There's a baby-formula crisis developing in the US under Joe Biden's wonderful economy. A lot of conservatives are angrily pointing out that the Biden admin is willing to send billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine but unwilling to do anything to help American babies. So now, I'm curious about homemade baby-formula alternatives.
The obvious answer to the question of how people fed babies before baby formula is that women would breast-feed their kids (and, I presume, many or most still do, barring any untoward circumstances). But what if you're a single dad, and you have to take care of a baby?
This article cautions:
Mothers who are unable or unwilling to breastfeed may also be wondering whether there are natural alternatives to baby formula available. The short answer is that breast milk or baby formula are the only safe and appropriate primary sources of nutrition for infants under one year of age.
While there are recipes for homemade baby formula that often circulate the internet, this is not a safe way to feed your baby. Commercial baby formulas have undergone extensive research as well as comprehensive regulatory review and approval to ensure they are safe and adequate sources of nutrition for infants.
Homemade baby formula comes with numerous risks of malnutrition, contamination, and serious health consequences and should not be used. Furthermore, research has found that many homemade baby formula recipes are found on blogs that are not run by healthcare professionals, do not contain medical disclaimers, and utilize high-risk ingredients such as raw milk.
I had no idea that an infant's needs were so nutritionally specific. In my stupid brain, I thought you might get away with, say, chicken broth into which you've stirred some powdered vitamins. It sounds as if simply making your own formula is, at best, a very bad idea.
It's a fascinating topic. I'll keep researching it. I'm especially curious to know what people used to feed their babies over a century ago if breast milk wasn't available.
4 comments:
In the past they would have a wet nurse.
Yeah, the linked article mentions both wet-nursing and the modern equivalent of "milk banks."
You make almost everything from scratch, I can't understand why baby formula would be any different. The experts could publish easy-to-follow recipes and warn against any deviations. What's a mother to do if she has a hungry kid and no alternatives? Starvation can't be worse than homemade formula.
I'm convinced that babies must have been able to survive on mother's-milk alternatives back in the day.
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