In May of 2022, millions of U.S. parents encountered uncertainty in safely feeding their infants due to the infant formula shortage.
Methods: An anonymous, electronic, cross-sectional, retrospective survey was used.
Results: U.S. parents (n = 178) whose infants were ~10 weeks old during the shortage completed the survey. Of parents, 81% switched formulas during the shortage, 87% switched because they could not find the formula they typically used, 34% switched 3-5 times, 29% of parents visited ≥4 stores/24 h and 26% of parents traveled >20 miles/24 h to purchase formula. Use of infant formula increased (p < 0.01); in infants requiring specialty formula, use of intact cow's milk formula increased (p < 0.05) and use of premature infant formulas decreased (p < 0.05). Infants relying on specialty formulas experienced at least one undesirable outcome compared with non-specialty users. Parents used social media, relatives/friends and healthcare providers for support during the shortage, but their helpfulness scores were suboptimal. Parents reported the need for greater infant formula availability, free prenatal lactation education and postpartum lactation support.
Conclusions: Government, regulatory and healthcare policy oversight are needed to protect the infant feeding system, including more commercially available products, access to banked donor milk and lactation support.
Keywords: breastfeeding; consumer behavior; equity; feeding practices; food security; government and regulatory policies; health; infant formula shortage; lactation; pediatrics.