Formula is Not the Devil

There is so much pressure to breastfeed in the US. There was a time when babies were put on formula right away and no body breastfed. This practice was as recent as the 1980's. I am a formula fed baby and I turned out just fine.
Yet, now, new mothers are expected to breastfeed. Some mothers have no interest in breastfeeding, but are eventually guilt tripped into doing it. Those who choose to formula feed their babies are made to feel as poor mothers, even by healthcare providers.
This is inexcusable.
New mothers have enough to deal with without being told their a bad mother for not breastfeeding. There are reasons that some babies need to be formula fed. These reasons can be anything from lack of milk production to infection or even the baby himself does not latch onto the breast. It is not the mother's fault that she cannot breastfeed her child. Sometimes, mothers need to be told it's okay to use formula some or even all of the time.
It's okay.
There is debate around if formula fed babies are more likely to be victims of obesity. However, according to the FDA formula actually has less fat than breast milk. Another debate is that formula does not and cannot replace the nutrients that breast milk has. Again, that's not true. The FDA regulates infant formula and no matter what brand is chosen, all have the needed vitamins and nutrients along with the right amount of fat that a growing baby needs.
It is said that breastfed babies are less likely to die of SIDS and are less likely to have diarrhea, get colds and ear infections. The fact is, no one really knows what causes SIDS and if your child is going to get ear infections, they're going to get them. Breastfed or not.
So, don't despair formula feeding moms! Breastfeeding is hard and it's easy to give up. Ignore the formula hate sites. You are not hurting your child by formula feeding. It's okay to give them formula. It's okay.
More on Formula vs. Breast milk : http://www.babble.com/baby/breastfeeding-vs-bottle-feeding-why-baby-formula-is-not-so-bad/