Why are formula companies allowed to target advertising at pregnant women?

[levan]

I've been looking at a copy of Mother and Baby magazine, and noticed advertisements from two formula companies both inviting pregnant women to join their 'clubs' and receive information, advice etc. I know they are not directly advertising formula, but surely they are exploiting a loophole - if it's illegal for them to advertise first milks why is it legal for them to target pregnant women?

What do others think?

They are allowed to advertise and I would say pregnant women are the obvious target, so you can't blame them for that, they are commercial organisations trying to make a profit, and difficult to see how you could legislate against targeting a particular group of people.

Debate is really whether any advertising of any formula at all should be allowed anywhere I suppose.

I joined two of those clubs when I was pregnant for the freebies...never bought any of their formula milks though - bf for as long as I could then used a completely different brand. Still got the cute cow and the hooded towel, both well used actually

i partcularly dislike the idea of their helplines in case you have problems with bf, likely they are unbiased and offer excellent bf advice?? don't think so

They are not allowed to advertise their formula direct to mothers, but exploit the fact there is no legal ban on advertising their clubs....which then permit them to throw advertising and marketing at you because you have 'asked' for it.

Flowerybeanbag, it is perfectly possible for legislation to prevent certain sorts of targetted advertising, and this is the only thing that stops companies from doing what they want - you cannot rely on voluntary restrictions. As you say, they are commercial organisations who want to make a profit.

We have many restrictions on advertising in the UK - pharmaceutical companies cannot advertise prescription-only meds to consumers; alcohol ads are not permitted to target young people; there is no tobacco advertising at all.

Pharma companies are constantly trying to change the law on direct to consumer advertising.

Why not? Do people really think that seeing an ad for formula would make anyone who seriously wanted to bf do otherwise?

I am constantly amazed by people's fear of formula. It's not poison ffs.

pinkypig, if it made no difference to sales of formula, then companies would stop advertising! In countries where they are allowed to advertise, they go wild - boxes and boxes of free samples sent to mothers, ads everywhere including TV. In the UK, they advertise follow on formula (which is legal) in a way which makes it a de fact advert for regular formula.

Of course it is not the only influence on mothers, and mothers who 'seriously' want to breastfeed are less likely than others to be swayed by this particular influence.

But why should only mothers who 'seriously' want to breastfeed be considered? What about the mothers who are not so 'serious' about it, but instead a little doubtful, a bit underconfident, not very sure...why should their babies not be proected from this sort of commercial pressure?

Ads do not inform mothers of genuine differences between brands of formula and they do not explain the risks of using formula - they just try to create a relationship between the consumer and the brand. How does that benefit anyone except the company and its shareholders?

And it's not fear of formula! It's concern for commercial pressures affecting public and individual health!

How does formula advertising affect public and individual health?

And what are the risks of using formula?

Risks of using formula well documented, pinky. You can check archives for this, or google, but basically:

• impact on breastfeeding, as formula use decreases the chances the mother will continue with breastfeeding at all, as formula takes the place of bf
• increased risk of a number of health conditions, serious and not so serious, in the baby
• increased risk of hospitalisation of the baby who is not exclusively breastfed

Can give you references for all of these, but it's not controversial, surely - it's well-known and accepted that babies who have formula are at increased risk. The studies control for socio-economic factors, which is important, to ensure it's the feeding that's making the differenc.

The impact on public health is really the impact on the public purse of treating sickness, and of having a less well population.

To bring it back to the OP. I still maintain that freedom of information is key so that people can make fully-formed, rational choices.

I don't believe banning formula advertising is the way forward; it only leads to scaremongering and is potentially damaging to women who for whatever reason cannot breastfeed. Sadly that has a impact on the public purse too.

What has formula advertising got to do with freedom of information?
Formula companies do not supply any info about their product, most people have no idea what forumla contains, they advertise to sell their product and make money, simple as that.
Feeding a baby should not be an issue for commerical concern IMO.

We have loads of advertising of formula in this country and yet as far as I can see the majority of women who choose to use it in preference to their own milk have very little awareness of how this choice may affect their baby's health in the long or the short term. How does that fit with the concept of 'freedom of information'?

Ironically the women on this board (and in non-cyber life) who tend to know most about formula - how it's made and what the differences are between mothers milk and formula are usually those who don't use the stuff.

I think advertising SUPPRESSES the truth - that's the way it's worked in this country. What pinkypig describes as 'scaremongering' are the uncomfortable truths about formula that baby milk companies don't want you to know or to talk about.

pinky - I agree. I don't want any information suppressed and I don't want any scaremongering. I want parents to have as much information as they need about formula. To this end, you will no doubt agree with me that

• formula manufacturers should be compelled to note on their labelling that the product is not sterile and needs careful preparation to reduce risks of tranmission of salmonella and enterobakter sakersakii (the manufacturers have recently taken the government to court to resist legislation that would have compelled them to make the new safer preparation guidelines clear, and they have managed to win, on a technicality only, a stay until the year 2010. Who's suppressing information there, then>)

• all mothers who use formula need to know that there are risks associated with using formula instead of breastfeeding...real risks, not scaremongering risks! If you want refs, I'll let you have them They don't need to be frightened about this, just informed in an adult way, just as you would want to be about immunisation versus non-immunisation, just to take one example

• all mothers who use formula should have access to independent comparisons between brands, as far as possible, and if there is no real difference between them in health terms then this knowledge should be available. This is like reading the OFSTED reports of schools, or seeking out statistics on how many people get MRSA in your local hospital. Manufacturers' own data on safety and contents is not in the public domain and indeed spurious health claims (on prebiotics, for instance) has only recently been made illegal (though lables and ads with the claims will still be there until at least 2010)

• if we had a society without ads for formula, no one would miss them! They are not a source of information but slogans (what does 'closer than ever to breastmilk' mean, and is it different from 'inspired by breastmilk' and which is better?? Is 'now even closer to breastmilk' a sign that a formula with this slogan is the best of all?!) Why should mothers who want information be restricted to this - how does it help them make an informed choice?

'Fully-formed, rational choices' you ask for - I am in 100 per cent agreement.

What is rational about having to choose between a pink fluffy bunny on one tin and a yellow ducky-wuckie on another one? Or Meaningless Slogan 1 versus Spurious Catchline 2?

What is (in)formed about an ad which tries to make you have a relationship with a brand rather than information about the risks of it in use?

Mothers and babies who use formula deserve better than this. I want formula freely available to everyone who wants to use it, at a consistently low, fair price, with no advertising or branding. Anyone who wants to use it should be able to access as much information about it as they want, and for the information to be honest and open....no one needs to feel bad being treated like a grown up.

Pinkypig, if formula companies were being honest with the public, they would let them know that formula powder is not sterile and a worryingly large percentage of formula is contaminated with bacteria.

I wonder how they would word that on a can of formula?

The only way formula will ever be produced and sold in an ethical way is if it is completely taken out of the hands of business (it's the same with medicines), if not then it will always be under commercial pressures, and no matter what legislation is bought in, the business producing it will find a way to market it's product.

Kiskidee, it does say that on my box of formula, "Powdered baby milk formulas are not sterile ...."

do they say the rest re bacteria? Is is written in the same sort of place and lettering as say 'closer to breastmilk'?

have a read of this and you might understand why formula marketing and promotion is supposed to be banned, and why Nestle (whom many are boycotting) are the biggest baby-killers of all.

And if you think that's a harsh comment, you should see exactly what they've been up to in the Phillippines by surfing the site I've just linked to.

Everything Tiktok says is absolutely spot on.

i have more knowledge about breastfeeding and formula feeding now, which is ironic and a bit sad as i have finished my family and my youngest is 3 this summer. when i 'chose' to formula feed i did not make an informed choice becasue i did not have enough information about either method of feeding.

subliminally, the closer to breastmilk message must have got to me!

can i recommend anyone who has an interest in this topic,who has not read 'the politics of breastfeeding' to read it? and boycott nestle too..!

hazeyjane, that's interesting....which brand is that? And what do they say about preparation?

No they don't, but then i'm not sure that it would be right to cover the box with all the risks, like a fag packet.

That doesn't meant to say thet it should say closer to breastmilk or any of the other claims made on some of the packets either.

The only thing that should be on the packet is instructions on how to make it up.

Like I say formula shouldn't be in the hands of business at all.