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(More customer reviews)Hello:
I felt it was important for me to share this review with fellow parents. I have been trying to make a decision on an organic formula (weighing the pros and cons of Earth's Best and Baby's Only) and I have done weeks of research, I have read the cornucopia reports, combed clinical studies I could find on the internet regarding DHA/ARA, websites of all the major formaula manufacturer's, research on hexane, etc, etc, and I finally talked to my pediatrician. Here is a summary of what I found:
Earth's Best:
Major Pro: Milk-based. My pediatrician was adamant that the first ingredient in an infant formula should be milk. Despite opinions I've seen out there about the composition of carbs - lactose and other sugars - in breast milk and its similarity to composition in Baby's only, there is no doubt that formula should be milk-based. All forms of syrup - whether it is corn syrup or brown rice syrup are sugars, and not suitable substitutes for lactose. These sugars can not only lead to problems with obesity and diabetes later in life, but the lack of lactose does not sufficiently meet an infant's nutritional needs.
Major Con: Hexane-derived DHA. By the way, it's not just the organic formulas that have this controversial method of DHA/ARA extraction. Every formula on the market - organic and non-organic has DHA derived in this way. I called every formula manufacturer to verify this. (Martek's LifeDHA is also white-labeled - so you dont always know that it is Martek. But if there is DHA/ARA added to an infant formula or food, whether it is labeled or not, it is almost always going to be from Martek)
Baby's only:
Major Pro: No DHA/ARA - It is the ONLY formula on the market I can find without DHA/ARA - if anyone else can find another formula, organic or non-organic, let me know! I have literally scoured the marketplace. The only place to find it is Canada (Nestle Good Start) and it's not easy to purchase and ship to the U.S.
Major Con: My pediatrician confirmed that brown rice syrup as a first ingredient in an infant formula is not acceptable. She says while Nature's One may market it as better because it doesn't spike insulin levels, at the end of the day it is still sugar, just a different form of corn syrup. She was very concerned that nutritionally this is not suitable for an infant. The other con of baby's only is that it is indeed a toddler formula. When you compare the mineral values you will see for example that the levels of calcium, phosphorous, iodine and a few others are much higher than in other infant formulas. In fact their vitamin/mineral content is more comparable to other toddler formulas on the market, like Good Start 2. I have researched that the higher mineral content could make an infant's kidney system work harder. Not sure of long-term effects, if any. This was outside of my research.
Bottom line: I know that many proponents of Baby's only will say that the company is taking a political stance, in fact it does encourage breastfeeding until 12 months, but it also discourages the introduction of dairy milk at 12 months, which really goes against the APA recommendation to introduce dairy milk at 12 months. I have no doubt that Baby's only is meant for toddlers, in fact they tell you to consult a physician if you're offering it to an infant under 12 months. They don't do this for PC reasons, they are a company that cares about revenues, just like all the other formula companies. They say this because it is indeed a toddler formula meant for babies 12 months +
There is no perfect solution out there. But I've decided to continue my hunt for a milk-based formula without DHA/ARA, whether organic or non-organic. In the meantime, I can only do what all other parents do - make the best choice having weighed the pros and cons. I choose Earth's best. Why? Because I've done enough research to feel confident that the likelihood of hexane solvent remaining in formula is highly unlikely. My research, which includes talking to a scientist that uses hexane in his laboratory, indicates that hexane is highly volatile and evaporates almost immediately. In other words, by the time it has extracted the oils, it should have evaporated. While you can never be 100% sure of anything in this world, the independent studies do show that no traces of hexane are in the formula). I know it's hard to believe everything you read, so I am only sharing all of this information because I feel it would be wasted if I kept it all to myself! At the end of the day, I feel the nutritional benefit of a milk-based formula outweighs the very small (perhaps non-existent) chance of hexane traces in formula.
I hope this helps!
Click Here to see more reviews about: Baby's Only Organic Toddler Formula Powder, Dairy Based 12.7 oz
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