I’m sure I will get a reaming for this from breast feeding advocates, but I believe it’s worth pointing out that sometimes mamas simply need an alternative to just popping baby on the boob.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I am a huge proponent of breastfeeding and I don’t recommend that moms read this and STOP breastfeeding, BUT I am also a proponent of nursing mamas eating a nutrient-dense diet – ideally this starts even before conception. At the very least, mama should commit to eating a nourishing diet while she nurses her baby.
Breast is best in nearly all cases, except for when a mother’s diet is so poor that she has very little nutritional value to pass along to her baby. It is common belief that a nursing baby will get what he/she needs by taking it from the mother’s body if it’s not provided via mama’s diet. At best, this will leave the mama extremely depleted, but at worst, neither she nor the baby will be nourished.
While diet does NOT greatly affect protein levels and immunoglobulins in breast milk, diet does affect lactose, fats, minerals and other key nutrients.
Poor nutrition is not the only instance that breast milk substitutes may be necessary – some women just do not produce enough milk, despite their best efforts. The issue of what to feed baby also arises in the case of adoption or surrogacy.
Human women have always had a back up – whether it was a wet nurse or milk from another lactating mammal. In the past 100 years or so, commercial formulas have become the unfortunate stand in.
Conventional formula, even the organic varieties, are ladened with denatured protein (powdered milk) and rancid vegetable oils which are simply not ideal foods for a growing baby.
Luckily there are several options between optimal breastfeeding and toxic commercial formula from which to choose.
Here’s the rankings from best to worse when it comes to feeding your infant:
BEST
Mom’s breast milk with mom eating a healthy diet rich in good quality animal fats during pregnancy and while nursing
Mom’s breast milk regardless of prior diet. (Supplement mom with fermented cod liver oil, high vitamin butter oil, and plenty of eggs, full fat milk products, liver, and seafood. Supplement baby with probiotics, and monitor baby for health issues like failure to thrive, colic, eczema, fussiness)
Direct donor milk (not pasteurized) from a donor known to have a nutrient-dense, non-vegan diet
Homemade WAPF formula – either raw cow’s milk based or bone broth based. Be sure to use these recipes, not ‘cheaper’ variations
OK
Pasteurized Donor milk from a donor known to have a nutrient-dense, non-vegan diet (supplement baby with probiotics)
IN A PINCH
Pasteurized Donor milk from unspecified donor (Supplement with baby probiotics, and monitor baby for health issues like failure to thrive, colic, eczema, fussiness)
Organic cow milk formula supplemented with probiotics and fermented cod liver oil
NEVER
Conventional formula
Any formula without additional supplementation
Soy formula
This post was inspired by a great lecture by Sarah Pope of The Healthy Home Economist on Infant Care at the Wise Traditions Conference 2011. You can download her talk here. Sarah also has some great info and videos on preparing the Weston A. Price Formula on her site and at westonaprice.org.
I totally agree! I suspect the conflicting research on breast feeding…you know, some studies say breast feeding is better for babies, others say it is not…is due to the fact that the quality of diets of the moms in the studies were not taken into consideration. PS, I really enjoyed Sara’s talk and I totally dig her blog, and yours! Thanks!
Man, that was a gutsy title! Have to say I think we are headed in the right direction with increased breastfeeding rates in the U.S., but it is sad how many misconceptions there are about the effect of mama’s diet on the nutritional quality of milk.As Dr. Price said, “You teach! You teach! You teach!” Glad you’re getting this info out there – hopefully it will inspire moms to be more aware of what they feed themselves while they feed their babies!
P.S. The AAP now recommends induced lactation for adoptive moms (if the mom wants to). It’s totally possible
There is no scientific evidence to support the idea that anything–whether commercial infant formula, homemade infant formula or other food– is superior to breastmilk for infant nutrition, even in poorly nourished mothers. Suggesting to mothers that their milk is inferior or missing something is a myth, and unfortunately is a tactic that has been used by infant formula manufacturers for years. Don’t buy it! Human milk has millions of components, only a minor fraction of which we’ve even identified, and no one has found a way–either commercial or homemade– to reproduce these factors outside of a human breast.
This quote is from Unicef’s breastfeeding page:
Formula is not an acceptable substitute for breastmilk because formula, at its best, only replaces most of the nutritional components of breast milk: it is just a food, whereas breast milk is a complex living nutritional fluid containing anti-bodies, enzymes, long chain fatty acids and hormones, many of which simply cannot be included in formula. Furthermore, in the first few months, it is hard for the baby’s gut to absorb anything other than breastmilk.
If you must supplement with formula, do so without guilt. But don’t let someone sabotage your breastfeeding success by telling you your milk isn’t healthy enough for your baby. Nothing could be further from the truth.
I can’t imagine such a poor diet of a mother that she would need to supplement but low milk supply and other issues can happen. I had a friend who had a naturopath make a homemade formula for her. Thought that was interesting.
But one thing I don’t agree with is a diet with animal fat or milk. Definitely not necessary for a healthy diet. And can be quite detrimental to ones health.
Hi,
I fully agree but sometimes there is no choice. I am a mommy of 2 and also an acupuncturist who encapsulated my placenta , eat a very nutrient rich diet , etc.. but with both babies my period came at 3 months. I tried everything from acupuncture to herbs to eating liver, more placenta, etc.. but my body just cannot make enough blood to supply my milk. I am now living in Argentina where I cannot get donor milk , its just not something that is here so my only choice to feed my baby is through conventional forumla. I want to make my own but really want to be sure of the best recipe since getting something like fermented cod liver oil is something that is also very hard to come by here as well as buying probiotics. I would love to hear your thoughts since I am feel a little
about the situation and when my only choice is on a “Never” list , I can’t help but feel a bit discouraged
Hi Lauren,
You are certainly an exception to the rules. In your case I would recommend the following…
If you really must use conventional formula, here are some guidelines:
– Use organic only to avoid feeding toxins directly to your baby.
– Avoid soy which can be a major disruptor to human hormones
– Supplement with probiotic powder for optimal digestive health and omega 3′s for brain and nervous system development.
A dear friend of mine who is currently living in rural Kenya, recently wrote about the virtues of formula when there are no other options. I don’t think she is wrong. As parents we do our best with what is available to us. In your case, this may be formula, and that’s ok. But for those who have access to donor milk and the ingredients for homemade formula, there’s no good excuse (other than cost).
Thanks Emily! Organic formula is hard to come by here.. but I keep my fingers crossed that its at least better quality since most cows are grassfed. I do give probiotics which I buy in the states and hoping to stumble upon some of the ingredients for homemade formula. Yes, getting my period with both boys at 3 months definitely left me up in arms since my body seems to be the one in control. As one of my teachers told me ” you had enough QI and blood to make your baby and feed your baby for 3 months, be satisfied with what was given to you ” Its hard since if it were up to me, I would breast feed for as long as possible
P.S I love your blog!!
Hi, I just started my 5 month old son on the hypoallergenic liver formula. We think he I’d allergic to milk for he reacted to every milk based formula. Well he reacted to every formula we tried from a few organic brands, enfamil and every hypoallergenic formula on the market. I am glad he was reacting to all the formulas for I came across the homemade formula options and he has been eating the liver based formula for 4 days now. He used to have severe diaper rashes and body rashes that looked like mild eczema that would come and go. He seems alittle better although his cheeks continue to be red and some red patches on through out his body continue to pop up. I think he might be having a reaction to the lactose. I took away the whey and want to try to substitute the lactose. I know it has been suggested to use dextrose or sucrose instead. Isn’t sucrose table sugar and is that ok to put in the formula? What kind of dextrose? I found organic dextrose made from tapioca.. Can anyone recommend a good substitute? A specific brand and/or type.
Thank you!
Natalia
Hi – I breastfed/pumped for 2 months. Unfortunately, I ran into medical complications in my breasts and lost my milk supply…. very upset about this.
My baby is now 3 months and I am having a hard time selecting an organic formula. He is on a conventional brand that was given at the hospital. I have found issues with some of the organic formulas such as the use of palm oil, pure sugar, brown rice syrup (arsenic)… etc. I feel like I am feeding my baby junk food through formula… it’s awful. Do you have any suggestions that you can email me? I have thought of trying to re-lactate, but not sure if it would work or be possible. Thank you.