One third of families who relied on formula to feed their babies during the COVID-19 pandemic were forced by severe shortages to resort to suboptimal feeding practices, according to research published in the journal Maternal and Child Nutrition.
, we conducted an online survey of over 300 infant caregivers in the U.S. to understand how many families had trouble obtaining infant formula and what they fed their babies when they did.
Considering the scope of the formula shortages, we were not surprised that 31% of the formula-feeding families we surveyed reported challenges obtaining infant formula, the most common being that it was sold out and they had to travel to more than one store. But their babies still needed to eat. Being unable to get their hands on infant formula pushed caregivers to potentially unhealthy or even dangerous stopgaps. For example, 11% of the formula-feeding families surveyed said they practiced “formula-stretching” — diluting infant formula with extra water to make formula supplies last longer, which provides a baby with less nutrition in each bottle.
Furthermore, 10% of formula-feeding families reported substituting cereal for infant formula in bottles, 8% prepared smaller bottles and 6% skipped formula feedings for their infants, which all provide infants with less nutritious meals. Exclusively breast-feeding families were insulated against these supply disruptions. Almost half of breast-feeding families surveyed reported that COVID-19 lockdowns actually allowed them time to increase their milk supply.Our study suggests that the waves of formula shortages from 2020 to 2022 in the U.S. were more than just an inconvenience for parents.
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