Health Highlights: Oct. 2, 2008

But manufacturers of the seats had a different view of the findings.

In a statement, Evenflo said that it conducts extensive seat testing and called the IIHS study "misleading as it fails to consider the real world use and performance of the seats tested." Dorel Juvenile Group said it welcomed the opportunity to review the evaluation, and Graco Children's Products responded that "safety is always a top priority, and nothing is more important than the well-being of the children who use our products."

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia said that parents should not interpret the evaluations to mean that poorly rated seats are ineffective. "The biggest disservice this would do is to encourage people to move out of booster seats, because we know they're an effective restraint, we know they reduce the risk of injury and the risk of fatality," said Dr. Kristy Arbogast, who researches child passenger safety issues at the hospital. She suggested that parents buying booster seats try them out to see how seat belts fit on their child, the AP reported.

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Melamine Found in 31 Chinese Milk Batches

Twelve more Chinese dairy companies were named as violators after new tests found 31 batches of milk powder tainted with the industrial chemical melamine, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.

The contaminated products, ranging from baby formula to chocolate, have been blamed for four children's deaths, and 13,000 child hospitalizations.

So far, 27 people have been arrested in connection with the scandal. The new batches tested were mostly milk powder products for adults, ranging from full fat milk powder to milk powder called high in calcium and zinc. Tests have also found melamine in 24 batches of liquid milk produced by three of China's best known dairy firms, AP said.

The recent tests found that nine batches containing melamine were produced by Sanlu, the company at the center of the scandal. Sanlu is a state-owned joint venture with Fonterra, a New Zealand dairy cooperative. Meanwhile, in other developments: