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Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2002;156:87.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

I must object most strongly to the conclusions drawn by Wolf et al¹ in the third clinical scenario presented in their article, "When Parents Reject Interventions to Reduce Postnatal Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transmission." As the authors state, no data exist to show the safety of breastfeeding by a mother infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). No data exist because ethically such a study could not be conducted in the United States and probably not in any country that adheres to the Declaration of Helsinki. As a pediatrician, my patient is the infant. I cannot allow the possible cultural and social discomfort of an adult to justify putting an infant at risk for an incurable, lethal viral infection. When a safe, risk-free alternative exists (formula feeding), no-risk exposure to an infant is acceptable. How could you justify the risk-benefit ratio favoring the mother in this circumstance? My ethics and training force . . . [Full Text of this Article]