So, here is the letter I wrote to the woman who wrote that article in 
Boston. I wanted to rip her head off, but I didn't. Hope it makes her think 
before writting next time......


Dear Joanna,

I read your article this morning, and, quite frankly, I find it a little 
offensive and under researched. You, unfortunately, sound bitter and 
unintelligent, 
and that makes me very sad for you.

Here are the cold hard facts… No, formula won’t kill your baby, however, it 
increases chances of ear infections, diabetes (type 2), Crohn’s disease, 
certain cancers, hardened arteries(high cholesterol), obesity, high blood 
pressure, cavities. These are just a few diseases that have a high 
reduction 
rate with pure breastfeeding. No, it’s not a guarantee that your child 
won’t get these diseases, but it’s a reduction rate that’s too outstanding 
to ignore.
Quite frankly, my kid (the older one) got a little formula and he seems to 
be fine- for now. I was raised on formula, and I am a bag of statistics:
Crohn’s disease, colon cancer, Type 2 diabetes. I am sure my mother thought 
I was fine, as well, until we learned each of my diagnoses. 

The thing is, we don’t know when the insult will harm the child or how much 
of the insult will harm the child. So, in my book, I just rather not risk 
it at all. 
At least, that’s what I did with the 2nd kid (because I knew more by then). 
If you only knew the damages a “little formula” could do (this would be 
achieved 
by reading the well documented research)  your tune would change 
dramatically. It’s like saying to a woman, “You shouldn’t smoke when you’re 
pregnant.”
Then the woman says, “Well one cigarette a day won’t kill the baby.” It 
probably won’t, but there are negative health ramifications in spite of her 
justifications.
Yes, your OB/GYN said it was okay to formula feed. Sure they did, they get 
freebies from formula companies. And, what’s more, they aren’t 	
aware nor even really interested in breastfeeding medicine. They probably 
got a 4-8 hour talk on breastfeeding in college and that’s about the extent 
of
their breastfeeding knowledge. Granted, there are OB/GYNs that have done 
more research, but that is a hard find. As a matter of fact, most 
pediatricians 
in this country have a limited knowledge of breastfeeding, as well. 
Luckily, they are starting to know more, but OB/GYNs still lag a bit behind!

Please get your facts straight before you go on record saying irresponsible 
things. You’re right, it won’t kill her to have received some formula, but 
I sure
hope she suffers no maladies because of the consumption of formula as she 
becomes an adult and you’re not around to see it.  I know that you say that 
YOU wouldn’t have survived breastfeeding without the help of formula, 
remember, when you have a child it stops being about what’s best for YOU and
becomes about what’s best for HER. That’s the bottom line.

I wish you luck in your journey as a mother.

Sincerely,

Veronica Tingzon, IBCLC, RLC
Oceanside CA

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