UAE's Ministry of Health took urgent measures to stop the circulation of certain brands of artificial formula after they were found to be contaminated by bacteria that causes botulism - a deadly condition that could lead to paralysis in babies, said a report.

The ministry sent a warning to Bee’ah and stakeholders, the Ministry of Environment and Water, the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, and the Department of Food and Health at Dubai Municipality.

Dr Hessa Khalfan Al Ghazal, the director of the Executive Committee for the Sharjah Baby Friendly Emirate Campaign, issued a strong plea to all mothers to treat this as a life-and-death matter for their babies.

“It is our duty to ensure the safety and well-being of our children. This contamination only re-enforces the risks of giving babies artificial formula, and is further motivation for mothers to exclusively breastfeed for the first six months and continue breastfeeding with supplementary foods for two years, as recommended by the WHO and Unicef,” said Dr Al Ghazal.

A thorough investigation is currently underway as UAE authorities attempt to ascertain the exact 'Ground Zero' or source of the contamination, said the report.

The campaign is distributing educational pamphlets and posters to guide non-breastfeeding mothers in the “Safe Preparation of Artificial Milk”, to lessen the health risks associated with feeding children formula.

The distribution will cover all health facilities, nurseries and workplaces that are registered with the campaign throughout Sharjah. - TradeArabia News Service