Should Human Milk Be Regulated?

Markets in human milk are booming. They take two main forms: informal markets—women giving or selling their milk peer-to-peer—, and formal markets—for-profit or non-profit organizations collecting, processing, and distributing donor milk to neonatal intensive care units and a few outpatients for a fee. The legal regime applicable to these human milk transactions is fragmented and unstable. The federal government does not define human milk as anything. The Food and Drug Administration has declined to regulate milk banks even though it oversees blood, cord, oocytes, semen, and stool banks. Only a handful of states have laws on the books pertaining to human milk. In light of the growing demand for human milk and public health professionals’ calls for government oversight due to fears of pathogen contamination, this Article asks whether human milk should be regulated more tightly and, if so, what types of legal reforms would be most desirable. It concludes that human milk should not be treated as a disembodied product under a food, drug, and tissue law paradigm, but rather as the product of a relationship between breastfeeders and breastfed babies. It is this relationship that is in urgent need of legal protections so that more parents can breastfeed their children and make extra milk available for others. Though the risks of contamination are real, they can be, and are, mitigated by milk banks, as well as by peer- to-peer donors and recipients. But many children who need donor milk do not obtain it either because it is unavailable or too expensive. Legal reforms should therefore focus on increasing the supply via robust breastfeeding and donor milk support, which in turn will make human milk accessible to all those who need it regardless of their socioeconomic status. This approach entails shifting from a single-minded focus on health and safety to considering the conditions of people who produce and donate milk and the health insurance market that often fails to cover it

When Judges Have Reasons Not to Give Reasons: A Comparative Law Approach

Influential theories of law have celebrated judicial reason-giving as furthering a host of democratic values, including judges’ accountability, citizens’ participation in djudication, and a more accurate and transparent decision-making process. This Article has two main purposes. First, it argues that although reason-giving is important, it is often in tension with other values of the judicial process, such as guidance, sincerity, and efficiency. Reason-giving must, therefore, be balanced against these competing values. In other words, judges sometimes have reasons not to give reasons. Second, contrary to common intuition, common law and civil law systems deal with this tension between reasons for and against reason-giving in increasingly similar ways. By combining theories of democratic legitimacy with empirical, doctrinal, and historical evidence of judges’ concrete reason-giving practices in the United States and Europe, the Article argues that rather than being in opposition, these two legal cultures are converging toward a common methodology. No longer can it be assumed that civil law judges and common law judges are on opposite ends of the spectrum

Food Identity

Food identities are typically ascribed either based on medical or social definitions or chosen by individuals. But they can also be expressive dimensions of other identity traits such as race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, age, body size, disability, and socio-economic status, among others. What role does the law play in supporting or undermining certain food identities? This Article makes two central contributions. First, it highlights that though U.S. law recognizes food identity as an interest to be protected in certain contexts, it does so in an unsystematized way, contributing to systemic deprivation and discrimination in relation to foodways. The current legal regime often places the needs of the agri-food industry over those of eaters, especially those who are otherwise marginalized. Second, it reflects on how this inchoate law of food identity could be evaluated and reformed. There are plausible claims that some food identities may be entitled constitutional protections under equality law, freedom of religion, and fundamental rights, but they are unlikely to succeed in the current environment. The Article concludes with a skeptical reflection on the concept o

Food Identity

Food identities are typically ascribed either based on medical or social definitions or chosen by individuals. But they can also be expressive dimensions of other identity traits such as race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, age, body size, disability, and socio-economic status, among others. What role does the law play in supporting or undermining certain food identities? This Article makes two central contributions. First, it highlights that though U.S. law recognizes food identity as an interest to be protected in certain contexts, it does so in an unsystematized way, contributing to systemic deprivation and discrimination in relation to foodways. The current legal regime often places the needs of the agri-food industry over those of eaters, especially those who are otherwise marginalized. Second, it reflects on how this inchoate law of food identity could be evaluated and reformed. There are plausible claims that some food identities may be entitled constitutional protections under equality law, freedom of religion, and fundamental rights, but they are unlikely to succeed in the current environment. The Article concludes with a skeptical reflection on the concept o

Inhibition of Galectin-3 Pathway Prevents Isoproterenol-Induced Left Ventricular Dysfunction and Fibrosis in Mice

Galectin-3 (Gal-3) is involved in inflammation, fibrogenesis, and cardiac remodeling. Previous evidence shows that Gal-3 interacts with aldosterone in promoting macrophage infiltration and vascular fibrosis and that Gal-3 genetic and pharmacological inhibition prevents remodeling in a pressure-overload animal model of heart failure. We aimed to explore the contribution of Gal-3 and aldosterone in mechanisms leading to heart failure in a murine model. Male mice with cardiac-specific hyperaldosteronism underwent isoproterenol subcutaneous injections, to be then randomized to receive placebo, a Gal-3 inhibitor (modified citrus pectin [MCP]), an aldosterone antagonist (potassium canrenoate), or MCP+canrenoate for 14 days. Isoproterenol induced a rapid and persistent decrease in left ventricular fractional shortening (−20% at day 14); this was markedly improved by treatment with either MCP or canrenoate (both P &lt;0.001 versus placebo). MCP and canrenoate also reduced cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis and the expression of genes involved in fibrogenesis ( Coll-1 and Coll-3 ) and macrophage infiltration ( CD-68 and MCP-1 ). After isoproterenol, Gal-3 gene expression ( P &lt;0.05 versus placebo) and protein levels (−61% and −69% versus placebo) were decreased by both canrenoate and MCP. The combined use of antagonists of Gal-3 and aldosterone resulted in more pronounced effects on cardiac hypertrophy, inflammation, and fibrosis, when compared with either MCP or canrenoate alone. Inhibition of Gal-3 and aldosterone can reverse isoproterenol-induced left ventricular dysfunction, by reducing myocardial inflammation and fibrogenesis. Gal-3 likely participates in mechanisms of aldosterone-mediated myocardial damage in a heart failure murine model with cardiac hyperaldosteronism. Gal-3 inhibition may represent a new promising therapeutic option in heart failure. </jats:p

Histoire et théorie de la justification juridique : approche comparée

Mathilde Cohen, chargée de recherche au CNRS Ce séminaire a constitué une introduction à l’histoire et à la théorie de la justification juridique et, notamment, à la notion spécifiquement juridique de « motivation des décisions ». Nous poursuivrons cette problématique en 2010-2011 en nous concentrant plus particulièrement sur le cas des Cours constitutionnelles, dans le cadre d’un séminaire enseigné conjointement avec Pasquale Pasquino, intitulé : « Les Cours constitutionnelles et la raison p..