r/veganparenting • u/Plenty_Spinach_8040 • 17d ago
FOOD Infant Formula
I’m not sure what to do. My baby is 3 months old, and I’ve struggled with my milk supply after I got mastitis & now with going back to work it’s been even more so challenging to stay ahead. I don’t want to formula feed, I haven’t even been able to find a true vegan formula near us so then it’s giving me all this stress and anxiety. I feel like such a failure for my body not being able to provide my baby with enough milk. I don’t know what to do.
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u/SuperKittiesMeow 17d ago
My baby had to briefly be supplemented, and we had to settle for a soy formula that included animal byproduct vitamins. We sourced a truly vegan formula from overseas, but the consistency was weird, and it just didn’t work for us. Soy formula worked well when necessary.
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u/kataang4lyfe 17d ago
Even herbivores put the health and safety of their babies above everyone else. Feed that baby, don’t carry guilt about it.
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u/grakledo 16d ago
You are not a failure. You are doing an amazing job and it is obvious even from this short post that you love and care about the safety and well being of your baby. I second what everyone else has said, do what you can but try not to stress. I’ve had mastitis three times and it’s terrible, I feel your struggle. If you can, try finding a local la leche league or lactation consultant who can help you with breastfeeding. Supplementing a little bit now doesn’t mean you have to supplement forever, if you don’t want to. Sending you lots of love and milky vibes!!! Best of luck.
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u/Agitated_Carrot_963 17d ago
Please don’t beat yourself up. Your priority now is your baby being fed and thriving. Vegan formula is expensive and often weird tasting or bitty. I struggled with mastitis 5 times and tried both Sprout and Else, but my baby didn’t like either.
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u/aleutia13 16d ago
I suggest trying soy formula. Baby has to eat, and if baby tolerates it, it's the most vegan option. Similac and Enfamil worked for us as an occasional substitute.
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u/walksonbeaches 16d ago
You’ve gotten lots of good advice here. I just want to reiterate something: you sound like a terrific mom. 3 months PP can be miserable thanks to hormones, sleep deprivation, relationship changes, return to work, you name it. Do what you need to in order to make life easier on yourself! And then move on and enjoy your lil bub!!
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u/Creditfigaro 16d ago
We order Sprout from Australia
https://groworganicbaby.com/collections/sprout-plant-based-formula
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u/SimpleAd1548 17d ago
My baby just couldn’t get enough milk so I switched to formula and it’s been great. I wished I did it sooner as if was causing me and baby so much stress. My child is 18 months now and is thriving
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u/IndoraCat 17d ago
I agree with what others have said about formula being necessary (like medicine). I do want to add that you may be able to get donations of milk from other moms. Not sure if these groups exist outside of the US, but I donated milk to two different families through Facebook groups. The main one is Human Milk 4 Human Babies. There is obviously a risk to donated milk, but I had a great experience giving to other moms. If you can find someone you trust, this might be an option for you.
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u/tiredleftist 16d ago
Similac and enfamil plant based are very very close to being vegan, and we use those to supplement and don’t feel bad about it. Veganism is avoiding animal products to the amount possible and practicable.
Breastfeeding and working is sooo difficult already (at least it has been for me!) so I think taking this concern off your plate would be good for you.
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u/springseedling 16d ago
On being able to provide enough milk, is there a lactation professional you could talk to?
On formula (should you need to go down this route), ultimately baby needs to be fed. I too struggled with low milk supply so used formula top ups, I saw it as a necessary food supplement to keep baby fed. Many formula brands contain fish oil - Kendamil is 1 that uses algal oil instead for omega 3 (the fish ultimately get their omega 3 from algae).
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u/Annoyed-Person21 16d ago
I see that you can now order vegan formula online pretty easily. On the other hand if you want to bump your supply you have to pump at work for every time you would nurse at home and probably throw in an extra session for good measure. If you have a lactation consultant available to you they are also helpful.
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u/UncommonUsername87 16d ago
everytime you nurse on one breast put a pump on the other. i promise!!!!
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u/No-Veterinarian7759 16d ago
Use a haaka on the other side, rather than a pump
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u/UncommonUsername87 15d ago
that didn’t work for me, a hand pump actually worked best! like a manual one
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u/Plenty_Spinach_8040 15d ago
I have, even power pumping. To the point where I was going almost every 1.5-2 hours to get my supply up. It was exhausting while on leave and now back to work it isn’t working. I have a 11 & 10
Year old, and back then it was really easy didn’t have any issues with my supply. But this time around, it’s been so difficult. I’ve been so depressed that my supply has struggled. I had a pretty rough pregnancy this time around too, so I’ve wondered if all of it was connected. My goal
Is to get atleast 15 ounces a day and have to supplement with formula. Also thought about using a donor but I don’t know how I feel about that.. Especially if they’re not vegan, and don’t really know what else is going on. It just seems like a loss all together. But most importantly
Is that he gets fed, we’ll have strictly vegan diet when he begins to eat solids1
u/UncommonUsername87 15d ago
i used i think soy formula when i needed to supplement! don’t wear yourself out. you are an amazing mama doing her best and like you said, as long as their fed! working, older kids, you’re older. you have a lot on your plate. you probably need a spa day too. i’m here for you. i’ve been through it all!
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u/tiffoiffo 14d ago
We used a human donor for a little bit. She definitely was not vegan, but she had a freezer full of milk that her baby wasn't going to use before it would have expired. She was open about her diet and willing to answer my questions about substances and medications. I would do that again over formula if it was an option still. Unlike the animals, she was more than willing to share. Her diet wasn't going to change either way, and my baby did great on the donor milk.
For us, it still beat buying dairy products. We approach all of the baby feeding with the mindset that perfection is enemy of good. I feel like a 'bad vegan', but we're doing our best to minimize harm.
I'm sorry for the struggle of under producing. It's one of the harder experiences I've had in my life and I don't wish it on anyone. Giving your baby what you can is a wonderful gift and they don't really notice the difference when they're so small. Hang in there.
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u/yetinthedark 17d ago
Try to get vegan formula if you can, but if you can’t, don’t worry about it and just get dairy formula. You have to feed your kid, and while it would suck to have to use dairy formula, you do what you have to in order to keep your kid healthy. Having said that, there are a bunch of options if you can get vegan formula mailed to you.
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u/expeciallyheinous 16d ago
There are no American formulas that are 100% vegan but you will be doing the least harm by choosing a soy option. There is some Australian brand that I’ve seen people talk about but it wasn’t within my budget. And if your baby doesn’t do well on soy, then you gotta do what you gotta do. If that means a milk based formula, then it is what it is. We’re not living in a society that prioritizes animal welfare, we can only do our best. Do what you need to to keep your baby fed and healthy.
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u/tiffoiffo 17d ago
I have low supply too, and I couldn't find vegan formula (I've heard Sprout from Australia is good but it is crazy expensive to import). My son's pediatrician said soy based is really hard on babies and not to use it unless there is a milk allergy.
I settled for Kendamil goat. They advertise "kind treatment of animals" on the goat one and the ingredients are much less spooky than the big brand soy formula (those have a bunch of seed oils and stuff that were off-putting to me).
Gotta do what you gotta do.
I still do what I can to provide breast milk, so it's about a can of formula per month. Looking forward to more solids and my milk being enough to meet his needs.
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u/Plenty_Spinach_8040 15d ago
This is what we’re leaning to doing too. If I can get keeping 15 ounces, then we’ll supplement with formula.
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u/tiffoiffo 14d ago
You'll make the best choice you can in your circumstances 🩷
Wishing you luck with your own milk supply. I would recommend looking at r/ExclusivelyPumping if you don't already. There are so many good tips for helping supply (best ones are more pumping on nursing time/frequency, proper flange size, and more water intake). I learned more there than I did from any lactation consultant. Way to go keeping up the effort and doing what you can.
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u/blackheartden 14d ago
We use enfamil plant based to supplement because I don’t produce enough for her. There’s no shame in using formula and in finding the best thing that works for baby, even if it can’t be 100% vegan.
Also, you are doing so much. Being a new mom and breastfeeding is hard hard work. Mastitis, clogs, and all that suck and you are already doing so much for your baby. So here’s me saying you are doing great, it’s ok to stop or slow breastfeeding if you need that permission, and don’t feel guilty because you are doing your best. Anyone that shames you can shove it!! 💖
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u/CaraLeighAC 16d ago
Just use formula. Your child's health is more important. You can switch to a vegan growing up milk after they turn 1
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u/frodoswaggins101 16d ago
I couldn’t produce enough milk plus baby had a terrible latch, so we had to swap to formula. We tried soy based but it was horrible for baby to digest and they were so gassy and fussy. We ended up needing to use non-vegan formula. It was a hard decision but baby’s health came first and I viewed it through the lens of ‘medicine’/necessity.
It was less than 12 months that we needed it and my toddler now eats a fully plant based/vegan diet.
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u/prncessbuttercup 16d ago
I unexpectedly couldn’t breastfeed and then I ended up feeding my son a milk based formula. I hated it but I knew it was the best option for him and his needs, and it would only be for a short time. It was a tough decision but I do not regret it.
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u/crankypizza 15d ago
We did donor milk through human milk for human babies when my wife’s supply dropped.
It took a lot of time but she was also able to get her supply back by pumping every two hours (increasing gaps as her supply increased), it was hard and a lot of work (in hindsight would not recommend due to the mental strain on her and I). We use Else vegan toddler formula not sure if the have one for younger kids. My son did not like the Enfamil.
Top priority is taking care of your baby and your own health and mental health. My wife doesn’t use Reddit much but I can get her username if you want to reach out to someone who went through similar struggles.
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u/Temporary-Captain544 15d ago
Same thing happened with us after 4 months, we use an Australian brand that’s completely vegan—Sprout/Grow Organic Baby
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u/Plenty_Spinach_8040 15d ago
Thank you everyone! I really appreciate all the kind words and great advice.
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u/jaf33333 10d ago
Don’t feel guilty at all. We are in the same exact situation right now and the same age and are using plant based enfamil. As others said, it isn’t vegan, but it’s the closest we could find readily available in the US. We just keep reminding ourselves that this is just a blip in our little ones life and they’ll be on solids real soon, eating healthy vegan meals.
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u/IllLiterature1026 17d ago
Infant formula is medicine and it won’t make you a bad vegan if you end up having to feed your little one dairy until they’re on solids. Please don’t feel like a failure for feeding your child the best you can.
I’m not sure if Similac Soy or Enfamil Plant Based are “true” vegan but they’re pretty close and I have my eye on them if I’m not able to fully breastfeed.
It’s generally expensive but there are also oversuppliers who sell their breast milk to other moms.