Homemade Baby Formula

With the shortage of baby formula crisis, many of you (or someone you may know) may find this information very important and helpful! Nutritional author, Sally Fallon, and Dr. Mary Enig, both whom we greatly respect, created an information podcast on making your own Baby Formula! The following has been condensed from the podcast from May 25, 2022.

Notes

The article often refers to “pasture fed, organic and homemade.” These are always preferred forms but, if difficult to make or get, regular versions will also work. (Make sure to follow the type of whey directed below.)
The most popular, and easiest, has been the third recipe.

Baby Formula

Included in the blog are three proven recipes for baby formula that you can make at home yourself using natural ingredients to help keep your baby fed and nourished!

You may have heard the saying “breast is best” when used to advocate breastfeeding infants whenever possible. However, while mother’s milk may often be the best formula available, there are many reasons a mother may forego breastfeeding. At the end of the day, it’s just that; a mother’s decision. That’s where Baby Formula comes in.

Either way, “fed is best”! A starving or malnourished baby will never be a healthy baby. Unfortunately, the mass market formulas developed in the 1950s and 60s as a better alternative to mother’s milk are anything but! These formulas were designed with a profit over people mindset, and they have become worse over the years.

Soy-based dairy alternatives replaced meat-based alternatives in the 1970s, and companies began opting for ever-cheaper ingredients to win WIC (Women Infants and Children) contract bids.

With all this in mind, commercial formulas are still better than nothing. But we are now facing formula shortages due to supply chain issues. Thankfully, there’s a solution to all of this – and in addition to mother’s milk, it may represent the absolute best nutrition a baby can get! So, we’re happy to share with you three recipes for homemade baby formula courtesy of the formulas in Nourishing Traditions and product kits from Radiant Life.

1. Raw Milk Formula

The first is a raw-milk-based formula. Despite inaccurate claims to the contrary, properly handled raw milk is safe and offers many health benefits to a growing baby, such as disease resistance and superior growth and development.

(For lactose intolerant babies, the raw milk can be replaced with goat milk or a chicken or beef broth base with organic liver. See recipes below.)

Ingredients

2 cups whole raw cow’s milk, preferably from pasture-fed cows
1/4 cup homemade liquid whey (See recipe for whey below). Note: do not use powdered whey or whey from making cheese (which will cause the formula to curdle). Use only whey made from yogurt, kefir, or separated raw milk (recipe below).
4 tablespoons lactose
1/4 teaspoon bifidobacterium infantis
2 or more tablespoons good quality cream (can be pasteurized but not ultra-pasteurized or UHT)
1/2 teaspoon unflavored high-vitamin or high-vitamin fermented cod liver oil or 1 teaspoon regular cod liver oil
1/4 teaspoon high-vitamin butter oil (optional)
1 teaspoon expeller-expressed sunflower oil
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons coconut oil (Refined if you prefer minimal coconut taste or aroma. Online, Tropical Traditions is a good brand.)
2 teaspoons Frontier brand nutritional yeast flakes
2 teaspoons gelatin
1-7/8 cups filtered water
1/4 teaspoon acerola powder

Instructions

Put 2 cups of filtered water into a glass measuring pitcher and remove 2 tablespoons (that will give you 1-7/8 cups of water).
Pour about half of the water into a pan and place it on a medium flame.
Add the gelatin and lactose to the pan and let dissolve, stirring occasionally.
When the gelatin and lactose are dissolved, remove from heat and add the remaining water to cool the mixture.
Stir in the coconut oil and optional high-vitamin butter oil and stir until melted.
Meanwhile, place the remaining ingredients into a blender.
Add the water mixture and blend for about three seconds.
Place in glass bottles or a glass jar and refrigerate.
Before giving to baby, warm bottles by placing them in hot water or a bottle warmer. NEVER warm bottles in a microwave oven.

2. Goat Milk Substitution Formula

If substituting the Milk-Based Formula (above) with goat’s milk, you must adjust because it lacks folate and is low in vitamin B12. Both of these are essential to the growth and development of the infant. So, the inclusion of nutritional yeast to provide folate is essential.

To compensate for low levels of vitamin B12, add 2 teaspoons of organic raw chicken liver, frozen for 14 days, finely grated to the batch of formula. (Be sure to begin egg-yolk feeding at four months.) Everything else in the formula remains the same.

3. Liver-Based Formula

The liver-based formula also mimics the nutrient profile of mother’s milk. It is important to include coconut oil in this formula as it is the only ingredient that provides the special medium-chain saturated fats found in mother’s milk. As with the milk-based formulas above, all oils should be “expeller-expressed”. (Makes about 36 ounces.)

Ingredients:

3-3/4 cups homemade beef or chicken broth
2 ounces organic liver, cut into small pieces
5 tablespoons lactose
1/4 teaspoon bifidobacterium infantis
1/4 cup homemade liquid whey (See recipe for whey below)
1 tablespoon coconut oil. (Refined if you prefer minimal coconut taste or aroma. Online, Tropical Traditions is a good brand.)
1/2 teaspoon unflavored high-vitamin, or high-vitamin fermented, cod liver oil – (or 1 teaspoon regular cod liver oil)
1 teaspoon unrefined sunflower oil
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon acerola powder

Instructions:

Simmer liver gently in broth until the meat is cooked through.
Liquefy using a handheld blender or in a food processor.
When the liver broth has cooled, stir in the remaining ingredients.
Store in a clean glass or stainless-steel container.
To serve, stir the formula well and pour 6 to 8 ounces into a clean glass bottle.
Attach a clean nipple and set in a pan of simmering water until the formula is warm but not hot to the touch. Shake well and feed to baby. (Never heat formula in a microwave oven!)

Homemade Whey
(Makes about 5 cups.)

Homemade whey is easy to make from good quality plain yoghurt, or from raw or cultured milk. You will need a large strainer that rests over a bowl.
If you are using yoghurt, place 2 quarts in a strainer lined with a tea towel set over a bowl. Cover with a plate and leave at room temperature overnight. The whey will drip out into the bowl. Place whey in clean glass jars and store in the refrigerator.
If you are using raw or cultured milk, place 2 quarts of the milk in a glass container and leave at room temperature for 2-4 days until the milk separates into curds and whey. Pour into the strainer lined with a tea towel set over a bowl and cover with a plate. Leave at room temperature overnight. The whey will drip out into the bowl. Store in clean glass jars in the refrigerator.

Source: Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon with Mary G. Enig, PhD.
Podcast: www.westonaprice.org/podcast/make-your-own-baby-formula/
Recipes: www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/childrens-health/formula-homemade-baby-formula/
Kits: You can visit radiantlifecatalog.com for more information and to purchase homemade formula kits and replacement items.