Parents are filing lawsuits against manufacturers of baby formula products linked to infant injury and deaths. Studies have found that when babies are fed cow’s milk-based formula, the risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC, rises dramatically. Once diagnosed, the prognosis can be grim and even fatal. Many babies have died from this devastating illness. For those infants that survive, there could be surgeries and blood transfusions in their immediate future, along with long-term consequences that can affect their quality of life such as blindness, short bowel syndrome, and cerebral palsy.

Products marketed as safe for infants by Enfamil and Similac have cow’s milk as an ingredient. Manufacturers failed to properly label and warn the general public that cow’s milk-based products could significantly increase risk of death from NEC in infants, especially premature infants.