So, when Arlo had to start on formula at four months old, we wanted him on not only the very best option out there, but in staying true to our commitment to a plant-based lifestyle, also wanted to avoid animal products as much as possible. Since there are pretty much two main categories of formula out there - dairy or soy based, we opted for the soy. I read extensively about the different brands and settled on Baby's Only. It is entirely organic and the company really seems to care about the ingredients they use. It's a sad fact that most of the formulas sold in the US are poorly made - using GMO corn syrup as the primary ingredient. Not only that, but non-organic formulas contain pesticides and chemicals that no human should ever ingest - let alone the immature and developing systems of tiny babies.
Arlo has been doing great with the formula since we started it three months ago, but for months five and six he had been receiving half formula and half breastmilk in his bottles. About a month ago, when my milk supply sharply dropped to just 2 oz per day, and I made the difficult decision to stop pumping, he rather abruptly started drinking bottles that consisted entirely of formula. I suddenly had the realization that having him on a soy-based formula meant that he was getting a lot of soy in his diet. Now, soy has been portrayed in the media in recent years as a food that is either going to give you cancer or cause you to suddenly grow breasts if you are a male. I can assure you that neither are true, and countries that have a high consumption of whole forms of soy (tofu, soybeans, soymilk, tempeh, miso) have much lower rates of cancer than those in the United States. Eating soy in it's whole state is key - and most people in this country eat a heck of a lot more soy than they realize, primarily in it's overly processed (and potentially harmful) form. So, anyway, while I do feel that a moderate amount of whole soy in anyones diet is fine, the fact that Arlo was consuming a lot of it at every single meal was starting to bother me.
I then started thinking about the reason why we avoid dairy. Primarily, it is for ethical reasons - and to be honest that is a whole 'nother post that I never plan to write. You can do that research on your own if you are interested. However, what you might be interested to know is why as adults you might want to consider eliminating dairy for health reasons. First, let's think about what cows milk is intended for in nature. Simply put - it helps a young calf grow into a large, adult cow. Cows milk (and all dairy) contain hormones. Yup, even the "hormone-free" milk does. Cows milk contains a growth hormone, Insulin Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1), that is proven to make cells, especially cancer cells, grow like crazy. It is this very hormone that is responsible for growing that tiny calf into a large cow that weighs several hundred pounds. When we are young - we want this hormone in our bodies. It also helps tiny babies grow into adult humans. But, as adults, we want very little, if any, of this hormone in our bodies. Unfortunately the Standard American Diet (SAD) contains so many foods high in IGF-1. "Milk - it does a body good!" so says the ad. No, the sad truth is that milk really fills your body with unnecessary growth hormones which are partly responsible for the nations deplorable cancer rates.
I came across the video below while writing this post, which does a fantastic job of further explaining IGF-1. I promise you will not regret spending the next 2 minutes and 55 seconds of your life watching it.
Video source here. Dr. Greger also has another great video here, about IGF-1 and plant based diets.
When faced with the need to make any tough decision in life, I always ask myself (when appropriate), how would this be done in nature? What is the most natural outcome possible? And, while I would have loved to have a wet-nurse or donor mama on standby to keep Arlo on breastmilk for at least the first year, that just isn't a reality for us. What seems like the next best option, is the milk from another mammal. So, after much research and discussion with our pediatrician, we decided about a month ago to switch Arlo to a dairy-based formula for at least the next five or six months. I am not concerned with the growth hormones at this stage of his life - he would be getting those from breast milk anyway and actually needs them right now. When he is a year old we will reevaluate. There is an organic rice-based nutrition drink on the market made for toddlers 12 months and up that we may introduce when the time is right. I don't see us ever buying cows milk for Arlo and still plan to raise him as a vegan when he is no longer on formula. For now, I am happy and grateful that formula exists (both soy and dairy) as it has kept Arlo fed and nourished when I was unable to.
When we decided last month to make the switch from soy to dairy formula, again I had to scour the internets for the best option. What I concluded, is that the best option is actually sold in Europe, where food companies have to conform to even stricter organic rules and regulations than set by here in the United States. There are two brands, Hipp and Holle that get glowing reviews. In fact, parents who use these formulas claim that they are so much like human breast milk that they turned their babies stools into that of a baby who is eating exclusively breast milk. And if you are a parent who has a child that has consumed both breast milk and formula - you know exactly what I am talking about!
Arlo has now been on his new formula, Hipp, for about a month now, and I am happy to report that he is doing great with it. I will say though, our hungry little man has never said no to anything we have offered - be it breast, bottle, donor milk, pumped milk from mama, soy formula, or dairy formula. This little guy is a trooper and just wants to eat! And as for those parents who wrote the reviews about their babies poo changing for the better being on this formula, well, I can now attest to their truthfulness!
Had someone told me a year ago that our baby would not only be on formula at seven months old, but a dairy-based one at that, I would have looked at them like they were completely off their rocker. But, if this whole parenting thing has taught me anything, it's that parenting a child is a constantly evolving process and most of the time we should enter into new territory without any expectations. I have realized that setting my expectations low prevents me from being disappointed when things don't go the way I would normally want them to, and pleasantly surprised when they turn out better than I thought they would. This is probably something I should have realized much earlier in life. Thank you my sweet baby Arlo, for helping your mama learn a valuable lesson.
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