New research suggests that women are being exposed to misleading messages about formula milk, through clever advertising which exploits a loophole in UK law.

A MORI survey of 1,000 new mothers and pregnant women published today by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF UK) and the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) suggests that manufacturers are finding ways around regulations banning the promotion of infant formula for babies.  The ban was introduced in the UK in 1995 in recognition of the importance of breastfeeding.

In summary, the findings revealed that:

• The majority of women (60%) believed they had seen infant formula advertising even though it’s been banned for ten years
• Around a third said the advertising gave the impression that infant formula milk was ‘as good as’ or ‘better than’ breastmilk
• Nearly one in five mothers (17%) who...
  
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