With the shortage of infant formula on store shelves and uncertainty of when there may be new supplies, many people are turning to the internet and social media to find out how to make their own infant formula at home.

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service personnel are advising worried mothers to check with their pediatricians about alternatives for feeding their infants to avoid nutrient and safety concerns surrounding homemade formulas.

“Due to product recalls earlier this year and supply chain shortages, Google, Facebook and other social media outlets have had a surge in articles or posts featuring how to make your own infant formula at home,” said Danielle Krueger, AgriLife Extension program specialist and registered dietitian nutritionist, Bryan College-Station.

“But making your own infant formula at home is not recommended and may even put your baby at risk. It can limit the necessary nutrients infants need for proper brain and overall development.”

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, making homemade infant formula can result not only in a loss of important nutrients but increase the risk of bacterial contamination from water as well as household ingredients. 

Seek a pediatrician’s advice

Krueger noted some infants may be on specialized formulas which may be either easier digested or tolerated due to other conditions. 

“Changing the ratio and type of formula may cause gastrointestinal and other complications for infants if a homemade formula is substituted,” she said.

Krueger said it is important to know which infant formula is best for your baby and to reach out to your pediatrician for help in determining which, if any, infant formula can be substituted to assure your infant’s nutritional needs.  

“Since infant needs change as they age, there is a lot of opportunity for a recommendation based on the age of the infant,” she said. “If the infant is closer to one year of age, the formula suggestions may be very different than for an infant that’s 4 or 6 months old.” 

Krueger said people can also dial 2-1-1 for local information about resources for infant formula.   

“But when in doubt, talk to your pediatrician,” she said. “They can help you make the best decision for your baby’s health. They may also have resources to get families what they need and can help direct them to an appropriate formula or substitution.”

Unique nutritional needs, health concerns

According to Jenna Anding, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension nutrition specialist in Texas A&M Department of Nutrition, Bryan-College Station, a developing baby needs vitamins and minerals including iron, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, folic acid and just the right ratio of nutrients. 

“While some may be inclined to make their own baby formula due to the current shortage, this can present many opportunities to limit the nutrients your baby needs to grow,” Anding said.   “Breastmilk and baby formula provide the right balance of essential nutrients your baby needs to support their growing and developing bodies.”

Anding said infant formula is specifically designed to mirror the calorie and nutrients found in breastmilk.  In addition, commercially developed formulas are reviewed and monitored to limit any risk of toxicity and allow for proper growth and development of the infant.

For more information on infant formula shortages and best practices visit http://www.healthychildren.org.

Danger Lurking in Your Back Seat!

The single most effective thing to prevent injuries and death in a car crash is to wear your seat belt. While most drivers and passengers are wearing their seat belts in the front seat, for some reason, many adults riding in the back seat do not feel they need to buckle their seat belt. A study from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) finds that to be very far from true. Unbelted rear passengers can become human projectiles – injuring themselves and the other passengers, even those wearing seatbelts.

Testing by the IIHS found that a driver who has an unbelted passenger sitting behind them is twice as likely to die in the event of a wreck, even if wearing a seatbelt. When traveling at just 35 mph, the unbelted rear passenger will slam into the driver with a force strong enough to deflate the airbag. As the driver, you are the captain of your ship and should ask all passengers to buckle up in the front and back. When drivers are buckled up it is much more likely that their passengers will be buckled up.

Now more than ever it is important to wear a seat belt in the front and the back and make sure that children are buckled up properly. According to the Texas Department of Transportation in 2020, the number of people who died while not wearing a seat belt increased by 16% over 2019, with 1,073 unbuckled drivers and passengers killed on Texas roadways. Wearing a seat belt helps keep occupants from being ejected in a crash and increases the chances of surviving by 45 percent. In pickup trucks, that number jumps to 60 percent, as those vehicles are twice as likely as cars to roll over in a crash. Seat belts are the best defense against impaired, aggressive, and distracted drivers. Texas law requires all passengers to be buckled up in the front and the back even in 15 passenger vans!

This year’s Click It or Ticket campaign runs from May 23 to June 5 and includes Memorial Day weekend when there will be extra travelers on the road. When the “Click It or Ticket” campaign launched in 2002, only 76 percent of Texans used their seat belts. Today, nearly 9 out of 10 Texans buckle up. In 2021 observed seat belt use in Texas was 88.2 percent for drivers and 88.8 for passengers.

With summer vacations coming up, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Family and Community Health Educator Courtney Parrott, Brown County reminds drivers and passengers of these important safety tips.

Children should ride in the back seat until they reach the age of 13. Until a child reaches age 13, their bones are not fully developed. Placing a child whose bones are not yet strong enough in the front seat, where there is the windshield, dashboard, and air bags, puts them at greater risk of injury or death during a crash.

Pickup trucks, while big and strong, are twice as likely to rollover in a crash due to their higher center of gravity. Wearing a seat belt reduces the risk of dying in a crash in a pickup truck. It is important to always make sure that the driver and every passenger in a pickup truck is buckled up.

Buckling up is not just for the daytime. Between 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. is when more crashes and fatalities happen.

Buckle up on short trips as well as long trips! Most fatal crashes happen within 25 miles from home and at speeds of less than 40 mph.

The single most effective thing you can do as a driver and passenger is to wear your seat belt and make sure that everyone in the vehicle buckles up!