I used to be a registered childminder when I lived in the UK. I did care for a toddler who used to have the soy based milks and he had bowed legs. The Doctors put it down to the soy milk. he had cows milk allergies. It isn’t recommended for babies because of the estrogen link apparently.
I do know that he looked like he had rickets literally. He was also very hyper and a handful.
After consideration when having my younger babies I persevered with breast feeding because I felt really that that was better than anything they can formulate really and I don’t think babies can ever be allergic to breast milk. of course you adopted janet so this would have been considerably difficult (not impossible) but difficult---so if they were allergic to cow’s milk--there was obviously no other option. Though, I am wondering... is goat’s milk different to cows? My sister was raised on Carnation evaporated milk let down with water!!! LOL!!! My mother was telling me the other day---and she was FAT! Much shorter than me too--she blames my Mother of course...Should see her baby pics.
POSTED: 3:27 p.m. EDT October 7, 2002
Does soy-based infant formula lead to attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder? There’s much speculation -- but little science -- on this association.
A new study led by researchers at the University of California at Irvine found that a mineral found in high levels in soy milk appears to be linked to behavioral problems. Their findings are published in the August issue of
NeuroToxicology.
The researchers conducted a study on rats and found that the mineral manganese may cause behavioral problems if consumed in high doses. Exposure to the mineral resulted in lowered levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which plays a key role in suppressing the behavior seen in cases of ADHD.
"Manganese is a mineral that’s essential for life. But past studies on manganese miners have shown that it causes a number of behavioral problems," said Francis Crinella, professor of pediatrics at the university. "Soy milk formula contains about 80 times the levels of manganese found in breast milk, posing the risk that infants could receive too much manganese in the first weeks of life.
"While we’ve shown that behavioral problems can result from manganese exposure, we don’t know if these problems are permanent, or result in ADHD among humans," Crinella said.
Crinella and his colleagues found that at lower doses, manganese did not result in any significant changes in behavior in the infant rats. However, at the experiment’s highest doses of manganese, researchers saw that the rats were much more inconsistent at completing tasks than they were at lower doses.
"While this study shows a definite correlation between high manganese and lower dopamine levels, we still need to see whether high manganese doses result in permanent behavioral problems, including ADHD," Crinella said. "While soy milk by itself is not harmful, manganese can be removed through a laborious and expensive process. Only more scientific research will determine whether or not removing manganese would provide any prevention of ADHD in infants."
Manganese is in the Earth’s crust and is found in nearly all cereals and grains, including soy. It is a mineral important for enabling cells to obtain energy. High doses of industrial exposure have been known to produce a syndrome called "manganism," marked by tremors similar to Parkinson’s disease and spasmodic, often violent, behavior.
Symptoms
Key Findings