Vegan or vegetarian formula?

[FormulaQ]

Looking for some advice on formula as it’s all very new to me. I breastfed DD until she was 2 but for a few reasons I really don’t want to do it again and I’m feeling quite guilty about this for some reason. I have another DC due in 2 weeks and planning to formula feed.

I am vegan, DP is vegetarian.

I am unsure of wether to give DC2 vegan wysoy formula or Kendamil organic as this seems like the most ethical cows milk formula. I’m still uncomfortable with giving cows milk but if nutritionally it is better for them then this obviously outweighs my morals.

Could anyone tell me based on the nutritional comparisons below which formula they would choose? Left or right?

Many thanks!

Tbf they all are, but then non of them are making formula out of the goodness of their hearts. The mark up is ridiculous and it just prays on families.

Hi OP. We had a similar issue with our DS. I am vegan and DP is mostly vegan (flexitarian as he likes to say..). DS wouldn’t take expressed milk at childcare from 10 months, and was not eating well enough that I felt confident to let him go all day with no milk. We used the Kendamil organic as after researching it, I felt it was the best option for him. It didn’t sit well with me but as a PP said, baby humans need animal milk.
He is 17 months now and still breastfeeds at bedtime but otherwise has oat or soya. He does have dairy cheese in his diet though.

Not it’s not.

Please read this. Vegan baby milks (soy based) are not recommended for babies under 6 months unless absolutely necessary for nutrition.

https://www.bda.uk.com/uploads/assets/fa3d24ca-ab35-4a73-80db37116a4db24f/soyaformulapositionstatement.pdf

My (militant) vegan BIL insisted on giving it to my nephew. He failed to put on adequate weight and actually came pretty sick. When the health visitor referred him to social services for child neglect he reluctantly allowed him to have cows or goats milk.

My nephew is now two and eating a full vegan diet. The milk is literally a temporary thing in the important first few months.

It’s a ridiculous point.

Plus, as the OP is vegan, her breast milk would be vegetarian- unless I’m missing something?

Hi op - I'm vegan and dh eats meat - as I am the main carer by agreement we went with my choices unless it caused harm to the kids.
Two of mine had prescription soy milk due to lactose intolerant after breastfeeding; I found a vegan diet quite hard for babies/toddlers and all of them have been vegetarian incl follow on milk, it's worked really well. Ideally they would be vegan but I'm quite lazy and having access to jars etc was quite handy at times.

We had to have none cows milk formula for DS due to allergy reasons (top ups only as i was breastfeedig as much as possible)
And I was told if he was a girl he would have more options as boys cant have any soya products until at least 6 month old and giving them soya before 6 months can have problems with reproduction when they were older.
I'm normally a bit sceptical and if I'd read it online then I wouldn't believe it but it came from my health visitor and i then asked for a 2nd opinion from my midwife who confirmed it so depends on the ingredients and if you're having a boy or a girl.

Breastmilk is vegan. You're giving it willingly, with consent, so of course it's vegan.

OP we are a vegan family and our son had top ups of wysoy while I established a milk supply for exclusive pumping. His teeth are perfect (the best the dentist had ever seen!) and he is very happy and healthy. Make an informed decision. Personally I would not choose to feed my children breastmilk from another animal, powdered or fresh. Whether they choose to continue that when they're older is up to them.

This is utter nonsense. Soya is not proven to have any affect on reproduction in humans. That's a common misconception perpetuated by the dairy industry.

baby humans need animal milk

Human milk. They need human milk. Not milk designed to grow a cow or a goat 😂

We looked into it and aparently it's because the chemical composition of soya is so similar to other things it can get broken down wrong in the babies stomach.
And until the baby is on solids and so has the right bacteria and such from the solids in their stomach to deal with it, you dont know which way it will be digested and why would you take the risk?
Not a problem for adult humans at all (unless they have stomach problems themselves and that means theres probably a lot of things they cant digest)
None of the research we did on the matter at the recommendation of the midwife came from or referenced the dairy industry in any way and were independent studies and chemical analysis. They even recomend eating soya products as an adult if breastfeeding because by the time it passes to the baby it has been broken down and digested by your own stomach.

It’s not a good point, clearly OP knows she wasn’t harmed in the making of her own breast milk.

@FormulaQ Regardless of which formula you choose, please try not to feel guilty about BF one baby and not the other.

I know that is easier said than done but we do the best for each child at the time. It may not be the same for all your children but you make the best choices with the things you have. 💐

soy formula I believe has lanolin in and is therefore not vegan but vegetarian.

kendamil is obviously not vegan but one of the only vegetarian formulas as it doesn’t use fish oil. It’s a popular choice.

there are fully vegan formulas available but not in the UK. They have to be ordered from France etc. it’s a lot more expensive to get it sent here. & I always think what if you need to get more quickly, you can’t just nip to the shop and restock.

I think pick your battles. Amazing that your little one will grow up eating so much plant based food. I really stressed about this as I am vegan but couldn’t breast feed. I ended up giving dairy formula to start with and now my little one is thriving on Alpro soya growing up milk (ages 1-3 years). She’s vegetarian like my partner but a lot of her meals are vegan. If I have another I would probably go for soy formula from the start, but I’ve accepted how I did it the first time. You just do what you can to get through and move on!

there is so much outdated misconceptions about soy milk largely due to the dairy industry. These myths have been largely debunked but the rhetoric still hangs around, even in healthcare circles! My current health visitor is veggie and amazingly informative and supportive.

there’s so much information online now (including some great veggie /vegan weaning Instagram accounts) and research into how to make sure veggie/vegan babies can be healthy and have all their needs met nutritionally.

And I was told if he was a girl he would have more options as boys cant have any soya products until at least 6 month old and giving them soya before 6 months can have problems with reproduction when they were older.
I'm normally a bit sceptical and if I'd read it online then I wouldn't believe it but it came from my health visitor and i then asked for a 2nd opinion from my midwife who confirmed it so depends on the ingredients and if you're having a boy or a girl.

My nephew was prescribed soya milk from the GP when he was 2 months old so that can’t be true.

Your own breast milk is neither vegan nor vegetarian, and you gave that to your first child. Or does your own milk not count as an animal product?

🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

We used sma wysoy formula from 6 months with no issues. She also got expressed breast milk til 9 months but only wysoy (and food) from 10-12 months. Since 12 months we’ve used a mix of alpro growing up and Oatly barista.

Totally agree that baby humans need human milk most, but in absence of that animal protein milk should be used first. just like with any other orphaned mammal in a zoo etc, an alternative animal milk is given.

We are a dairy free family and both kids are great with oat or soya milk FWIW.

I wouldn't give vegan formula. It will be highly processed and not similar to breast milk which normal formula is. Either continue to breast feed or put your morals on hold for a while