Experts say there can be long-term health consequences for babies and infants who consume too much sugar at a young age.

Experts say there can be long-term health consequences for babies and infants who consume too much sugar at a young age.

In Switzerland, the label of Nestlé’s Cerelac baby cereal says it contains “no added sugar.” But in Senegal and South Africa, the same product has 6 grams of added sugar per serving, according to a recent Public Eye investigation. And in the Philippines, one serving of a version of the Cerelac cereal for babies 1 to 6 months old contains a whopping 7.3 grams of added sugar, the equivalent of almost two teaspoons.

This “double standard” for how Nestlé creates and markets its popular baby food brands around the world was alleged in a report from Public Eye, an independent nonpartisan Swiss-based investigative organization, and International Baby Food Action Network.

The groups allege that Nestlé adds sugars and honey to some of its baby cereal and formula in lower-income countries, while products sold in Europe and other countries are advertised with “no added sugars.” The disparities uncovered in the report, which was published in the BMJ in April, has raised alarms among global health experts.

  • @[email protected]English
    19•6 months ago

    There was a great John Oliver episode about how Cigarettes are sold in African and South Asian countries. Any effort to regulate the market, like introducing warning labels, limiting tobacco ads, or even just disallowing the sale of individual cigarettes in front of schools, was immediately met with huge backlashes by big tobacco.

    If your countries GDP is 5 Billion US-D and Phil Morris has a turnover of 80 Billions US-D plus the lobbying power to have the US or EU threaten sanctions against that country, it is pretty darn difficult to provide the same level of consumer protection laws.

    Don’t blame the countries that are on the short end of neocolonialism, when your government is complicit in it.

    • NoIWontPickAName
      -6•6 months ago

      Incorrect.

      You blame everyone involved in the bad things they are doing and do your best to hold them responsible.

      • @[email protected]English
        8•6 months ago

        You can only hold people responsible for things they actually have the power to decide on. But if they tried and they are pressured not to change something then the blame lies solely with the people that pressure them.

        • NoIWontPickAName
          1•6 months ago

          If I pressure you to kill your child or yourself and you choose to kill your child, do you bear no responsibility?

        • NoIWontPickAName
          -2•6 months ago

          Everyone has the choice not to do something, even if their only other choice is death.

          You wouldn’t accept that reasoning for other causes, you would say they shouldn’t support it at all.

          This is no different than the Israelis trying to blame everything they are doing on hummus.

          You pulled the trigger, you are responsible.

          Hell, you spray the graffiti protesting against something, you are still responsible.

          You can’t just pretend someone else is making you do something.

          It takes all the integrity out of what you are doing.

          It’s like these kids who are catching a record and getting charged.

          Should they be charged? I don’t think so. Maybe the ones who were supposedly holding a janitor against their will, I haven’t seen anything proving that yet though so…

          The impressiveness of protest is people standing together and saying this is wrong and we are willing to do this to affect change.

          If there’s no consequence, it’s no where near as impressive.

          If you are trying to show people how important your cause is, German shepherds and water cannons, show dedication.

          Immediately begging to get your record cleared, shows you don’t, to me at least anyway.

          If you aren’t willing to deal with the consequences, which is perfectly reasonable, don’t let it get to that part, it shows weakness.

          Just walk away at that part so they don’t get the pr win.

          • @ABCDEEnglish
            3•6 months ago

            Everyone has the choice not to do something, even if their only other choice is death.

            This is as far as I got.

          • @[email protected]English
            2•6 months ago

            These are completely different and not even remotely comparable situations.

            But to see the only similarity to Israels genocide: The worst criminals are sitting on their desks and organize in the background. They must be held accountable too. And in the context of trade agreements and consumer protection in African countries those criminals are the western institutions and lobby groups.