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Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Liz Waid.
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And I'm Mike Proctor. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
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They were the top-selling milk powder company in China. But on September 10, 2008, the Chinese company Sanlu admitted it had done a terrible thing. It had sold dried milk powder containing a chemical called melamine. This milk powder was food for many babies. Milk powder is one way people feed babies. They mix the dried milk powder with water. It usually includes vitamins and minerals - healthy substances that all people need to be healthy. Many milk powder companies try to make their powder the most healthy, the most like a mother's breast milk. Adding the melamine chemical to the milk made the milk powder APPEAR to have more protein - an important substance for growing babies. However, instead of containing the healthy protein, the powder contained a dangerous chemical that made thousands of babies sick.
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In early September some areas of China had already experienced groups of sick babies. The melamine in the powder caused many problems in the babies' kidneys. By December, the World Health Organization reported that almost 52,000 babies and young children had been put in the hospital because of the polluted milk powder. Six babies had died.
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The news of this incident traveled around the world. Many parents feed their babies with some form of milk powder. It is a popular substitute for breast milk. However, this event caused many parents and doctors to question milk powder. This is especially because there is a perfect food for babies. The World Health Organization urges parents to feed their babies breast milk. The group says that babies should receive only breast milk until they are six months old. Then, babies should receive safe foods while also breastfeeding up to two years old or after. The WHO says:
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"Feeding a baby breast milk ONLY from birth is possible for most women who choose to do so... Feeding a baby only breast milk as often and as long as the baby wants will cause the mother to produce more than enough milk."
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Many people already know that breast milk is the best food for a baby - even from the minute he is born. When a baby is born, his mother's body begins to produce a special form of milk called colostrum. This substance is different from the milk people usually think of. But, it is just as important. Many people around the world believe colostrum is not as good as normal milk. They believe it is dirty, and they may not feed it to their baby. However, experts say colostrum is an important part of a newborn baby's diet. Feeding a baby colostrum gives him good food. But it also encourages the breastfeeding process.
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Continuing breastfeeding after birth has many good effects. Breast milk is always clean. Parents must mix milk powders with water. But water is not always clean. Unclean water can carry many dangerous organisms that are deadly to babies.
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Breast milk is also able to save lives. That is because breast milk carries antibodies from the mother. These antibodies protect the baby from many sicknesses that can kill children - like diarrhoea and pneumonia.
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In fact, Save the Children UK says that improving breastfeeding rates around the world could save almost 4,000 children EVERY DAY! Still, the WHO reports that only 39 percent of children globally receive only breast milk for four months. Many fewer receive it for the six months they suggest. So, if breast milk is the perfect food for babies, why do many parents choose to feed their babies with milk made from powder?
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One reason is that breastfeeding can often be painful or difficult at first. It can take many weeks to become good at it. Many women do not get the information they need to become successful at breastfeeding. They may stop because they feel defeated. They may feel like it is too much work.
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Jasmine Whitbread is a worker with Save the Children. She suggests that milk powder companies also may have some responsibility for reduced breastfeeding rates. In 1981 the World Health Assembly agreed on a code - a set of rules for all the world. These rules said that breastfeeding substitutes like milk powder should be available when parents needed them. But companies should not try to persuade parents to use them.
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But some milk powder companies continue to try to persuade parents to use their products. Save the Children says that milk powder companies in the UK spend ten times more money selling their products than the government spends encouraging breastfeeding! Save the Children tries to encourage milk powder companies to "put children before their profits." Ms Whitbread said that "all food companies, governments, the WHO and UNICEF must put their full weight behind the code."
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Milk powder feeding also continues because parents believe it is just as good, or even better, for a baby than breast milk. The problem is, this is not true. The Le Leche League International is a group that supports breastfeeding. They provide resources and information for breastfeeding mothers. Yanhong Wheeler is a representative for the Le Leche League in Beijing. She is also a Chinese writer. She says:
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"It is a common belief in China that milk powder is more healthy than breast milk. That is a total lie."
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Many women believe they do not have enough milk to feed their babies, so they turn to milk powder. But Ms Wheeler says:
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"99 out of 100 women have enough milk to feed their babies. Less than one percent of mothers have problems... We are mammals. All mammals feed their babies with their own milk. There are more than 400 nutrients in breast milk that are good for babies. No milk powder can copy them. But there is no melamine."
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