Hi All, >>**But, some babies will be allergic regardless of what their mothers >>do. When this occurs, your physician may recommend a soy formula (for >>infants with no soy allergies) or other hypoallergenic infant >>formulas.** No wonder soy allergy rates are going up (according to what I have read and experienced) with attitudes like this! The National Asthma Campaign in UK don't recommend soy formula be used on potentially allergic babies at all, until around 4mo, due to soy allergy being common (according to a weaning information sheet I have). Even the manufacturers of a soy formula in UK say, in their package insert "At least 10% of babies allergic to dairy will also be allergic to soya products". Plus, all the health concerns about soy and phyto-oestrogens etc, the high levels of glucose syryp in it which are a nightmare for the teeth, the lack of certain essential fatty acids etc. And I absolutely *hate* that word "hypoallergenic" as it is meaningless IMHO - you can be allergic to hypoallergenic products, it's just less likely. And if you are allergic to a hypoallergenic product, it's "hypoallergenic" status is irrelevent to you (I am so allergic to one "hypoallergenic" lipstick, my lips swelled up so I could hardly speak). I was talking about this issue just the other day, to a mother who had had to eliminate something like 100 products from her diet in order to help her breastfed, allergic baby. When she asked the doctors why they didn't originally suggest changing her diet (she tried the baby on hypoallergenic formula, with disasterous results, btw) they said that "they thought it would be too much to expect". She was absolutely incensed by this attitude - it is *so* patronising. I do know a mother who refused to consider breastfeeding after her colicy baby did worse on everything they gave him (however, this was the same doctor who had prescribed bromocryptine (sp?) a few days before, to dry up her milk), but most I know would consider it, even if it meant quite a bit of personal sacrifice. In fact, my experience is that with the right information, mothers will do the most incredible things to help their children. My feeling is that so many mothers "choose" to formula feed out of ignorance, because they've heard all this "breast is best" stuff, with no support backing it up whatsoever, and assume all the health problems associated with formula feeding are "normal" (I have been told that babies "get" ear infections, constipation, chest infections, "baby eczema" and "baby stomach flu" and this is totally normal). IMHO, that is patronising as well - do we think they couldn't "take it" if we started talking about the "risks" of formula feeding? PS I've just forwarded Diane Weissinger's "Language" essay to my mother, who bottlefed us both (my sister apparently by choice) and am nervously awaiting her reaction, preparing to duck! I am trying to educate her to give myself and my sister an easier life. -- Anna H. mailto: [log in to unmask] http://www.ratbag.demon.co.uk/anna/ *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html