Baby formula?

[Deed]

Most of you know I don't have kids and will rarely see me in these forums about children. But I'm curious, why do new mom's that don't or can't breastfeed pay those outrageous prices for formula?

My mom bottle fed all of us and other than the normal childhood diseases (chickenpox etc...) and colds we were never sick. Mom made her own formula out of evaporated milk, karo syrup and water then added liquid vitamins. We all gained weight just like babies are supposed to and very rarely sick.


Obviously I agree that breastfeeding is the best for a baby, but if you can't why support those formula companies? The baby gets the same vitamins in that liquid form and it is sooooo much cheaper. Just curious.....

[frugalmel]

I have never heard of making your own. I think we arer probably trained to let the "experts" at the formula companies make it for us. I wonder what doctors would say if they were told a mom or dad was making their own. Many get "perks" from formula companies....

[Deed]

Never even thought about the 'perks' for doctor's, but I think they get enough out of us.

I don't know the exact amounts or why my mom didn't bf us other than exhaustion??? I don't know, but there has to have been many mom's over the years that couldn't nurse or be weathly enough to hire a 'wet nurse' so yes, you can make your own. Same with cloth vs disposable diapers, kwim?

Please don't think I am knocking any of you that use ready made baby formula or disposable diapers, I'm certainly do not mean it that way or in your shoes. Just curious is all and I think that you not even knowing you can make your own is very telling to me Melody. You are a generation or 2 younger than me, so that could be it too.

[Admin]

I hope Lori T will jump in and respond to this. She has breast fed the last two babies, while the first two were formula fed. I know that she wouldn't suggest the karo syrup because of the *sugar* content. I fed my children forumla, but I know the generation before me, ( so that would be Liz) used evaporated milk mixed with karo syrup and water..Let's hear it Lori, who breastfeeds and uses cloth diapers.

I agree with Deed in making the doctors, formula and disposables companies richer. I do believe that breast feeding is much healthier for babies, but I for one tried to breast feed and could not. I think that cloth diapering while more time consuming for mom is also better for babies. As far as I know LibbyAnna has never had diaper rash.

Anyway, I said all that to say..I don't know. LOL

[LoriT]

If my babies could not have my milk (preferably straight from the source but if not then pumped) my next choice would be human milk from a donor or wet nurse. If breast milk was not an option then I would go to homemade formula but from goats milk. Goats milk is much more compatable to human milk than cow's milk is. cows milk has a VERY VERY high rate of both allergies and intolerance. I would not want to give my babies formula...there is a lot of JUNK in formula. things like aluminum which is linked to alzheimer's. Also most readily available formulas have some amount of cow's milk in them even the soy ones.

Now doctor's are trained by formula companies (and drug companies) they write the textbooks and they pay them frequent visits and push their stuff. Doctors like formula because they can control it. they know how much is going in. they have been trained that it is just as good as breastmilk IT IS NOT! (The World health organization and the AAP both say formula is a distant fourth or fifth place for babies in developed countries and not preferred at all for babies in developing nations!) I think if you told most doctors you were going to make your own they woudl probably call CPS on you! BTW baby formula does have sugar in it usually corn syrup. read a label next time you are in the store.


Cloth is really no more work. We have pocket dipes (www.fuzzibunz.com) there are cheaper cloth alternatives out there but these are easier on whomever is changing the diaper! NO PINS! just snap them on her. an extra load of wash every other day! and no more dunking and rinsing! jsut throw them in a dry pail! evry other nite I put them to soak with some oxiclean. in the morning I finish that cycle and wash on hot with a TINY amount of detergent and vinegar rinse. We do you sposies for travelling for convenience. Also if your baby goes to daycare then they musbe in sposies. Sposies are made of plastic that gels up when wet and plastics contain estrogens among other things. I worry about that next to my babies bottom!

[braided-rug]

Deed I am really impressed that you know about the canned milk way of feeding babies, I thought I was the only one lol.

Apparently, at the same time S26 was available here, but I didn't know that, my aunty used it, she had kids the same age as Mum's.

[braided-rug]

I was so shocked when a bag of garbage fell out of the bin when the truck came one night and one of the nappies had broken open on the road and I cleaned it up. Those jelly balls in the nappy, I didn't know they were made of those.

My first baby went to comp. feeding after I came home from hospital, Mum didn't b/f and suggested it. After 6 months he was on formula. My husband's first wife made her own and added vitamin drops or something, she is 10 years older than me and they had three children together.

He had cloth nappies, terri mostly. I had boarded with a family who used the dry pail method, I didn't know what it was called, and I didn't think about it but I think this had some influence on my way of doing things. She had 6 children. Role models are great!

The second and third babies I b/f for 14 months, 2 months after the recommended 12 months at the time. The third I b/f for 4 1/2 years! Then three months later I had my fifth child and she still feeds at night, she is 3 and 8 months.

Usually my babies were in flannelette nappies for quite awhile with pilchers. Then swapped over to terry towelling and plastic pants. The first three were cloth only babies. The 4th child had disposable after a move of house at 3 years, so she was only in them a short time.

The fifth child got disposables after a shift at 14 months of age, and I did a few loads of cloth, then we had not much water so she stayed in disposables.

[frugalmel]

Thought of something else. I don't know what generation it was, but there was a time that formula feeding was a sort of, well, almost a status symbol. It was viewed that only *poor* people breast fed. I have had several ladies older than me mention it. But, like I said, I dont' really know what generation it woudl fall under.

oh and Lori and braidedrug and anyone else who cloth diapers or has in past. Thumbs up to ya. I am just to lazy for it, even though I know its better.

[Deed]

Braidedrug, LOL I'm showing my age huh? I'm one of 7 children and I know my parents couldn't have afforded formula even if it was available at the time.

Melody, you are so right, I forgot about that it was a 'status symbol' thing. Also each of my parents were married once before and each had one child from those marriages. Mom lived with her parents when my sis Kathy was a baby and mom went to work. So maybe that is how she started hm formula feeding too, as grandma had to feed Kath. Don't think they had breast pumps in the early 50's.

[Deed]

Hello Lori! How are you?

Thanks for jumping in here. I really don't know much of what all is out there now, been many years since I watched a baby. LOL I didn't know that about goats' milk, but I did think that karo syrup was awfully sweet to make formula with. Maybe it was to disguise the taste of those nasty liquid vitamins?

I completely agree with you on the cloth diapers (nappies). I do know that if I was lucky enough to have children, I would have used them exclusively. Everytime I have diapered a baby with disposables, I've destroyed the diaper! Give me a hunk of cloth and 4 pins and I'm set! LOL

[braided-rug]

I don't know about you guys, but I love the labels on the evaporated milk. Carnation and Bear Brand.

[sunshine]

deed said:

I didn't know that about goats' milk, but I did think that karo syrup was awfully sweet to make formula with. Maybe it was to disguise the taste of those nasty liquid vitamins?

My mom told me they added the kayro syrup to formula to keep the babies regular-- -without it and they'd get constipated. Probably from the iron in the vitamins.

My mom still remembers the ratio she used to mix my brother's formula when he was born (he'll be 50 in Oct.) PET milk, water and Kayro syrup, plus the liquid vitamins.

[frugalmel]

[/quote]sunshine

My mom still remembers the ratio she used to mix my brother's formula when he was born (he'll be 50 in Oct.) PET milk, water and Kayro syrup, plus the liquid vitamins.[/quote]

I bet she could have made it in her sleep if she can remember it to this day!

[sunshine]

frugalmel said:

sunshine

My mom still remembers the ratio she used to mix my brother's formula when he was born (he'll be 50 in Oct.) PET milk, water and Kayro syrup, plus the liquid vitamins.[/quote]

I bet she could have made it in her sleep if she can remember it to this day![/quote]

I bet she DID make it in her sleep at times She says it was 7 parts milk to 14 parts water, and 1 Tablespoon of syrup, 1 teaspoon of vitamins--- that generally made a day's worth of forumla.

[Deed]

Now that you say that Denise, it sounds right. Been so long I couldn't remember why they used karo syrup. I bet my mom could still make it in her sleep too. LOL I remember mom only made up enough at a time for a days worth of bottles too.