Abbott sued over its marketing of potentially harmful toddler milk

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Aol/CBS News

Updated January 15, 2025 at 7:36 PM


A year after the American Academy of Pediatrics flagged what it described as "questionable marketing practices" by makers of formulas for older infants and toddlers, Abbott Laboratories is being sued over how it pitches such products. Abbott, a health care products conglomerate based in Illinois, is misleading parents and other caregivers about the nutritional value of its sugar-laden toddler milks, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) against the maker of Similac formulas.

Marketed for consumption by children ages 12 to 36 months, toddler milk is portrayed as the next step for little ones after they have outgrown infant formulas approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Yet unlike baby formula, the toddler milk products are not regulated by the FDA and are potentially harmful, according to PHAI, a nonprofit legal research center located at Northeastern University School of Law.

Sales of toddler milk nationwide have averaged more than $500 million a year, according to PHAI's suit, filed in U.S. district court for the Northern District of Illinois.

"More than just unnecessary, toddler milk products can actually be harmful to a child's nutritional health," said George Fuchs, a medical doctor and professor of pediatric gastroenterology at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. "The added sugars can increase a toddler's preference for sweetened foods, contributing to obesity and other health risks throughout their lives," noted Fuchs, who led the AAP report on toddler milks.

Read more: https://www.aol.com/abbott-accused-deceiving-parents-potentially-220414221.html

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Link to PHAI NEWS RELEASE - PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCACY INSTITUTE (PHAI) FILES CLASS ACTION AGAINST ABBOTT LABORATORIES OVER MARKETING OF "TODDLER MILK"

[Lovie777]

1. They sorta kinda protect the....

child that’s still in the womb and once born fuck them.

[LeftInTX]

5. It's the parents who purchase the products who fall for it. Toddlers don't need "kiddie formula" or "Ensure for kids"

It's not good marketing. Pediatricians don't recommend it. It is useful for emergencies, but that's it. (Good idea to bring it on a camping trip etc, but that's about it)
Too many parents are loading their kids up on "protein drinks" because they're marketed to kids.

It's the new Lunchables.

BTW: Infant formula is a life or death necessity for infants who are not breastfed. Cows milk can kill an infant. However, toddlers should be on solid food and regular milk. Kids don't need to be pumped up with "Ensure".

[Irish_Dem]

2. The company just has to make a large donation to Trump and the suit will be dropped.

[travelingthrulife]

3. It is ridiculous that parents can't feed their children without special formulas.

How paralyzed people were when there was an infant formula shortage. Would they let their kids die if it wasn't available?

[BumRushDaShow]

4. For some

unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately if they really wanted a child) there are many many more premies who are being born and who actually survive. But many in certain cases, do so having special needs (whether dietary or otherwise).

For women unable to breastfeed, having the availability of a nutrient-rich formula has been helpful in order to increase the chances of having a healthier child.

In the past, the child died and that was it.

[LeftInTX]

6. There's a huge difference between infant formula and "Ensure for kids"

Toddlers should be drinking real milk, soy milk or breast milk along with solid food.

Infant formula is for infants 0-12 months. Real milk can kill an infant. It's not gonna kill a toddler as long as they don't have milk allergies etc.