Hi, my name is Annemarie and I am the Client Services director for Night Nannies.
I use this blog as a way to give you tips and idea's in all areas of childcare and development.
Posted 07 June 07
Formula milk and breastfeeding
Although I fully breastfed my son who is now 3 I also dabbled in formula for his dream feed as I had a lot of trouble expressing milk. Since operating Night Nannies I have met a lot of families who have not been able to breastfeed or have chosen not to due to their own personal reasons.
In saying that I have become quite aware of the frustrations families feel when trying to find out information and gain support and understanding around bottle feeding their babies. I have been doing some research and have found that there are advertising restrictions around formula as medical research has proven that breast milk is best for babies. In order to encourage Mothers to breast feed and not be influenced by advertising campaigns of large formula manufacturers the Australian Government has put restrictions and this form of advertising. Most Mothers are aware of this, however I was not aware that it is a voluntary code that manufacturers can choose to be a part of.
This means that some formula companies have chosen not to be a part of this code whilst others are. Another area of confusion here of course because that means that some companies are labelling their products with names such as reflux formula or formula to prevent constipation etc whilst others are not as they are following the voluntary code of ethics.
In saying this it is still a very confusing market out there for parents who are bottle feeding and need to find the formula that is right for their baby. Most Early Childhood Health Nurses and Specialised Night Nannies will be able to recommend certain types of formula based on your child's needs. Although there can still be a process of trial and error when trying out what is going to work for your individual baby.
Night Nannies is hoping to create a web page where various formula descriptions, ingredients with links to various sites can be viewed to enable parents to be able to clearly understand what types of formulas are available and to be able to make a clear and informed choice for their baby.We will be looking for feedback from parents regarding what has worked for them and what hasnt with formulas they have tried and tested to help other parents out there.