What harm will not breastfeeding your children do?

[Belinda]

Most babies who receive formula are just fine, but formula is certainly not the best food for infants. Formula MAY cause skin rashes, and other symptoms, some of which do not show up until later in life. Formula companies are also responsible for killing many, many babies around the world by giving formula to women who do not have a clean water supply or who cannot afford to continue buying formula after their own milk dries up. Dirty marketing.

There is support out there for women who want to breastfeed their babies, even those who are really creeped out by the idea of feeding an infant from a (gasp!) breast. Remember, breasts are for babies. Looking nice is just a side benefit.

Risks of formula feeding (theses are risks, not certainties):

Selling Out Mothers and Babies - Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes in the USA

The practice of feeding babies infant formula, rather than breastmilk carries with it profound risks in modern, industrialized countries, as well as, in developing countries. While many are familiar with the well-publicized tragedies of formula-fed infants in developing countries, many are unaware of how the lack of breastmilk and the use of infant formula compromise the health and well being of children in the United States. These risks are well documented in the medical literature. A few are listed below.

Illness and Hospitalization

Formula feeding accounts for up to 26% of insulin dependent diabetes mellitus in children.

Otitis media (middle ear infection) is up to 3-4 times as prevalent in formula-fed infants.

US Formula fed infants have a 10 fold risk of being hospitalized for any bacterial infection.

Mortality

One sudden infant death for every 1000 live birth occurs as a result of failure to breastfeed in western industrialized nations.

For every 1000 babies born in the U.Ss each year, four die because they are not breastfed.
Development and Intelligence

Scores on the Bayley Mental Development Index were lower in formula-fed children at 1-2 years of age. Scores were directly correlated with the duration of breastfeeding.

Formula fed preterm infants had lower IQ scores (8 points) at age 7-8 years than breastfed premies, even after adjustment for mother's education and social class.
Composition and contamination of infant formula

Due to an excessive phosphate load in formula, formula fed infants face a 30 fold risk of neonatal hypocalcemic tetany (convulsions, seizures, twitching) during the first 10 days of life.

Formula fed infants are at a high risk of exposure to life-threatening bacterial contamination. Enterobacter sakazakii is a frequent contaminant in powdered formula and can cause sepsis and meningitis in newborns.
Barriers to breastfeeding

Increasing breastfeeding rates will decrease the risks of formula feeding while optimizing the benefits of breastfeeding. however, there are many barriers to breastfeeding affecting both initiation and duration:

Misinformation and lack of knowledge

Personal attitudes

Cultural norm

Lack of support – by family, partner, hospital, and workplace

Hospital practices and policies

Formula companies’ advertising and hospital practices.

Rare maternal or infant medical conditions

In 1997, Los Angeles county ranked 53rd out of 58 counties for 28% exclusive breastfeeding rates at hospital discharge, while falling far below the state average of 43%.


Click here for references. Specific references available upon request. An excellent source of additional information can be found in Breastfeeding: A Guide for the Medical Profession, 1999 (5th Ed) Ruth A. Lawrence and Robert M. Lawrence, MD and/or The Breastfeeding Answer Book, 2003 (3rd ED), Nancy Mohrbacher, IBCLC and Julie Stock, IBCLC


Risks and Costs of Formula Feeding



For baby, artificial feeding increases the risk of the following diseases (among others*):

• Otitis media (middle ear infection): 3 to 5 times more likely
• Gastroenteritis: 6 times more likely
• Diarrhea
• Respiratory diseases (bronchitis, pneumonia): 2 to 5 times more likely
• Allergies
• Asthma

• Obesity

• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): 3 to 5 times more likely
• Lymphomas: 6 to 8 times more likely
• Type-1 Diabetes: 2 to 7 times more likely

• Necrotising enterocolitis: 20 times more likely
• Inflammatory diseases of the intestine (ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease): 3 times more likely
• Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
• Breast Cancer in girls
• Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Hodgkin's disease

• Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• Urinary tract infections

• Vision troubles
• Poor development of jaw muscles and malocclusion
• IQ up to 8-10 points lower
• Tooth decay (« bottle caries »)
• Less effective immunisations (vaccines)

• Premature death (in the first year of life): 26.5% increased risk
*Incidence of all diseases studied is higher in formula-fed babies than in breastfed babies.

For mother, NOT breastfeeding increases the risk for the following diseases (among others)

• Post-partum haemorrhage
• Pre-menopausal Breast Cancer: 2 times more likely
• Ovarian Cancer: 1.6 times more likely
• Endometrial Cancer
• The mother who has Gestational Diabetes is 2 times more at risk of developing type-2 Diabetes later on if she does not breastfeed
• Osteoporosis

Artificial feeding also has an important impact on

FAMILY
• Artificial feeding is very demanding of time and energy: shopping for formula and supplies; preparation, cleaning/sterilising; etc.
• Supplies – milks and accessories - for formula feeding cost, in Canada, between 2000$ and 3000$ per year, per child.
• Medical costs and lost wages stemming from higher illness rates in formula-fed babies are important.

SOCIETY
• Artificial feeding costs the Canadian health care system billions of dollars per year.

THE ENVIRONMENT
• Production and consumption of artificial baby milks are a significant source of pollution.