Traces of Melamine in U.S. Infant Formula

UNDATED (AP) -Federal regulators say traces of the industrial chemical melamine have been detected in samples of top-selling U.S. infant formula. But the government insists the products are safe. The Food and Drug Administration said last month it was unable to identify any melamine exposure level as safe for infants. But a top official now says it would be a “dangerous overreaction” for parents to stop feeding infant formula to babies who depend on it. The head of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Dr. Stephen Sundlof, says the levels are “extremely low.“ The FDA and other experts say the contamination in U.S.-made formula occurred during the manufacturing process, rather than intentionally. In China, melamine has been found in infant formula in far larger concentrations. Tainted Chinese formulas have been blamed for killing at least three babies and making at least 50,000 others ill.