Unsolicited, unwanted ABM rec'd in the mail: while I agree (on the one hand) with those who feel that the stuff isn't fit for human consumption, this is an area where I think it's better to get off of our own BFing platform and donate it where it will improve somebody's life. We BF advocates know how inferior to mother's milk it is, and we would like to see those least fortunate among us at least starting out their babies with the blessings of breastmilk, but given that many of the women who would benefit from the free formula have already decided not to BF, isn't it better to think of their babies at least getting ABM - in preference to, say, soda or root beer, or even "regular" cows' milk? I've seen many women come in to WIC with their babies getting bottles of all kinds of stuff (all of them worse than ABM) when their formula supply has run out. Johanna, you make a good point about clean water and safe storage for ABM being a problem for homeless women. BUT many of these women that I have known have problems that make breastfeeding not a good option for them either - AIDS/HIV, mental illness requiring medications that aren't so great for nursing babies (Lithium comes to mind, as well as some of the heavy-duty antipsychotics), alcoholism and frequent continuing use of "street drugs", are all frequently-encountered conditions among these women. Much as it pains me to say it, I think that many women are making the right decision for themselves when they go with formula-feeding - they know more about their lives than we do. And the lack of infant formula doesn't improve the risk factors in these women's lives; there are just some for whom breastfeeding will not be a viable option, and making formula less available doesn't add anything positive to their lives or their babies'. I'm thinking of one young mom I worked with - 15 yrs. old, homeless, staying at the shelter with her new baby, "breastfeeding". Her public health nurse brought her to me when baby was just a couple of days old, *not* thriving - mom was not allowed to hang out in the shelter with the baby during the day, and was not able to find places where she felt comfortable nsg., SO BABY WASN'T GETTING FED REGULARLY. Mom thought lack of wet diapers was a good thing, since diaper changes were difficult & diapers cost money. I worked with her to come up with a list of places she could nurse.(I even went with her to show her a little spot in the public library that I had always thought would be a good place to nurse if you were downtown.) A few days later I came in to a big ruckus - the baby was in the hospital, under custody of Dep't of Social Svcs. and very ill; turns out she had taken the baby with her to visit her boyfriend in jail (where the baby was exposed to meningitis, in the crowded waiting room), and then the next day had gone out late at night (for drugs) and just left the baby unattended in the shelter. No formula, no tidy little bottles of expressed breastmilk, absolutely nothing for the baby to be fed. Scary, isn't it?! We all would have been much happier if the shelter had had a supply of formula on hand, and I learned my lesson - from then on, extra formula that came our way at WIC went to the shelter and the many food pantries around the county; we also donated a regular supply to the teen parenting program, since planning ahead was often not a strong suit for these young moms. Remember Rule #1: FEED THE BABY! cATHY bARGAR, rn, ibclc iTHACA ny