JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Doctors say breast milk is best, but for moms who rely on baby formula, the anxiety is building.
Pediatricians say don’t take shortcuts to get around the baby formula shortage. That could be dangerous for your infant.
"I mean the main fear is that I just can’t feed my baby," said mother Sarah Locke.
Moms like Sarah Locke and Hilary Gordon fear running out of formula. "I have 3 weeks (left)," Gordon said. "Once we open up our next can, I’ll probably be freaking out.”
Gordon says her youngest son is on formula and needs it for at least 5 more months.
"We’ve tried the Infamil and Simulac (brands), but he gets sick. So my mom and my sister are mailing me it from Massachusetts," Gordon said.
Locke has a 1 year old on breast milk and formula. "I don’t produce enough breast milk to feed her or satisfy her enough," Locke explained.
She says moms are stopping at stores around town and posting online to let people know what’s in stock.
Pediatrician Dr. Randy Thornton says reach out to your child’s doctor to see if they can help.
One thing parents should not try in the meantime is diluting formula to make it last longer.
"That’s often one of the biggest mistakes," Thornton explained. "Parents will often do that to try to space out formula that they have on hand but it really effects the nutritional value of the formula.”
Here are more of the do's and don't's from Dr. Thornton:
DO's
- Call your pediatrician to see if they have samples you can have. Many doctor's get a sample supply from companies.
- Try other brand formulas in the meantime just to get by or even formula for a different age group than you would normally buy if you can't find anything else.
- If your child is older than 1 year old you can have cow’s milk as a replacement. If you child is 6 months old, The American Academy of Pediatrics now says cow's milk can be considered in an emergency situation and should only be used for a brief period. Add an iron supplement to your child's diet if you switch to cow's milk.
DON'T's
- Dilute the formula.
- Try to make your own formula.
- Entirely replace formula with other forms of animal milk for those under 1 year old. Dr. Thornton warns that can cause your child to have anemia.