LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- You can add baby formula to the growing list of items missing from grocery store shelves in Kentuckiana and across the country.

"New parenthood is already stressful enough," said Bonnie Logsdon, RD, IBCLC, Lactation & Nutrition Consultant.

Logsdon also owns Bonnie Knows Breast and helps dozens of families every month during the prenatal and postpartum period for both lactation and nutrition support.

”So, this is a really dire situation that can be life or death for some families,” explained Logsdon. 

Logsdon has spent the last several months consulting parents, who are running out of formula and patients.

”And a lot of those parents are doing what's called combination feeding where they may be doing some breast and some formula feeding," said Logsdon.

The problem is the result of supply chain disruptions and a safety recall and has had a cascade of effects: Retailers are limiting what customers can buy, and doctors and health workers are urging parents to contact food banks or physicians’ offices, in addition to warning against watering down formula to stretch supplies or using online DIY recipes.

”All of their organs function maybe a little bit differently than others do and can't handle the changes that adult bodies can,” said Dr. Heather Felton, MD, Norton Children's Medical Group.

The shortage is weighing particularly on lower-income families after the recall by formula maker Abbott, stemming from contamination concerns. The recall wiped out many brands covered by WIC, a federal program like food stamps that serves women, infants, and children, though the program now permits brand substitutes. The Biden administration is working with states to make it easier for WIC recipients to buy different sizes of formula that their benefits might not currently cover.

If you can't find what you need, Dr. Felton says a good place to start is your pediatrician. ”We do have some samples of formulas in our office and even if we don't have enough or maybe we don't have the type that you need, we might be able to point you in a direction where you would be able to find some,” she said.  

About half of infant formula nationwide is purchased by participants using WIC benefits, according to the White House.

Doctors said parents having trouble finding their baby's formula can transition from one formula to another, or use a ready-made formula, but to never try to extend the use of the formula they have. Doctors said parents must still go by the recipe on the formula's label.

The Milk Bank in Indianapolis helps families across the region and the organization is also looking for donors to help continue the mission.

”So, we are looking for healthy lactating individuals who have a child that's between that's less than 2-years-old," said Jenna Streit, The Milk Bank. "We can accept milk until their 2nd birthday.”

And like blood banks, Streit said The Milk Bank has stringent rules and requirements for donors. "And so, there is a process to become a donor and we try to make it as easy as possible. We ask donors to submit some of their medical history and then we ask some follow up questions. We get consent from potential donors’ health care provider and then we also asked them to complete a blood test and so that can happen in as quickly as a week," explained Streit."

For information about The Milk Bank, click here.

Nutritionist Bonnie Logsdon is offering a FREE live class next Tuesday, May 17 at noon. Topic: increasing milk supply, re-lactation, induced lactation, milk donation and more. To register, and join the virtual class called Emergency Milk, click here. 

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