Ministry To Issue Guidelines On Formula Milk For Older Babies

PUTRAJAYA, Aug 29 (Bernama) -- The Health Ministry will issue guidelines on the sale of formula milk for children aged more than a year.
The move was to ensure they met the needs of growing children, especially in terms of the vitamin, mineral and protein content, said Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek, Tuesday.
He said the ministry would discuss the matter with formula milk producers next month to get their views.
"The guidelines are based on the World Health Organisation's standard. They are important because some children totally depend on baby formula when in fact, a child aged above one year needs more than this," he told reporters after launching the ministry's Merdeka Month celebrations here.
He said the move did not mean that baby formula contents were not according to the children's needs, but they might not be sufficient.
"That is why we want to meet with the producers to tell them what our requirements are," he added.
Anyway, no baby formulas could replace breast milk, he said.
On the hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), Dr Chua said the disease in Sarawak differed from the one in the Malaysian peninsula.
"In the peninsula, it is an endemic disease which means it is always there and normally, it does not cause death, but in Sarawak, for some unknown reasons, it can result in death."
He said he had discussed the matter with Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr George Chan and the ministry might cooperate with the state government in studying the uniqueness of the disease in the state.