What If There Was No Formula?

[TheNewMrs]

Seriously?
How would women cope? What would doctors suggest? How would you deal with low supply??

Interesting thought.

 

[ellebelle]

I thought this when a girl I know said she would not breastfeed because it is too weird.

I guess babies starved to death.
I have a low supply and I've cried imagining mine starving.

 

[RaspberryK]

Well people don't like to hear it but there are less than 1% of women who truly can't breastfeed. In a society where the majority of women breastfeed any lactating family member would act as a wet nurse. Before commercial formula babies were sometimes given other animal milk and all sorts of things mixed with water like flour etc.
x

x

 

[Lady_Bee]

Wet nurses for those who can afford one. For the rest? I dread to think.

 

[summer rain]

My friend is only in her early 30s and could only tolerate goats milk as a baby. In those days there was no goats milk formula nor was any other specialist formula widely available so her mum just gave her goats milk with extra vitamin supplements. It wasn't ideal but my friend survived on the goats milk xx

 

[ellebelle]

Oh yeah, forgot about wet nurses

 

[SnuggleMum]

In a way, it might be better - if Doctors/HCPs couldn't suggest formula, they might actually have to learn how to support and help breastfeeding women decently!

 

[Eala]

Women wouldn't have the freedom to choose to do what is best for them and their families, and would have to make do however they could. For the rich, they would have donor milk and wetnurses. Those who couldn't afford that... either they would cobble by with homemade "formula" or their baby would die.

Personally I find it fantastic that we are fortunate enough to live in a society where there is a safe and nutritious alternative to breastmilk. Yes, I'm aware that someone is going to turn around and say "But formula ISN'T SAFE!", but we'll just have to agree to disagree on that one.

As for the 1% statistic... I've yet to see a truly rigorous scientific study which verifies this figure. And as far as I understand it, that's "1%" can't produce anything. It doesn't include those who have supply issues which would preclude them from being able to solely breastfeed without supplementing. Also, bandying about that figure is remarkably misleading. To put this into perspective a bit - 0.0085% of women in England will be diagnosed with cervical cancer. Yet you don't see anyone saying "Oh well, it's such a small number that it's not really worth talking about..."

 

[summer rain]

While the rich used to pay good money for wet nurses in some societies it doesn't mean they weren't available for other women, as RaspberryK has said other relatives who were BF would often take that role (and not require payment). Also in some societies it was seen as a benefit to use a wet nurse and something that strengthened the ties of kinship and created new ones. Being a wet nurse was and still is seen as a great honour in such societies so many women aside from perhaps a little money to cover some of their expenses would want no payment xx

 

[TigerLady]

I'm fairly certain there are still some tribal communities where lactating women nurse any kid who needs it. For example, one lactating woman will be in charge of a small creche of babies and toddlers while the rest of the small tribe will leave the camp to gather/hunt/whatever. She'll nurse whatever baby needs it when they need it during that time.

Western society is very different from what was naturally evolved in humans!

 

[lozzy21]

If there was no formula their is a good chance my LO would have died. She couldent latch directly for 6 weeks and I couldent express more than half an oz.

 

[SnuggleMum]

If there was no formula their is a good chance my LO would have died. She couldent latch directly for 6 weeks and I couldent express more than half an oz.

Not to belittle what you went through, but would your friends and acquaintances really stand by and watch that happen? I know I'd give spare milk to any baby in need, whatever the circumstances. If there were no formula, there would be a much bigger pool of women who could donate milk and/or wet-nurse.

 

[SnuggleMum]

I do love discussions like this, the 'what if' stuff. Like, what if there were a zombie apocalypse, how would all the logistics work out (during and after the initial terror).

 

[lozzy21]

That would only work if you had friends and family with baby's at that time. I had none, if I did and they could express I'd have gave her that.

 

[Mrsmitch80]

I don't like threads like these they become very emotive. The fact is that there is formula available.

 

[TheNewMrs]

I don't like threads like these they become very emotive. The fact is that there is formula available.

Well then feel free to bypass this thread .

 

[RaspberryK]

That would only work if you had friends and family with baby's at that time. I had none, if I did and they could express I'd have gave her that.

That is because we now have readily available reliable contraception, but before formula was invented, this wasn't the case therefore there would have been more lactating women.

I would be quite happy to wet nurse any baby in my "tribe"

x

 

[TheNewMrs]

That would only work if you had friends and family with baby's at that time. I had none, if I did and they could express I'd have gave her that.

That is because we now have readily available reliable contraception, but before formula was invented, this wasn't the case therefore there would have been more lactating women.

I would be quite happy to wet nurse any baby in my "tribe"

x

Same!! Well, if I could!!

 

[lozzy21]

That's fine if it was me that had the problem but it was Niamh. As the saying goes you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.

 

[beanzz]

Me and my dad were talking about this the other day! Like waay back at the beginning it would have been breast or nothing til they figured out other ways. It's gone from that to some people choosing the alternatives without even trying to breastfeed which is a shame