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At the seventh edition of the annual Clinical Updates in Indian Breastfeeding Practice, organised by Dr. Mehta’s Hospitals and Happy Mom healthcare, practitioners discussed national and international ethical and legal guidelines on lactation management.
Hyderabad-based paediatrician Sivaranjani Santhosh, who reshaped India’s ORS standards through her eight-year campaign, joined the conference online, and spoke about ethical healthcare, the trend of surrogate marketing, and ways to end it.
She pointed out how some paediatricians and gynaecologists were creating reels on social media on prebiotics sponsored by baby milk formula brands. “Surrogate marketing is the new trend. These brands are finding every possible loophole in the system to market their products aggressively, even paying mom influencers to make promotional videos.”
She added that practitioners who were working to prevent such practices must unite to find ways to stop them. “There are situations where a mother is unable to nurse her baby, and she has to choose the right formula milk. But those brands that make mothers who wish to breastfeed believe that it is okay not to make the best effort to breastfeed, because of such videos, are what we need to fight against,” she said.
Published – November 09, 2025 11:58 pm IST
