Vegan infant/ baby formula milk- Living with Warmth

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Shoes and Clothes

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Vegan children's shoes

Vegan adult shoes

Milk

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Breastfeeding products

Bottle feeding products

Nursing clothes

Breastfeeding facts

Breastfeeding is strongly recommended where viable, and we have been lucky it worked well for us. Breast milk can be stored.

Breast milk qualities cannot be replicated in formula. Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended for the first six months of a baby's life. After this, a combination of breastfeeding and food is recommended until the age of two (WHO, WHO). This is because of the great present and future benefits in health and development.

Vegans should keep up a good diet, including B12. Wash breasts without soap. (Viva)
Milk takes a few days to start flowing, and production is encouraged by baby suckling.
Topping up with formula milk, or offering a dummy lowers breastmilk supply (NHS).
Milk can be pumped and saved. You can also be referred to a milk bank if you have serious problems.
Midwives have recommended watching breastfeeding videos (especially this one) to me before the baby is born, and attending a workshop to learn positioning and attachment.
The NHS website recommends cheap solutions to breast issues, such as: warm bath or shower, warm flannel, cabbage leaves and massage.
Research as much as possible about breastfeeding before you start, and find local services with the links section.

Formula facts

Vegan baby formula milk exists! It's a choice people make for various reasons. top of page

Scroll down for links to buy vegan formula milk.

Soya Milk Safety

'Millions of infants worldwide have safely been fed soya-based infant formulas over the last 60 years (Viva). It is considered safe for full term babies (Vegan Health).
The NHS suggest consulting a doctor before giving soya formula to a baby, due to certain hormone- like chemicals found in the plants. Viva highlight that the actual hormones are found in greater amounts in animal milk. Animals naturally have hormones, and these can also be injected on farms.
Formula, rather than normal adult milk should be used until a child is 2. However, children's soya milk alternative can be used from age 1 (Viva).
The earliest recorded use of conventional adult soya milk was in 1365. Soya is widely consumed around the world, in countries such as China.

Rice milk safety

Rice milk formula is also safe (European Journal of Pediatrics) when tested as an alternative to milk formula for infants with an intolerance.
Surrey NHS state that rice milk should not be given before age 4.5 due to arsenic. The Food Standards Agency do not recommend rice milk for babies (BBC).
The EU place limits on the amount of arsenic allowed in rice products for babies, which go beyond the usual levels set by the WHO and FAO (BBC). Surrey NHS also state that milk free formulas are available on prescription to babies with an allergy.
Rice is the staple food of many countries, and lactose intolerance is widely prevalent.
The earliest recorded use of conventional adult rice milk was in 1921.