old are exclusively breastfed. Global breastfeeding rates have increased very little in the past two decades, while sales of formula milk have more than doubled in roughly the same time.<\/p>\n
Alarmingly, the report notes that large numbers of health workers in all countries had been approached by the baby feeding industry to influence their recommendations to new mothers through promotional gifts, free samples, funding for research, paid meetings, events and conferences, and even commissions from sales, directly impacting parents\u2019 feeding choices. More than one-third of women surveyed said a health worker had recommended a specific brand of formula to them.<\/p>\n
To address these challenges, WHO, UNICEF and partners are calling on governments, health workers, and the baby food industry to end exploitative formula milk marketing and fully implement and abide by the Code requirements. This includes:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Passing, monitoring and enforcing laws to prevent the promotion of formula milk, in line with the International Code, including prohibiting nutrition and health claims made by the formula milk industry.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Investing in policies and programmes to support breastfeeding, including adequate paid parental leave in line with international standards, and ensuring high-quality breastfeeding support.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Requesting industry to publicly commit to full compliance with the Code and subsequent World Health Assembly resolutions globally.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Banning health workers from accepting sponsorship from companies that market foods for infants and young children for scholarships, awards, grants, meetings, or events.<\/p>\n
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