Sarah Pope, local chapter leader for Tampa, Florida, has created several videos to help illustrate WAPF principles.
TRANSCRIPT: OPENING SEGMENT
Hi Everyone, my name is Sarah Pope and you may know me from my blog TheHealthyHomeEconomist. I am also a Chapter Leader for the Weston A. Price Foundation.
In this video today, I’m going to talk to you about feeding your baby, one of the most important decisions a parent can ever make.
There is no doubt that breastmilk from a well nourished Mother is the best option for your baby. In the situation where this is not a possibility, a homemade baby formula is the next best alternative.
Commercial baby formula is not preferable to a homemade formula. Even the organic formulas are highly processed concoctions of rancid vegetable oils and denatured proteins.
Breastmilk from a donor Milk Bank is also not recommended as the breastmilk from these sources is pasteurized in most cases and the diet of the donor mothers is unknown.
The best way to prepare your homemade baby formula is with whole, raw milk from old fashioned cows grazing on unsprayed pastures.
Goat milk, while rich in fat, is not preferable to cows milk because it lacks folic acid and is very low in Vitamin B12. Both of these nutrients are essential to baby’s growth and development.
Don’t be concerned that making this homemade formula will be expensive. On average, organic brands of commercial formula are 50% more expensive per ounce than the homemade raw milk formula.
I’m now going to take you into my own kitchen and show you how to make the homemade formula for your own child.
I’m also going to show you how to make a hypoallergenic meat based formula in the event your baby has a true milk allergy.
IN THE KITCHEN – MILK BASED FORMULA
The first recipe I’m going to demonstrate for you is the homemade milk based formula using whole raw milk from grassfed cows. To obtain whole raw milk locally, contact your nearest Weston A. Price Foundation Chapter Leader or visit realmilk.com.
http://westonaprice.org/find-a-local-chapter
http://www.realmilk.com/
The formula should ideally be made every couple of days but it also freezes well in order to keep some on hand for emergencies. If your baby is consuming only the formula, it is best to make it fresh every day.
As you can see, I’ve laid out all the ingredients you will need to make this formula yourself.
It may look a little overwhelming at first as there are 14 different ingredients, but after you’ve made the formula yourself a few times, you will quickly see how easy it is to make over and over again.
Once you become comfortable with your routine, it will take you about 10 minutes to mix up a batch of the formula.
The best place to obtain these ingredients is from RadiantLifeCatalog.com http://www.radiantlifecatalog.com/
You can also find recommendations for high quality brands in the Weston A. Price Foundation Shopping Guide. http://tinyurl.com/3u39dp7
The amount of formula I’m going to show you how to make is 36 ounces. Feel free to make larger batches at one time and freeze for convenient use, but is is best to make the formula every day or two.
The first step is to take 2 cups of filtered water and remove 2 tablespoons which will give you 1 ⅞ cups of water. Pour about half the water into a pan and turn on the heat to medium.
Next, add 2 teaspoons of gelatin and 4 Tablespoons lactose to the warming water and let dissolve, stirring occasionally.
Gelatin improves the digestibility of the formula and lactose, also called milk sugar, is added as breastmilk is richer in lactose than cow’s milk. Lactose is critical for development of the baby’s nervous system.
While the gelatin and lactose are dissolving, place 2 cups of raw whole milk in a clean, glass blender and add the remaining ingredients:
¼ cup liquid whey is added to the formula because Mother’s milk is richer in whey than cow’s milk.
Whey must be homemade and can be obtained by straining the clear liquid from plain yogurt or kefir through a dishtowel into a bowl. Do not use powdered whey from the store as whey is very fragile and cannot be dried or powdered.
Also, do not use cheese whey as it will curdle the formula. Written instructions on how to make whey can be obtained on the Weston A. Price website and from Nourishing Traditions cookbook.
http://westonaprice.org/childrens-health/319-recipes-for-homemade-baby-formula
Next, add 2 or more tablespoons good quality cream, preferably not ultrapasteurized. Cream provides added cholesterol which is of great importance to the development of the brain and nervous system.
Cream is also a good source of a special fat called arachidonic acid, another nutrient necessary for brain function as well as the integrity and function of the digestive tract.
In addition, cream helps stabilize your baby’s blood sugar so that he or she can go longer between feedings. It will also reduce fussiness.
Next, add ¼ teaspoon acerola powder. Mother’s milk is higher in vitamin C than cow’s milk, so we need to add a natural form of vitamin C.
¼ teaspoon of bifidobacterium infantis is also added as this is a probiotic, that is, friendly bacteria, found in a baby’s digestive tract.
We will also add 2 teaspoons Frontier brand nutritional yeast flakes. The Frontier brand is recommended as it is low temperature dried and does not contain additives.
Next, I will add several different types of oils to mimic the fatty acid profile of Mother’s milk.
½ teaspoon of high vitamin, fermented cod liver oil is best but you can also use 1 full teaspoon of regular cod liver oil. For information on cod liver oil visit the Weston A. Price Foundation website
http://westonaprice.org/cod-liver-oil/238-cod-liver-oil-basics
1 teaspoon expeller pressed sunflower oil and extra virgin olive oil are then added. I will then remove the pan from the heat and pour in the remaining half of the water to cool.
Next, add 2 teaspoons coconut oil and ¼ teaspoon of high vitamin butter oil to the water to melt.
The butter oil is an optional ingredient but highly recommended.
Once the coconut oil and butter oil have melted in the warm water, add the water mixture to the blender ingredients and blend for about 3 seconds.
Pour the blended ingredients into glass jars or glass bottles and refrigerate.
If your child has an allergy to one or more of the oils in this formula, feel free to leave them out. Some mothers find that their babies do better if they leave out the gelatin and/or the nutritional yeast. Also, if your child has constipation issues, try substituting the raw whole milk with raw milk kefir or raw milk yogurt instead.
WARMING THE BABY BOTTLE
To prepare your baby’s bottle with the homemade formula, warm each glass bottle by placing in a pan of hot water.
Another good option is to use a baby bottle warmer.
Under no circumstances should baby bottles be microwaved as this will destroy much of the nutrition and enzymes in the homemade formula and has the potential to form hot pockets in the liquid that could burn your baby’s throat.
IN THE KITCHEN – HYPOALLERGENIC, MEAT BASED FORMULA
The second recipe I am going to demonstrate for you is how to make a hypoallergenic meat based formula.
This formula should be used if your child has a milk allergy. This formula is a much better alternative to the soy based formulas on the market, which have the potential to disrupt your baby’s delicate hormonal development, cause digestive disorders and suppress thyroid function.
As before, this recipe makes 36 ounces of formula.
Start by chopping 2 ounces of organic beef or chicken liver into small pieces.
Simmer the liver pieces gently in 3 ¾ cups of homemade chicken or beef broth until it is cooked through. Liquify the liver in the broth using a handheld blender or a food processor.
Once the liver broth has cooled, add the remaining ingredients:
5 tablespoons of lactose are added as Mother’s Milk is very rich in lactose and lactose is critical to the development of the nervous system. If your child has an allergy to lactose, substitute glucose or organic sucrose instead.
¼ cup liquid whey is then added to the formula.
Whey must be homemade and can be obtained by straining the clear liquid from plain yogurt or kefir through a dishtowel into a bowl. Do not use powdered whey from the store as whey is very fragile and cannot be dried or powdered.
Do not use cheese whey as it will curdle the formula. Written instructions on how to make whey can be obtained on the Weston A. Price website and from Nourishing Traditions cookbook.
Leave out the whey if your child shows signs of intolerance.
Next, ¼ teaspoon of bifidobacterium infantis is also added as this is a probiotic found in a baby’s digestive tract.
Next, add ¼ teaspoon acerola powder which is a natural form of Vitamin C.
The following oils are then added to mimic the fatty acid profile of Mother’s milk:
1 tablespoon of coconut oil, 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, and 1 teaspoon expeller pressed sunflower oil.
Finally, ½ teaspoon high vitamin, fermented cod liver oil or 1 teaspoon of regular cod liver oil is added. Blend on low for a few seconds to mix well.
Pour the formula into clean, glass jars or baby bottles and store in the refrigerator.
As shown before, warm your baby’s glass bottle in a pan of hot water or with a baby bottle warmer. Never use the microwave.
ENDING SEGMENT
I hope you’ve found this video lesson informative and inspirational and you want to make it for your own baby right away.
As a stopgap until you gather all the ingredients for the homemade baby formula together, you can make a fortified commercial formula using the Baby’s Only Organic Dairy Formula brand.
Take 1 cup of the formula and blend together with 29 ounces of filtered water, one large egg yolk from a pastured egg that has been boiled for 3 ½ minutes, and ½ teaspoon of high vitamin, fermented cod liver oil.
For further information and testimonials about how the homemade baby formula has worked for other mothers, contact the Weston A. Price Foundation and order the Healthy Baby Issue of Wise Traditions magazine.
The Weston A. Price website also features the written recipes for the homemade baby formula and provides a wealth of information on how to nourish your growing child.
http://westonaprice.org/childrens-health/319-recipes-for-homemade-baby-formula
Also of Interest:
- Recipes for Homemade Baby Formula
- FAQ on Homemade Baby Formula
- Diet for Pregnant and Nursing Mothers
- FAQ on Diet for Pregnancy
- Homemade Baby Formula Testimonials
I made the raw cows milk recipe and it only made about 20 oz instead of 36 oz. I don’t know what I did wrong. I triple checked all ingrediants. Help!?
It’s almost impossible for us to know what happened there. You can try emailing us with more detail at info@westonaprice.org
can we use camel milk instead of the cows milk its more readily available in this region? and if the child is allergic to cows milk is the camels milk a better substitute or would you recommend the liver formula?
So I just found out thru a woman at Whole Foods that New Jersey isn’t allowed to sell Raw Whole cow’s Milk. It’s illegal to sell it here. Soooo I went with an Organic Whole Milk that is pasteurized because there’s nothing better apparently. The same goes with the cream. Is this okay?? I really have no other option for this. I would greatly appreciate an answer. Thank you!
I’ve seen on other parts of the site that pasteurized cream is ok but not ultra pasteurized. Same goes with the milk BUT you have to culture the milk with kefir or piima and get organic and preferably non homogenized and grassfed.
My infant was having a hard time digesting the raw milk and was showing signs of constipation and reflux. I’ve since switched to replacing the raw milk with raw kefir and she seems to be responding better to it but the kefir can also be to thick at times for her to squeeze through the bottles nipple. Should I try dividing the milk with the kefir? Is it safe for her to be drinking kefir through the first few months?