UNICEF, WHO advocate end to promotion of infant formula

By Asmau Ahmad

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have called for an end to the promotion of infant formula by producers and health workers.

In a joint statement made available to newsmen, the organisations decried the adoption of instant formula over breastfeeding by nursing mothers.

The statement was based on a report which showed that over one-third of Nigerian pregnant women said they received a recommendation to formula feed their children through a health professional.

“This report shows very clearly that formula milk marketing remains unacceptably pervasive, misleading and aggressive,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Regulations on exploitative marketing must be urgently adopted and enforced to protect children’s health.”

As a result, the WHO and UNICEF called on the government, health workers, and the baby food industry to end exploitative formula milk marketing and fully implement and abide by the International Code requirements.

Such Code includes passing, monitoring and enforcing laws to prevent the promotion of formula milk and prohibiting nutrition and health claims made by the formula milk industry.

The agencies also called for “banning of health workers from accepting sponsorship from companies that market foods for infants and young children for scholarships, awards, grants, meetings, or events.”