childhood health Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Digital Baby Formula Campaigns Undermine Breastfeeding & Put Child Health at Risk

The AHA! Team — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 05:21:37 +0000

SciDev.Net via News-Medical – Breastfeeding saves lives. It is one of the most powerful, proven investments in child survival, development and health. A global resolution on digital marketing of breast milk substitutes must be rigorously enforced, writes Afshan Khan, Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and coordinator of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement. Breastfeeding saves lives. It is one of the most powerful, proven investments in child survival, development and health. And yet its practice is being undermined — not by science, but by sophisticated and often misleading digital marketing. More than half of new parents are exposed to online promotions for formula milk, often disguised as medical advice or peer support. In some countries, that figure rises to over 90 per cent. What these aggressive campaigns for breast milk substitutes (BMS) do not tell parents is that breast milk is essential for building a child’s immune system — something formula simply cannot do. They also ignore a critical risk: formula must be mixed with water, and in communities without safe water access, this often leads to illness and infection in young children. Digital marketing campaigns are targeting parents at their most vulnerable — when they are seeking guidance, not manipulation. These tactics distort choice by drowning out trusted, evidence-based information with biased, misleading promotion. This not only undermines public health principles and a decade of progress in breastfeeding promotion, it also puts the health and future of entire generations at risk. These digital marketing tactics contravene a longstanding global framework. The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1981, was designed to protect families from precisely this kind of exploitation. Yet, as a 2022 WHO and UNICEF report revealed, formula companies now spend up to 70 per cent of their marketing budgets on digital tools — from apps and virtual baby clubs to paid influencers and online forums — harvesting personal data and pushing targeted promotions in breach of the Code. In response, WHO member states adopted a landmark resolution at the World Health Assembly in Geneva this week (26 May) to curb digital marketing of breast milk substitutes and protect parents’ right to accurate, transparent information. Led by Mexico and Brazil and supported by nine country members of the UN-hosted Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement, this resolution is a critical step forward. The science on breast milk is long proven. By providing essential nutrition, strengthening immunity, and supporting cognitive development, breastfeeding can radically change the health and economic outcomes of mother and child. Scaling up breastfeeding globally could prevent 823,000 unnecessary child deaths and 20,000 deaths from breast cancer every year. It has been linked to a 20 per cent reduction in the risk of physical and cognitive stunting. These recognised advantages of breast milk had begun to take hold. Since 2012, rates of exclusive breastfeeding have risen from 37 per cent to nearly 48 per cent in 2021. Three quarters of these children live in low- and lower-middle-income countries, which represents important, tangible progress. But digital platforms spreading misleading formula marketing are cutting into this progress, with inadequate breastfeeding responsible for 16 per cent of child deaths each year. The new resolution gives countries a new framework to take action. Translating this into results will, however, require further coordinated efforts across sectors. First, stronger enforcement is essential. Countries need robust monitoring and accountability systems to track violations and respond effectively. Vietnam offers a promising model: with support from the SUN Civil Society Alliance, it has launched the AI-powered Virtual Violations Detector, which identifies breaches of the Code in real time and alerts regulators, enabling swift action and targeted advocacy. Another step will be to align fragmented policies across civil society and health systems. Harmful breast milk substitute marketing flourishes in disconnected systems, such as when health workers lack guidance, civil society is under-resourced, or tech platforms are unregulated. To close these gaps, governments must adopt an approach that brings all actors to the table. Finally, it is equally important to support positive campaigns that champion breastfeeding. It is not enough to restrict harmful marketing — parents need support and encouragement to make informed decisions. El Salvador has shown through its “Nacer con Cariño” (Born with Love) national policy how the promotion of breastfeeding can be integrated into prenatal and delivery care. Since its implementation in 2021, 69,000 babies have been born under this respectful care model and, thanks to the training of more than 1,000 breastfeeding counsellors supported by the SUN Movement, the country has far surpassed the global exclusive breastfeeding targets of 50 per cent for 2025, reaching a rate of more than 65 per cent. Informed parents make empowered choices, and empowered choices give every child the best possible start in life. Together with the resolution on the extension of the World Health Assembly nutrition targets, and the commitments made by countries at the Nutrition for Growth Summit in Paris earlier this year, we have a renewed mandate to act. Let’s make sure we use it and ensure this resolution moves from Geneva into meaningful action and change online and on the ground. Afshan Khan is Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and coordinator of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement. Source: SciDev.Net To read the original article click here.

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The Hidden Cost of Entrepreneurship on Parenting

The AHA! Team — Wed, 02 Jul 2025 05:05:15 +0000

Abigail Klein Leichman via Israel21c – New survey reveals CEOs have it hard, CTOs find the balance, and surprise, surprise, it’s the toughest of all for women. Racheli Kogan is a partner at the Symbol VC fund. Her husband, Ohad Bobrov of Palo Alto Networks, is a serial entrepreneur with several successful exits to his credit. This Israeli power couple has two daughters, ages 10 and eight. “In the first years of Ohad’s entrepreneurship, we definitely had a lot of difficulties and disagreements” regarding parenting, Kogan tells ISRAEL21c. Kogan surveyed 98 founder parents Curious about how other entrepreneurs balance family responsibilities, especially in wartime, Kogan surveyed 98 founder parents – men and women, CEOs and non CEOs, early and later stages – to gain a nuanced understanding of the intersection of parenting and entrepreneurship. “Founders sometimes talk about their startup as if it were a child they are raising, which is not surprising given the intensity involved,” says Kogan, who always worked outside the home and currently puts in eight to nine hours per day. “We also know that for many, this intensity is a cause for worry when thinking about raising actual children – will they have time? Will they be able to balance the two? How do others do it?” The survey emerged from research at Symbol on women’s entrepreneurship. “I’ve been busy for some time trying to understand why there are so few women entrepreneurs and how we can increase this number. We saw that many of their stories were intertwined with family considerations,” Kogan says. “So we wanted to understand more deeply the experience of male entrepreneurs who are fathers. We were also very interested in what differences there are between female entrepreneurs who are mothers and male entrepreneurs who are fathers. I couldn’t find any data on this topic — absolutely zero. This was surprising specially in Israel, a country where parenting is such a central thing.” Some of the questions Kogan sought to answer: Is working as an entrepreneur really the most demanding job that requires more hours than any other senior position? Do you improve over time in your ability to juggle between the children and the startup? To what extent is parenting really affected, both in subjective feelings and in calculating the number of hours you spend with the children? “We felt that providing data and detailed information about what is actually happening might help those who are considering embarking on the entrepreneurial path but are concerned that it is difficult to combine it with a family,” says Kogan. She hoped this data “would also provide some normalization for the entrepreneurs who filled out the survey.” CTOs vs. CEOs Perhaps the clearest message from the survey results is that chief technology officers (CTOs) seem to have more balanced lives than do chief executive officers (CEOs). CTOs are more satisfied with their work-life balance than CEOs, with 43% saying that they were very or extremely satisfied compared to 32% of CEOs. No CTOs reported that their work-life balance juggle had gotten worse since founding their startup, compared to 18% of CEOs who felt that way. CTOs are more likely to say that their time with kids stayed the same or increased since becoming a founder (43% vs. 19% for CEOs). CTOs (57%) are more likely than CEOs (45%) to pick up their children from daycare or school at least twice a week. Picking up from gan & school While most founders of both sexes say they make sure to attend their kids’ events (64% get to almost every event; 30% go to around half), 51% of CEOs go to almost every event compared with 71% of CTOs. Whereas 43% of CEO who are parents cited guilt feelings as a challenge, only 29% of CTOs did so. One-third of CTOs reported very little impact of work pressure on their relationship with the kids and none reported that they experienced an extreme impact. In contrast, 25% of CEOs cited the highest level of impact. Men vs. women “There are definitely differences by gender,” says Kogan. “Women are more likely to report feeling guilt about their dual role and pick up the children from school/gan significantly more often. Men are more likely than women to try and avoid late nights and business travel and to worry about time management with their children. Perhaps this is a different version of guilt.” Business trips & late nights While most founders are part of the pickup schedule for their kids, it varies by gender: 60% of female founders pick their kids up at least twice a week vs. 45% of male founders; and 39% of female founders vs. 9% of male founders pick up from school three times a week. Only 14% of females and 23% of males don’t pick up their kids at all, though this may be because their children are older. Women are more likely to prioritize work commitments than their male counterparts (25% of women vs. 4% of men). Among female founder parents, 61% cite guilt as their main challenge and time management as their second-place challenge (43%). For men, the greatest challenge is time management (63%) and tensions with partners is in second place with 41% (women cite this factor 29% of the time). Parent-founder challenges While 65% of male founders reported success in improving their ability to juggle work and family, only 29% of women felt they’d managed an improvement. Only 29% of respondents report dissatisfaction with their work-life balance. However, 36% of female respondents chose the lowest ratings on a five-point scale as compared to 26% of men. Male vs. female findings Kogan says the male vs. female finding that most surprised her was that although entrepreneurial mothers consider themselves “maximally committed to children and also maximally committed to the startup,” their answers revealed that “they would almost always give up things related to children and would not postpone work trips or meetings for things related to children, much more than men.” This might be due to the need many women have to prove their commitment to being a founder, Kogan speculates. Other key findings Founder parents of both sexes are more likely to report a decrease in time spent with their kids since becoming a founder (68%) vs. an increase in time spent (13%). Twenty percent report that their time with their kids didn’t change since becoming a founder. Earlier stage founders (pre seed and seed) are somewhat more likely to take late night calls and go on business trips (19% vs. 29%). The majority of respondents reported that the pressure of being a founder impacted their connection with their kids to some extent. Around 4% of both genders report an extreme negative impact on their relationship with their children and around 30% of each group reported a relatively low impact. Only 19% of respondents feel that they are able to mostly disconnect from work when they are with their kids. Most respondents – 76% – report that they are only able to disconnect a little or somewhat and 11% are not able to disconnect at all. Most respondents report an improvement in their ability to juggle startup and family life over time, with 61% saying it has either somewhat or significantly improved. For 20% there has been no improvement and another 15% report that their ability to juggle has gotten worse since founding their startup. Kogan’s takeaways “The data made me happy and pleasantly surprised to see that more than 50 percent of the entrepreneurs collect their children more than twice a week and also do not give up on significant events for the children,” says Kogan. At the same time, “there is broad agreement that the founder role is more demanding than other executive roles. This holds largely true across roles — CEO vs. CTO — and when analyzed by gender.” To read the original article click here.

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Tyson Foods Eliminates Toxic Synthetic Dyes Ahead of FDA Ban

The AHA! Team — Fri, 13 Jun 2025 05:10:35 +0000

Cassie B. via Natural News – The decision comes ahead of the FDA’s planned 2026 ban on six artificial dyes, signaling a growing industry shift toward cleaner ingredients. Tyson Foods will eliminate petroleum-based synthetic dyes from its products by the end of the month in a move praised by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a step to protect children from health risks like ADHD. The FDA plans to ban six artificial dyes by 2026, with Tyson already reformulating most retail products, including chicken nuggets, to remove them. Kennedy applauded Tyson’s move, urging other companies to follow, as part of the Trump administration’s push to phase out harmful food additives. The FDA is cracking down on synthetic dyes linked to childhood health issues, with Commissioner Marty Makary citing rising diabetes, obesity, and ADHD cases. PepsiCo and other companies are also removing artificial colors, signaling industry-wide change driven by consumer demand and regulatory pressure. In a major victory for public health, Tyson Foods announced it will remove petroleum-based synthetic dyes from its products by the end of May in a move that has been praised by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a critical step toward safeguarding children from harmful chemicals linked to ADHD, obesity, and other health risks. The decision comes ahead of the FDA’s planned 2026 ban on six artificial dyes, signaling a growing industry shift toward cleaner ingredients. A proactive response to health concerns During a May 5 earnings call, Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King revealed the company has been “proactively reformulating” its products to eliminate synthetic dyes, with most of its retail-branded items, including chicken nuggets, already free of the additives. None of Tyson’s school nutrition program offerings contain these dyes, aligning with Kennedy’s push for healthier food options for children. Kennedy, who has made food safety a cornerstone of his HHS agenda, applauded Tyson’s decision on social media: “I look forward to seeing more companies follow suit and put the health of Americans first. Together, we will make America Healthy Again.” His remarks underscore the Trump administration’s broader effort to phase out chemicals deemed hazardous by scientific studies. The FDA’s crackdown on harmful additives The FDA has targeted synthetic dyes due to mounting evidence linking them to neurobehavioral issues in children. In April, the agency announced plans to revoke authorization for Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B, while urging manufacturers to eliminate six others, including Red No. 40 and Yellow No. 5, by 2026. FDA Commissioner Marty Makary emphasized the urgency, stating, “We have a new epidemic of childhood diabetes, obesity, depression, and ADHD. Given the growing concerns of doctors and parents about the potential role of petroleum-based food dyes, we should not be taking risks and do everything possible to safeguard the health of our children.” A 2021 California EPA report reinforced these concerns, noting a rise in ADHD diagnoses from 6.1% to 10.2% over two decades, with artificial dyes identified as a contributing factor. While the FDA maintains that current dye levels in food are “safe,” Kennedy and health advocates argue that precautionary action is necessary to protect vulnerable populations. Industry momentum builds Tyson’s announcement follows similar commitments from PepsiCo, which pledged to remove artificial colors from Lay’s and Tostitos by year’s end. The swift industry response suggests companies are eager to avoid regulatory penalties while capitalizing on consumer demand for cleaner labels. Kennedy’s hands-on approach, including a March meeting with food executives, has accelerated the timeline for change. “They said it’s going to take us a while,” he told CBS in April. “And I said they all have to be out within two years.” Tyson’s early compliance positions it as a leader in the sector, though critics note the move may also preempt stricter enforcement. A healthier future for American families Tyson’s decision marks a turning point in the fight against toxic food additives, demonstrating how federal pressure and consumer awareness can drive meaningful reform. As Kennedy’s HHS continues to prioritize transparency and science-based policies, families may soon see a food supply free of the dyes long suspected of harming children’s health. Sources for this article include: TheEpochTimes.com FoxNews.com KATV.com To read the original article, click here

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