I can't buy you formula but il help you breastfeed ?

[zuptop]

I have just seen this on one of the local Facebook groups . Can't help but feel this is adding pressure onto women who already have made decision to formula feed.

Something just doesn't sit right for me...
Although I am sure they believe they are being kind

"As well as donating items to a local food bank, I’d like to help parents who are struggling to afford infant formula. I can’t buy any for you but I can support you to maximise your breast milk production and therefore decrease how much formula you need to buy.
I’m a trained breastfeeding peer supporter and I’m part way through my breastfeeding counsellor studies"

So YABU- lady in question is just trying to help mums build milk supply or
YANBU- post is a little judge of formula and putting pressure on mums to breastfeed when they might not want to/ be able to.

@puffinkoala like it says in the second part of my post you quoted - you get healthy start vouchers.

This so actually what unicef recommends re baby formula and food banks

Whilst recognising that this is a very difficult issue with few easy solutions, in the interest of trying to secure the best possible outcome for the baby, we would recommend that:
▪ All local authorities have a clear pathway for the distribution of infant formula as part of the local authority emergency food provision system. For more information, please see our guide for local authorities.
▪ Food banks put into place a robust referral system and staff are trained to trigger this if they are concerned that babies are in danger of not being fed.
▪* If food bank staff are concerned that their local authority does not currently have a robust referral system in place, they contact them to find out what is in place, and if needed, highlight their concerns and agree a pathway of care that includes referral to an appropriate health professional.*
▪ If a food bank is struggling to make an immediate referral, then an emergency payment could be given to the family to enable them to buy their baby’s usual infant formula, while the food bank completes the referral process for ongoing support.
1 Unicef UK infosheet on provision of formula milk at food banks November 2020

▪ Food banks continue to offer families food for the parents and older children to help ease the overall burden on the family and food banks do not accept donations of infant formula or distribute infant formula for babies. As mentioned above, this is due to concerns for the safety of the baby. In addition to concerns about consistency of supply, there is also an array of different products on the market and getting the right one from a food bank cannot be guaranteed. Babies could be given a milk that is not appropriate to them – for example, if the baby is under six months old, a follow-on milk would not be appropriate for them and could cause harm.
▪ Food banks are encouraged to tell families in England, Wales and Northern Ireland about the Healthy Start scheme, as this may be able to support the purchase of infant formula or other foods. Pregnant women and families with children under four who are getting income-based benefits and tax credits can apply for support from Healthy Start. The Healthy Start scheme is not an immediate response, but mothers visiting the food banks may be eligible to apply (see below). In Scotland, families can apply for support through the Best Start scheme.
▪ In some areas, local authorities provide crisis loans or provide vouchers or referrals for essential items such as food or furniture. Information on accessing emergency support can be found at the debt charity Step Change.
▪ Staff/volunteers working at food banks should know how to refer women to the local infant feeding specialist team.
▪* Food banks should ensure that donors know that infant formula donations are not advised and include this on websites and in literature about their service. People keen to donate in support of young families should be encouraged to offer other food and drink items that the family can benefit from.*

The problem is that anyone who is struggling to buy formula has already made the decision that breast feeding is not for them anf their breast milk is long gone.

Unless she is proposing that she trains the woman (over zoom) to bring her milk back in from nothing over a period of time while the baby thrashes around at the breast and screams from hunger and lack of milk nd has formula witheld from them to encourage them to suck, which is REALLY going to help the already shit and stressful
situation, then I think it's a laudable but ultimately slightly unrealistic and
dare I say it, condescending offer.

Ostryga she chose to ignore that. Also at 6 months you get through less formula and stage 2 is generally cheaper.

@puffinkoala

What if your baby is 6 months old and you fall on hard times?

Then you go to your local council for the vouchers mentioned? This is a much more sustainable way of supporting the correct nutrition of formula fed babies than hoping the foodback will get sufficient donations of the right brand of formula for those who need it. If anything it indicates how seriously the nutrition of formula fed babies is taken, not the reverse.

Dunno about judgy but my first instinct would be that it's a perv.

@FuriousWithTheNHS

Or they are a new mum struggling to bf and considering going to formula but worried about the cost.

Or they are combi feeding so dad can share night feeds.

Or they are topping up a low supply with formula and would like to reduce.

Breastfeeding is not an all or nothing thing. Presenting it as if it is is just spreading misinformation and ignorance.

Sometimes I think people look for problems where there are none.

This is one of those times.

It's not allowed to donate or distribute formula via food banks IIRC

That's the real issue, not this woman's perfectly valid offer to use her skills to help.

What a stupid policy. If someone is already formula feeding and needs a food bank to feed their baby, what are they supposed to do? They can't start lactating on demand.

@SomewhatBored

What a stupid policy. If someone is already formula feeding and needs a food bank to feed their baby, what are they supposed to do? They can't start lactating on demand.

See the useful info above on policy here - an emergency payment can be made to bridge the gap while parents seek vouchers from their local council. This ensures the baby gets the right amount of the right formula for them, not leave them reliant on whatever happens to have been donated that day. Much safer and better for the baby. Infant nutrition isn't something to be treated casually, so it isn't.

"Why mention formula" - because formula is the expensive part people might be struggling to afford!

It's not of much relevance to a food bank if she wants to help breastfeeding mothers breastfeed. She might as well advertise her services as a sling consultant or sleep trainer or whatever - that has about as much relevance to a food bank as that.

It is of relevance to a food bank if she is able to help mothers reduce their reliance on formula, which is a food that you have to buy. These are, by defenition, formula feeding mothers. That's why she's mentioning formula. It's not a conspiracy, Christ alive.

It is of no financial benefit for her to offer breastfeeding advice to already-fully-breastfeeding mothers. It's about access to formula being difficult and her wanting to help with that specific problem. And better breastfeeding support can help with this problem, especially if you're mixed feeding, which the majority of mums are by the time the baby is one week old.

It's absolutely right that food banks can't give out free formula. If a family is in need of free formula, they need to go through their health visitor or GP, this can be arranged, nobody should be going without, but a food bank is not equipped to offer other support surrounding the donation of free formula.

Lol I thought from the title she was actually offering her own milk!

I find the FB message very badly worded and preachy, though I doubt that was her intention.

I formula fed all three of mine although I did give breastfeeding a brief and doomed try with DD1. I was fortunate that we could afford formula even though money was actually quite tight.

I didn't realise that food banks do not give out infant formula. I think they should. There must be plenty of less well off families who need it. Your ability to breastfeed or not, for whatever reason, is not necessarily linked to your finances.

Try reading it this way:
"I’d like to help people who are struggling to afford petrol. I can’t buy any for you but if you have a bike, I can support you to increase your cycling fitness and therefore decrease how often you need to use the car"
I’m a trained cycling proficiency trainer"

Would you say this is unfair on people who don't have a bike, or judgemental on people who choose to use a car? Breastfeeding is too much of an emotional minefield that people forget that this woman is just offering a service, kindly, for free.

Breastfeeding is not an all or nothing thing. Presenting it as if it is is just spreading misinformation and ignorance.

All three of mine were mix fed until i swiched completely to formula.

YABU take it as breastfeeding support. As previously said people find offended in everything

Or Drained explained it much better than I did! :)

@FuriousWithTheNHS

So why would you assume the only parents struggling to pay for formula would have no breastmilk? When you yourself used both at once??

I'd have loved help relactating with my first, at 6 weeks I went from feeding once or twice a day to EBF about 4 weeks later. I read everything but a real life person for advice would have been invaluable.

[quote Draineddraineddrained]@puffinkoala

What if your baby is 6 months old and you fall on hard times?

Then you go to your local council for the vouchers mentioned? This is a much more sustainable way of supporting the correct nutrition of formula fed babies than hoping the foodback will get sufficient donations of the right brand of formula for those who need it. If anything it indicates how seriously the nutrition of formula fed babies is taken, not the reverse.[/quote]
I didn't say food banks needed to rely on donations of formula. They get a lot of cash donations so they could buy formula for parents who need it. I wouldn't have the first idea where you'd go at the local council either - especially in covid times - at least in normal times you could go to reception and ask.

I wouldn’t have found it judgemental but I formula fed both mine from birth, I just ignored any “well meaning” advice and hence anything that could be misconstrued as judgemental, it wouldn’t have bothered me, each to their own. At the end of the day, we all know “breast is best”, I just think that supporters of breast feeding can be a bit evangelical about it, which then comes across as judgey and condescending. I knew both mine would be formula fed before they were born, I was quite happy to pay the ridiculous amounts of money for formula.

@Tenyearsgone

Private lactation consultants are extortionate too. I expect the woman was touting for business.

You've made several posts like this in the thread. Both peer supporters and breastfeeding counsellors give voluntary help; they aren't paid roles (unless some organisation is employing them, but they still wouldn't be charging women they support).

Some lactation consultants do private work, which is usually charged for, but that isn't what this woman does. And even after she's qualified as a BC, it would take years more to become an LC (if that's even what she wants, which is not statistically likely).

The money to be made in the infant feeding world is in formula, not breastfeeding support.

YABU.

Most women in the UK stop breastfeeding before they wanted to and because of lack of support. There is a real need here.

The money to be made in the infant feeding world is in formula, not breastfeeding support.

This.

If only there was tons of money to be made in BFing support! We'd have a much higher rate of BFing in the UK.

I agree with u i dont think its been worded well at all and annoys me, i tried and couldnt breastfeed i would not feel good at time when i was feeding my children