State leaders take action against toxic baby formula

If you’re tired of questionable additives in your baby’s bottle, good news: Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state leaders are as well.

During a press conference in Bartow, DeSantis and other state leaders condemned toxic filler in formula, introducing members of the Florida MAHA Commission and lauding their efforts to test “staples” like infant formula.

“What we just want is, basically, transparency and the truth, and we want people to be able to make the best decision for them — not necessarily what would be in the best decision of some, you know, manufacturer or something like that,” DeSantis said.

First Lady Casey DeSantis, a survivor of breast cancer and a mother of three, said “small, repeated toxins” can add up to consequences, particularly in what’s being fed to babies.

Baby formula contamination “affects the most vulnerable among us,” she said, noting that Friday’s action is just the first of many “major announcements” regarding toxic additives to food in the coming days and weeks.

Florida’s Department of Health tested 24 formulas for contaminants, with 16 of them having at least one heavy metal that exceeded federal standards, the First Lady said, evidencing “systemic problems” and showing the need for manufacturers to test for “harmful chemicals.”

“Of the 24 infant formulas tested, 16 of those formulas contained at least one, if not more, heavy metals that exceeded federal standards. Mercury was the most common detected above federal benchmarks in 16 formulas. Arsenic exceeded benchmarks in five formulas; cadmium, three; and lead, two.”

The First Lady said this initiative showed Florida’s willingness to help out the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Stork Speed operation, and called on other states to join the effort and be a “force multiplier.”

She also said that families in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program will now have more formula options covered by financial assistance, in the event people want to change, and urged them to check out ExposingFoodToxins.com to find out specifics about given products on the market.

Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, a father of three himself, noted that many families supplement with, or exclusively use, baby formula for nursing infants, and said neurological development could be harmed by the heavy metals found in formula.

“I wish I could say this was an isolated finding,” Ladapo said.

Lt. Gov. Jay Collins said a “medically-complex child” of his could only take formula, and noted that one of those identified in the state testing was one that his kid used.