Awhile back I posted an entry about melamine in Chinese dairy products, including infant formula and how a decrease of breastfeeding in China had exacerbated the problem. Decrease of breastfeeding in China Recently the Food and Drug Administration announced it had found trace amounts of melamine in infant formula produced in the United States. Melamine Traces Found in U.S. Infant Formula While alarming, experts do not believe melamine is harmful to infants in the small amounts found in formula. The melamine in U.S. formula came from contact with melamine-containing products. It wasn't deliberately put in the formula to up its protein content, as it was in China. This is an excellent article from WebMD on the issue. FAQ: Melamine in U.S. Baby Formula However, no one really knows for sure if these amounts of melamine are harmful. Experts are making their best guess. Furthermore, the same amounts were found in all U.S. formula brands, so switching brands won't make any difference in the amount of melamine in the formula. Finally, melamine can be harmful even in trace amounts if combined with certain other chemicals. This is yet another argument for women to breastfeed if at all possible.
