1 00:00:01,800 --> 00:00:06,880 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio. Hey, 2 00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:11,080 Speaker 1: brain Stuff, learn vogel Bob here. The shortages of certain 3 00:00:11,119 --> 00:00:16,120 Speaker 1: products like meat or toilet paper are certainly annoying and inconvenient. 4 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:19,480 Speaker 1: That said, people can live without them, so it's not 5 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:23,160 Speaker 1: such a big deal in the grand scheme of things. However, 6 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:27,200 Speaker 1: the baby formula shortage of two is pretty scary stuff 7 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:30,120 Speaker 1: for caregivers of infants, not to mention adults who have 8 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:35,479 Speaker 1: medical conditions and need such products to survive. But commercially 9 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:39,599 Speaker 1: produced formula is still a relatively new fangled invention. So 10 00:00:39,720 --> 00:00:43,040 Speaker 1: what did people do before modern formula hit store shelves. 11 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:46,560 Speaker 1: Parents had to be prepared in the olden days because 12 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: many childbearing people struggled with low milk production related to 13 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 1: them undiagnosable medical conditions like hypothybroidism and polycystic overy syndrome, 14 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: among other issues. Also, people used to die in child 15 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: at that much higher rates than they do today, leaving 16 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:07,880 Speaker 1: behind infants in need of nourishment. Well before bottles and 17 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:12,080 Speaker 1: formula came along, babies still had to be fed. Many 18 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 1: parents turned to wet nurses to get the job done 19 00:01:14,760 --> 00:01:19,120 Speaker 1: when they couldn't or in some cases wouldn't. Wet nurses 20 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:22,200 Speaker 1: are lack painting people who as early as two thousand 21 00:01:22,319 --> 00:01:26,520 Speaker 1: BC have been employed or volunteered to breastfeed children who 22 00:01:26,520 --> 00:01:29,679 Speaker 1: weren't their own. In some cases, wet nurses have been 23 00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:34,160 Speaker 1: enslaved people as well. A Wet nurses were commonly hired 24 00:01:34,160 --> 00:01:37,680 Speaker 1: for affluent families from ancient times through the nineteenth century. 25 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 1: The job still exists, though its status as a paying 26 00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:44,640 Speaker 1: profession has largely died out. Today, there are even women 27 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:47,680 Speaker 1: who form cross nursing groups in which they take turns 28 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:50,640 Speaker 1: feeding each other's children in order to provide support and 29 00:01:50,680 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 1: also bond with multiple children and families in the community. 30 00:01:55,440 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 1: Parents who couldn't breastfeed and who lacked wet nurse access 31 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 1: often turned to animal milk to nourish their infants. This 32 00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:05,120 Speaker 1: was the most common type of artificial feeding until the 33 00:02:05,200 --> 00:02:09,040 Speaker 1: end of the eighteen hundreds, although many caregivers used cow's milk, 34 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:13,079 Speaker 1: Milk from goats, donkeys, camels, horses, pigs, and sheep were 35 00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:15,920 Speaker 1: also used, depending on where the parents lived and what 36 00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:20,480 Speaker 1: was available. Before the modern baby bottle was properly fine tuned, 37 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:24,160 Speaker 1: children in France and likely other areas would often suck 38 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:28,880 Speaker 1: directly from an animal's teeth. Another common method in the 39 00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:31,679 Speaker 1: sixteenth to eighteenth centuries was to make a mix called 40 00:02:31,720 --> 00:02:35,120 Speaker 1: pap or panada made of bread soaked in milk or 41 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 1: cereal cooked in water. This was fed to the baby 42 00:02:38,639 --> 00:02:41,480 Speaker 1: via a spoon, a rag, or a special device called 43 00:02:41,480 --> 00:02:45,080 Speaker 1: a pap boat. But we didn't yet know about the 44 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:48,440 Speaker 1: importance of sterilizing the objects that babies were drinking out of, 45 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:53,520 Speaker 1: nor how pasteurization worked, nor what nutrients babies need. In 46 00:02:53,560 --> 00:02:56,720 Speaker 1: the early eighteen hundreds, one third of all babies fed 47 00:02:56,760 --> 00:02:59,640 Speaker 1: with feeding devices died during their first year of life. 48 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:02,840 Speaker 1: Of course, other health issues were more deadly back then 49 00:03:02,880 --> 00:03:08,399 Speaker 1: as well. Eventually, enterprising chemists decided to try to more 50 00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:12,240 Speaker 1: closely mimic human breast milk, and in eighteen sixty five 51 00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: one Eustace Volan Liebig created what's believed to be the 52 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:20,400 Speaker 1: world's first infant formula. It was made of wheat, cow's milk, malt, flour, 53 00:03:20,520 --> 00:03:25,359 Speaker 1: and potassium by carbonate. In eighteen sixty seven, pharmacist assistant 54 00:03:25,400 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: On rins Lely launched a product that was made with 55 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:32,880 Speaker 1: similar ingredients but was easier to prepare. By eighteen eighty three, 56 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 1: there were at least twenty seven brands of infant food available. 57 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:39,320 Speaker 1: While these would keep a child from going hungry, they 58 00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:42,360 Speaker 1: usually lacked some of the necessary vitamins for infant health. 59 00:03:43,400 --> 00:03:46,720 Speaker 1: Another milestone in infant formula occurred when we figured out 60 00:03:46,720 --> 00:03:49,560 Speaker 1: how to preserve foods through canning, which gave rise to 61 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:53,320 Speaker 1: condensed milk and evaporated milk. In the eighteen hundreds, many 62 00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:56,640 Speaker 1: pediatricians recommended evaporated milk to mothers for their babies in 63 00:03:56,680 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 1: the nineteen thirties and forties. The first nonpowder formula hit 64 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:07,120 Speaker 1: the marketplace in nineteen one to great fanfare. For the article, 65 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:09,400 Speaker 1: this episode is based on How Stuff Works. Spoke by 66 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 1: email with Dr Hilary Bashaw, a pediatric gastrointurologist at Children's 67 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:16,320 Speaker 1: Healthcare of Atlanta and an assistant professor at the Emory 68 00:04:16,400 --> 00:04:20,480 Speaker 1: University College of Medicine. She said that was a turning 69 00:04:20,480 --> 00:04:24,040 Speaker 1: point in history when the developed world embraced artificial infant 70 00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:26,920 Speaker 1: formula and it became the feeding method of choice for many, 71 00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:30,960 Speaker 1: regardless of ability to breastfeed. By the nineteen seventies, many 72 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:33,640 Speaker 1: were turning back to breastfeeding, and now we live in 73 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:36,480 Speaker 1: an era where there are many accepted and safe ways 74 00:04:36,520 --> 00:04:40,960 Speaker 1: to feed infants. Infant formula today is made up of 75 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:45,000 Speaker 1: a careful blend of fats, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. 76 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:48,479 Speaker 1: The most common protein is cow's milk, with vegetable oil 77 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 1: for fat and lactose for cars. But with formula currently 78 00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:55,040 Speaker 1: in short supply, many are wondering if they can make 79 00:04:55,080 --> 00:04:57,640 Speaker 1: their own version at home, but experts are quick to 80 00:04:57,680 --> 00:05:02,279 Speaker 1: caution people against doing this. Bashaw explained making your own 81 00:05:02,279 --> 00:05:05,039 Speaker 1: formula at home could lead to major health problems or 82 00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:09,479 Speaker 1: even death. Infants require specific nutrients with careful fluid and 83 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:12,960 Speaker 1: electrolyte balances that are nearly impossible to recreate at home. 84 00:05:13,600 --> 00:05:17,280 Speaker 1: The significant nutritional deficiencies and developmental and growth delays could 85 00:05:17,279 --> 00:05:22,640 Speaker 1: result from using homemade formulas. Homemade formulas tend to contain 86 00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:25,880 Speaker 1: far too many saturated fats and proteins for a sensitive 87 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:29,000 Speaker 1: young stomach. They also don't have nearly the amount of 88 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:32,120 Speaker 1: essential fatty acids or vitamins that an infant needs to thrive, 89 00:05:32,560 --> 00:05:35,680 Speaker 1: and often feature products like corn syrup, which many babies 90 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:39,479 Speaker 1: can't tolerate. Keep in mind that babies used to die 91 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:45,200 Speaker 1: of malnutrition diarrhea. And bottle contamination all the time. Modern 92 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:49,320 Speaker 1: commercially produced formulas, by contrast, are heavily regulated, thanks in 93 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:51,920 Speaker 1: part to the Infant Formula Act of nineteen eighty, which 94 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:56,440 Speaker 1: was updated in ninety six. Bashaw said there's constant development 95 00:05:56,480 --> 00:05:58,920 Speaker 1: to make formula as close to human milk as possible, 96 00:05:59,320 --> 00:06:02,560 Speaker 1: both for improved formula tolerance and to ensure babies on 97 00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:07,159 Speaker 1: all sources of nutrition grow and develop well. Currently, she 98 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:10,080 Speaker 1: notes that there are minimum levels for twenty nine nutrients 99 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,799 Speaker 1: and maximum levels for nine nutrients in infant formula. Because 100 00:06:13,880 --> 00:06:17,040 Speaker 1: babies require a special balance to thrive to their fullest potential, 101 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:21,799 Speaker 1: most caregivers prefer to pick a formula type and stick 102 00:06:21,839 --> 00:06:25,880 Speaker 1: with it to minimize the risk of upsetting the baby's cut. However, 103 00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:28,760 Speaker 1: in these lean formula times, it might be necessary to 104 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,159 Speaker 1: deviate from the norm and take whatever you can get. 105 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:35,800 Speaker 1: This is likely to be just fine, says Pasha a quote. 106 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:38,960 Speaker 1: Most babies can be given different types of formula provided 107 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,000 Speaker 1: they do not have a medical condition requiring a specialty formula. 108 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:45,080 Speaker 1: A baby that can tolerate a cow's milk formula will 109 00:06:45,200 --> 00:06:47,760 Speaker 1: likely do fine with a plant based so I formula 110 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,719 Speaker 1: if that's what's available. Similarly, babies on brand name formula 111 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:56,599 Speaker 1: should do well on the generic counterpart of that formula. However, 112 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,120 Speaker 1: parents with any concerns about switching things up should up 113 00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:03,159 Speaker 1: an open line of dialogue with a healthcare professional, especially 114 00:07:03,160 --> 00:07:07,680 Speaker 1: if a child has medical conditions that require specialty formulas. Plus, 115 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:11,200 Speaker 1: a healthcare provider can help manage any gastro intestinal systems 116 00:07:11,200 --> 00:07:16,320 Speaker 1: that may occur with a formula change in dire situations. 117 00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: The American Academy of Pediatricians says cow's milk can be 118 00:07:19,360 --> 00:07:22,200 Speaker 1: given to infants over six months old who normally take 119 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 1: regular formula, but for no longer than one week. However, 120 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:34,000 Speaker 1: you should talk to a healthcare provider first. Today's episode 121 00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:36,600 Speaker 1: is based on article what did people do Before infant 122 00:07:36,640 --> 00:07:39,200 Speaker 1: formula was invented? On how stuff Works dot Com written 123 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:41,440 Speaker 1: by A Leah Hoyt. The brain Stuff is production of 124 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:43,800 Speaker 1: by Heart Radio in partnership with how stuff Works dot Com, 125 00:07:43,880 --> 00:07:46,840 Speaker 1: and it's produced by Tyler Clang. Four more podcasts from 126 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:49,880 Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 127 00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:51,840 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.