| Organic Infant Formula Ingredients MAY be Processed With Toxic Chemical Alleges Cornucopia Institute |
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| by Charles Stuart Platkin | |
| Tuesday, 15 April 2008 | |
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I must say when I read this I was truly disappointed; however, it does make some sense. Is adding these algae organic? If not, it certainly shouldn’t be added to these products. Also, The Cornucopia Institute has a point --- is there really research that says this supplementation works? Last week or so I asked Marian L. Neuhouser, PhD RD a researcher from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and here is what she said: “I'm well aware of the plethora of food products that are now purported to contain EPA and DHA. I think this may be one of those situations where the cart is well before the horse. It is quite clear that EPA and DHA are very important to human nutrition (it is likely that a DRI/RDA will be advised in the not too distant future). However, what is not clear and for which there is insufficient evidence is whether alternate sources of EPA/DHA can provide the same health benefits as sources directly from from cold water, oily fish. Those are the studies that need to be done before products and additives are marketed to consumers. I was able to find a few articles in biochemistry journals documenting the presence of EPA and DHA in marine algae. However, I know of no studies where fish sources and algae sources were compared for efficacy in a double-blind placebo controlled trial (even in animals). Such evidence would support algae sources as a reasonable substitute for fish sources. Until then, I think one can only state that despite the fact that marine algae is being added to numerous food products as a means to supplement the foods with EPA/DHA (since juices and other foods do not naturally contain these fatty acids), there is insufficient evidence to conclude that consuming foods with these supplements is a substitute to consuming dark, oily fish and that the health benefits will be comparable.” (Source: The Cornucopia Institute) The Cornucopia Institute has filed a legal complaint with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) demanding that the agency enforce the organic regulations prohibiting toxic solvents from being used in the production of organic food. Cornucopia, a nonprofit food and farm policy research group, found that baby formula and other food manufacturers are using hexane-extracted omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids (DHA/ARA) derived from algae and soil fungus. Perhaps more startling, through a Freedom of Information request at the FDA, Cornucopia found algal- and fungal-based DHA/ARA have been linked to serious side effects such as virulent diarrhea and vomiting in infants consuming infant formula, many of whom required medical treatment and hospitalization. "The federal organic regulations very clearly prohibit these oils in organic foods. What we're seeing is the latest in a long string of USDA actions blatantly catering to industry interests at the expense of consumer safety," said Mark Kastel, Codirector of the Wisconsin-based Cornucopia Institute. "USDA officials are simply allowing these companies to freely break the organic rules in their pursuit of profit." Organic products with the prohibited fatty acid supplements include Horizon Organic milk with DHA and organic infant formulas, including Similac Organic, Earth's Best, and Bright Beginnings Organic. Martek Biosciences Corporation produces these DHA and ARA supplements. They are extracted from fermented algae and soil fungus with the use of a highly explosive neurotoxic petrochemical solvent, hexane. The National Organic Program strictly prohibits its use in the processing of organic foods and ingredients. "Only a change in the regulations would make these oils legal in organic foods, and a regulation change requires citizen input," said David Cox, a lawyer with the Columbus, Ohio law firm of Lane, Alton, and Horst. The addition of DHA and ARA to organic infant formula is especially troublesome considering that they are linked to serious illness in some infants. "From our FDA request, we discovered that scores of parents have notified the FDA that their infants experienced symptoms such as serious cases of diarrhea, vomiting, and extreme gassiness from consuming DHA/ARA formula. These symptoms commonly disappeared as soon as the infants were given regular formula without these supplements," said Charlotte Vallaeys, author of Cornucopia's comprehensive report Replacing Mother - Imitating Human Breast Milk in the Laboratory. Bookmark:            Trackback(0)
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