Regarding(once again, sorry) WIC and free formula, I was talking with some WIC people today who refreshed my memory about the origin of WIC. This program was an attempt to reduce the US's high infant mortalilty by providing supplementary food to pregnant women who had a nutritional risk in an effort to reduce low birth weight babies. None of us remember any data that stated that our high infant mortality is related to mothers not feeding their babies properly, starving, watering down formula, feeding other liquids etc.  If anyone has this data, please share it. I asked for this information in one of my recent posts, but so far have not heard from anyone.  I think we have gotten so into this free formula thing that we have forgotten the original mission. If we didn't give free formula, what would happen? Would it really mean many infant deaths or compromised health?(Doesn't formula give that already?)  Where is the data to substantiate this? And, I think we are more creative than that--we could think of something better than what we are doing. Let's brain storm and see what we can come up with: WIC can provide the best nutrition to mothers with food supplementation to mothers and breastfeeding support to help babies get breastmilk. No formula from this agency unless the mother has a medical reason for not bf HIV, galactosemia. If formula "must" be given how about giving it out of another agency--at least there would not be a double message from WIC.

Regarding this discussion on Lactnet, I do not think people are being personal. We must talk about things passionately and with data.  Let us continue to hash things out!  Just because we don't agree doesn't mean we can't work together or that we are not united about breastfeeding or that we have mean hateful intentions!!!! 
Carol L'Esperance RN, MSN, IBCLC, Albuquerque, NM

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