SMA: A Food for Infants
date: label: date made
content: 1930s
name: label: maker
content: American Can Company
label: maker
content: S.M.A. Corporation
notes: label: Description
content: Orange, grey, yellow, and white metal can for infant formula (can is empty of product). The product claims that it is "essentially similar to human milk" and will help keep "babies and young children well." Made by S.M.A. Corporation of Cleveland, OH; can manufactured by American Can Company, U.S.A. The label includes the statement: “Use only on order and under supervision of a licensed physician. He will give you instructions.” Net weight 16 ounces. Price $1.20. Copyright 1929. The can has a seal of acceptance from the American Medical Association, Committee on Foods.
label: Description
content: In the early 20th century, nutrition scientists developed infant formulas that more closely matched human milk. Dr. Henry John Gerstenberger (1881–1954) led a team at the Babies Dispensary and Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, studying the composition of fat in cow’s milk and human milk. They developed a homogenized mixture of animal and vegetable fats that was nearly identical to human milk fat. The resulting formula, marketed as S.M.A. (or "simulated" or "synthetic milk adapted"), was the first to replace cow's milk fat with a fat blend. S.M.A. was also the first formula to include vitamins: cod liver oil provided vitamin D, which prevents rickets, and orange juice provided vitamin C, a preventative against scurvy.
label: Description
content: To distinguish their product from other proprietary infant foods, the company’s advertising was directed to the medical profession, and directions for use were deliberately not included on the label. The company promoted the idea that infant feeding should be under the supervision of a physician. In 1929, the American Medical Association further strengthened the ties between producers and the profession with the establishment of a Committee on Foods. The Committee evaluated commercial food products and their advertising claims, and approved products bore the Committee’s “Seal of Acceptance.” By 1932, the Committee’s guidelines prohibited manufacturers from distributing feeding instructions on labels or in advertising if they wanted to maintain the AMA’s acceptance.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Ohio, Cleveland
topic: label: Subject
content: Dietary/ Nutritional Supplements & Reducing Aids
label: Subject
content: Infant & Children's Products - Pediatrics
label: associated subject
content: Infant Feeding
label: associated subject
content: Infant Nutrition
label: associated subject
content: Infant Care
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Medicine
label: See more items in
content: Health & Medicine
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Sara Jean Binder
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2016.0384.33
label: catalog number
content: 2016.0384.33
label: accession number
content: 2016.0384
objectType: label: Object Name
content: infant food
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 6 3/32 in x 5 5/16 in x 5 5/16 in; 15.494 cm x 13.462 cm x 13.462 cm