HHS Breastfeeding Promotion Campaign

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HHS Breastfeeding Response

In response to questions about the Office on Women's Health / Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) campaign to promote breast-feeding, the International Formula Council has developed the following statement:

"The International Formula Council (IFC)* and each of its members strongly support the promotion of breast-feeding and are pleased that, through a concerted effort by the health community, government and industry, recorded breast-feeding rates in the U.S. are the highest they have been in over 30 years.

"The IFC and its member companies support positive, accurate promotion of breast-feeding including additional efforts to foster high breast-feeding rates.

"The IFC remains concerned that the images of visibly pregnant women log-rolling and bull-riding in the HHS ads are unnecessarily alarming and misrepresentative; however, we are encouraged that the campaign content reflects the latest science.

"The IFC underscores the statement made by the U.S. government's Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): "HHS strongly recommends and encourages women to breast-feed exclusively for six months. But it understands that there are mothers who are unable to breast-feed or shouldn't breast-feed. Infant formula is safe and nutritious for those women who are not able to breast-feed. In fact, the federal government is a large distributor of infant formula through various programs, such as the Women, Infants, and Children program." Further, the IFC supports the American Academy of Pediatrics' position, which states that for those mothers who cannot or choose not to breast-feed, iron-fortified infant formula is recommended.

"We strongly encourage HHS to carefully monitor reactions to the ads and measure the impact on mothers. Many barriers to breast-feeding exist that prevent mothers from exclusively breast-feeding their infant for six months, and the feeding decision itself can be highly emotional and personal. The government, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the infant formula industry support breast-feeding as the preferred method of infant feeding, and also encourage parents to consult with their health care professional in making this decision.

"Research shows that mothers know breast-feeding is best, and that positive support is what works to increase breast-feeding. The IFC and infant formula companies are committed to working with HHS and other interested parties to develop and communicate positive, factual information about the importance of breast-feeding, as well as address critically important issues such as how to overcome the true barriers to breast-feeding."

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*IFC is an international association of manufacturers and marketers of formulated nutrition products (e.g., infant formulas and adult nutritionals) whose members are predominantly based in North America. IFC members include all major U.S. manufacturers: Mead Johnson Nutrition; Nestlé Infant Nutrition; Abbott Nutrition; Solus Products; and Wyeth Nutrition.