The milk is tainted or contaminated with the toxic chemical melamine. Melamine is a clear to whitish substance that normally exists in crystal form. Ordinarily, this dreaded chemical called "Melamine" is used in combination with formaldehyde (another chemical) to produce a resin used in several products ranging from white boards to counter tops. Melamine also has a high nitrogen content that can fool quality tests for protein content in milk.
If consumed by humans, especially by small children, melamine can cause kidney stones and other potentially fatal complications.
Today the scare of the tainted (contaminated) milk is spreading fast and most Countries are taking serious steps to avoid the milk getting to its shores! Most countries have banned the import of Chinese dairy products.
The dreaded chemical (melamine) that makes the formulas "tainted" has also been found in ice cream! Now this is really scary considering that ice cream is consumed by most humans today.
About 20% of the dairy companies tested in China had sold products tainted with melamine. Suppliers to the companies are thought to have added the banned chemical, normally used in plastics, to watered-down milk to make it appear higher in protein.
You can read more stories by clicking the links below:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-09-17-china-babyformula_N.htm
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2008/09/200892435458424120.html
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/09/25/china.milk/index.html---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some weeks ago in Nigeria, reports had it that there was fake "SMA" baby formula in circulation in the Nigerian markets! The question now is WHY ON EARTH will a human being release fake/adulterated products into the market for others to buy?
Please if you are a nursing mother out there, as much as possible let your baby feed on breast milk exclusively for the first six months. Please don't say it is impossible. It is very possible, particularly if you set your mind to it. I am a working mother and I fed my babies exclusively on breast milk for the first 6 months. How was I able to achieve this? Well, I was expressing the breast milk! It was tough though, but I was determined to give the best to my kids.