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Expert Q&A

	By Melissa Clark Vickers International Board Certified Lactation Consultant Moms & Babies Huntingdon, Tenn.

Should I suppliment my breastfeeding twins with formula?

Should you give your breastfed babies formula? That's a question you'll have to answer for yourself, based on your situation and such things as whether you'll be going back to work, whether you can pump while you are at work and even whether you want someone to help with the feedings. There are risks associated with supplementing with formula, however:

1. It may decrease your milk supply. Remember that your breasts make milk based on how much milk is removed. If your babies are taking something else besides your milk, then your breasts will compensate by making less milk.

2. Your babies may have a difficult time switching from bottle back to breast. Drinking from a bottle requires Baby to use his tongue to block the bottle nipple holes and his teeth to clamp down to stop the flow of milk long enough to swallow. The nipple sits in front of his mouth, and he sucks from the bottle with his lips closed around the nipple. Breastfeeding involves using the tongue UNDER the nipple and is used to actually strip milk from the breast. The nipple is far back in Baby's mouth and the mouth is open wide. Some babies have no problem switching back and forth, while others can't handle switching. If you plan on using a bottle (regardless of what goes in the bottle), it helps to at least wait three to four weeks or so, until your babies are nursing well, and your milk supply is well established.

3. Formula-feeding carries with it a higher risk of allergy and disease. Study after study shows the unquestionable superiority of breast milk when it comes to lowering risk and/or preventing allergies and both major and minor diseases. Caring for one ill baby is hard enough; caring for two can be especially trying.

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