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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

It WAS very childish of me, but I got a dig in at some Formula companies today......

613 replies

VeniVidiVickiQV · 04/04/2006 16:55

Got sent a market research survey today asking me my opinions on formula milk.

So i gave them.....

OP posts:

CHICagoMUM · 04/04/2006 16:57

Oh what did you say (be careful about naming brands etc, what with the haze of litigiousness (if that is a word) that has descended upon us)?

moondog · 04/04/2006 17:03

Ooh go on then.
Bollocks to the lawyers,name 'em.
I love sending ranty missives to companies like this.

Original poster

VeniVidiVickiQV · 04/04/2006 17:09

I said, when asked what i thought about what this particular advert was saying about milupa and cow and gate....

That the ad implied that milk was not required as much during weaning but milk should be the main feed. It also implied that it was as good as breastmilk,(quoted it contained prebiotics etc) which it isnt.

I also said i didnt think they were experts on nutrition.

OP posts:

moondog · 04/04/2006 17:12

Was it posted to you?
Wonder where they got your name from?
Are you a member of a baby club?

EnidFord · 04/04/2006 17:13

good

Original poster

VeniVidiVickiQV · 04/04/2006 17:13

A survey place where i get paid a nominal amount for my opinions.

So, i got paid for saying it

OP posts:

chipmonkey · 04/04/2006 22:17

even better!

peaches27 · 04/04/2006 22:30

Thank God for formula, bottles and baby milk companies who engage in research to develop their product to be as close to breastmilk as possible. Otherwise what would all the adoptive mums, foster parents and grandparent carers (like me) feed all those babies on who have no mummy to breastfeed them.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and I defend your right to speak out, but dont forget, some people have no choice and need to use formula. We are starved of information on which type to choose because no one is allowed to recommend a particular one, so what we end up using is a random choice really. I wish more information on baby formula was more readily available.

koolkat · 04/04/2006 22:32

VVV - good.

Why not take it further and send their adverts to Baby Milk Action ? Fabulous people, I found out about their work quite recntly. They report abuses of formula marketing on their website.

koolkat · 04/04/2006 22:35

But peaches, did any one here say formula should not exist ?

I think people were implying they do not like the illegal practices of formula companies, i.e their methods in marketing which often breach international law.

JoolsToo · 04/04/2006 22:36

I got sent that survey

edam · 04/04/2006 22:36

The problem is, Peaches, that formula manufacturers would sue the behind off any health professional who advised people against their product in favour of another. The laws attempt to stop formula companies putting out misleading information. If the law was lifted, all we would get is each company's marketing saying 'our product is the best and it's even better than breastmilk'. Which wouldn't leave parents any better off anyway.

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/04/2006 22:39

peaches - you said what I was thinking - but you're stepping into dangerous water I'm afraid.

You see bottlefeeding is only 2nd best - so we're not entitled to be able to read as much information from the companies as we want to be able to make up our own minds...........

chipmonkey · 04/04/2006 22:39

Peaches, I don't think VVVQdeV was objecting to formula as such, just the insidious marketing that some of these companies employ to imply that they are as good if not better than breast milk. And I certainly was advised to use Milupa Forward for my ds1 by a PHN ( which is Irish for HV!) when I was still happily bf him at 9 months. I paid no attention to her because she had lots of little Milupa freebies around her office. Also she had dyed her hair a strange pinkish orange.( I think it was supposed to be strawberry blonde!) which made me think her judgement might be lacking!

peaches27 · 04/04/2006 23:01

Well, before we were living in litigious times (spelt wrong probably), midwives and health visitors did recommend a particular type sometimes, if you had a specific problem. This was 20+ years ago, and if you had a very hungry baby/colicky baby/constipated baby/baby who threw up a lot etc and you were bottle feeding, they would say well this particular brand is better for babies who are constipated, while brand is is better for hungry babies etc. They also gave you sample packs. I personally didnt object to this, having had a go at breastfeeding, was supported but couldnt do it and decided myself to give it up. I admire people who do breastfeed, but its a shame that bottlefeeders who may do this by choice or not, are not given the information they seek.

These days health visitors are not allowed to make recommendations and ours doesnt, but has some information that you have to virtually interrogate her for. One or two sample packs might have been handy when you are wondering if a change of formula might solve a particular problem. This is not on the same scale as the Nestle business that we all heard about a decade ago in the third world which of course I also found unnacceptable.

flutterbee · 04/04/2006 23:05

I totally agree with you peaches.

peaches27 · 04/04/2006 23:08

Informed Bottle Feeders of the World Unite!

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/04/2006 23:11

I had a fabulous HV who told me "well I'm not allowed to recommend any formula..........but I found that x worked best for my DS who was a hungry baby like yours, and y worked best for my DD who wans't such a big eater, however I found that z gave both of them constipation" type advice.

She was the same one who advised going to the health food shop for some milkshake poweder to get DS1 drinking cows milk and it worked.

PinkTulips · 04/04/2006 23:27

peaches your dead right regarding people who choose to bottle feed, or have to bottle feed deserving the product to be of the highest standard and as close to the real thing as possible. however i've also got serious probs with the way formula and follow ons are pushed on you in some cases.

was in the supermarket recently with dp and dd who was then under one year, was in the babyfood aisle looking at the shelves trying to find something (yes i bought jarred food, slap on the wrist for me!), there was a marketing lady there advertising that cow and gate growing up milk and this was our exact conversation;

lady; could i talk to you about cow and gate growing up milk?

me; (very politely with a smile) no thanks

lady; it'll just take a minute dear, its new on the market

me; yes i've seen the ads thanks but my dd is allergic to cows milk so it wouldn't be suitable, she's only 10 months anyway

lady; oh, this isn't made from milk dear, it's for babies just like her

me; em, no it says on the bottle for one year and over, because it's made from cows milk, i'm not interested thank you so could i just go back to my shopping please

lady; well theres no need for that!

at this point my dp had to restrain me form throttling her! not really but close enough, if this is the type of marketing these companies employ what does that say about there general ethics? i have had plenty of people say to me after the first few months 'oh, why don't you just give her some formula, sure it's just as good these days' i wonder where they could possibly be getting that impression?

milward · 04/04/2006 23:30

I think it's cow & gate advertising a help line for parents staffed by medics & mums - I think - read it in Mother & Baby mag. Wonder what info they give to bf mums who call with a bf problem?

sazhig · 04/04/2006 23:36

HRH actually formula is 4th best: 2nd is being fed from someone else other than mum (aka wet nursing), 3rd is expressed milk, then formula is 4th.

chipmonkey · 04/04/2006 23:46

PinkTulips, did you think about reporting her?

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/04/2006 23:47

sazhig - the other "2" that you mention are all a form of breastfeeding..........it's all breastmilk last time I checked whether it's from a wet nurse, straight from mum's breast or expressed into a bottle.

JoolsToo · 04/04/2006 23:55

what formula is, is an ^alternative' to breast milk.

You have

breast milk (best) and
formula (a good alternative)

calling it 4th best is for effect only and has no impact on women who are happy with their decision to bottle feed.

It could easily upset a new mum who is feeling vulnerable and for a myriad of reasons isn't breastfeeding and I can't understand anyone who would want to do that.

why Jools why? - go to bed^

HRHQueenOfQuotes · 04/04/2006 23:58

thankyou Jools - a voice or reason - now go to bed

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