The Great Debate: Breastfeeding or Formula Feeding for Your Baby's Well-being

Making the best decision for your baby (and yourself)

“Are you breastfeeding?”

This seemingly simple question can evoke a range of complex emotions for mothers struggling with breastfeeding or those who are unable to do so.

Here’s the thing: breastfeeding can be wonderful. And no-one argues that breastmilk isn’t the best possible milk for babies. Many moms and babies find breastfeeding easy, and are able to feed for months or years without a hitch. When it works out like that, it’s great.

But it doesn’t always work out like that. Maybe you’re:

  • Worried your baby isn’t getting enough milk, or gaining enough weight
  • Dealing with latch problems, or a tongue tie, and you seem to be feeding 24/7
  • Getting painful mastitis infections, and having to take repeated antibiotics
  • Finding that breastfeeding brings up difficult emotional issues for you
  • Struggling to combine breastfeeding with your job

Or perhaps, you just don’t want to breastfeed, and that’s OK. Whatever your reasons for thinking about or using formula – it’s important to know that you can make a choice, and you can do it without guilt.

It’s not really ‘breastfeeding vs formula’

Most babies will end up having at least some breastmilk, and at least some formula. According to this 2022 survey:

  • 83% of babies are breastfed at some point
  • 59% found breastfeeding harder than they expected
  • 66% of moms have used formula, or plan to

Which means if you’re struggling with breastfeeding, and you’ve used formula to help you feed your baby (or you’re thinking about it), you’re totally normal.

But what about all the evidence that breastfeeding is better for your baby?

Science and the benefits of breastfeeding

The reason most moms are keen to breastfeed is that there are plenty of clinical studies that show that there are benefits to breastfeeding. But of course – this is also the reason that making the decision to use formula can be a difficult one.

Studies show that on average, breastfed babies grow up to have higher IQs, lower rates of obesity and are less prone to illnesses like asthma and eczema. They’re also less likely to suffer from infections as babies, including ear infections and stomach bugs. And rates of SIDS are lower in breastfed babies too.

All that sounds pretty persuasive. But breastfeeding studies only look at differences between two groups of babies. They don’t look at babies as individuals. And that’s important, because some of the benefits of breastfeeding are very hard to untangle from other things – especially the family’s levels of wealth and education.

Does breastfeeding create smarter kids?

Breastfed babies are more likely to come from wealthier families, with higher levels of education. And kids who grow up in these families are more likely to score higher on IQ tests and have a lower risk of obesity than kids who grow up in lower-income families.

So yes – breastfed babies tend to end up with higher IQs. But it’s not necessarily just being breastfed that led to them developing their intelligence. They were also more likely to have parents who could afford to pay for activities, and had enough education themselves to be able to help their children through school.

The takeaway for you and your baby? What you do at home – reading, playing and helping your baby to learn – is going to have far more of an influence on their future success than what kind of milk they drink.

Does breastfeeding make kids healthier?

It’s true that breastfeeding helps babies develop their immune systems and that breastfed babies get fewer viral infections and childhood illnesses. But breastfeeding is just one of the ways that babies’ immune systems can get a boost. A healthy diet from weaning onwards, immunizations, regular healthcare and good home hygiene are also a huge part of the picture.

And then there’s the scariest one – the risk of SIDS. Recent studies have shown that any breastfeeding – even if you’re also feeding formula – is linked to a lower risk of SIDS. What’s not really understood is why. But what we do know for sure is that the risk of SIDS for any baby is very low. And for babies who are well cared for, and whose parents follow the safe sleep guidelines, it’s even lower.

Are there any benefits to formula feeding?

There’s one really obvious potential benefit of formula feeding: it provides the nutrition your baby needs to grow. Breastfeeding is good – but when it doesn’t work out, fed is best.

The fact is – formula was invented because there was, and still is, a need for it. But if the decision to formula feed is a difficult one for you to take, think carefully about the formula you choose.

If I’m going to use formula…which one is best?

Any formula will give your baby the basic nutrition they need. But some formulas are closer to breastmilk than others.

HiPP, for example, contains pre and probiotics that were originally cultured from breastmilk, to help your baby’s gut develop its natural balance in the same way that breastfeeding would. And goat’s milk formulas have a type of protein that is much more similar to breastmilk than cow’s milk.

If you’d like to explore more – take this 2 minute quiz to get a personalized recommendation for premium, organic formula for your baby.