Can babies drink Goat Milk instead of commercial infant formula?
In brief, yes, goat milk can be used successfully, but it should be made according to the recipe below in order for it to match breast milk's protein/fat/water/nutrient ratios. Countless moms have found this formula to be a life saver for their babies who were allergic or sensitive to cow dairy formula and not doing well on commercial powdered stuff. Follow the Time Saver Bulk Preparation, and you'll be done in 10 min per day. You can also see Dr. Sears' reply on this topic.

Can Goat Milk Formula help babies with eczema, asthma, colic, or intestinal problems?
Yes, it is very likely to help. Babies with eczema, asthma, screaming fits, gas, constipation, or diarrhea usually show improvements when switched to a nourishing goat milk formula. Why? Goat milk protein and fat molecules are smaller than cow's milk (more similar to breast milk) and thus easier to digest for a baby. In addition, if you use raw goat milk (unpasteurized), it contains all the natural enzymes which helps it be digested.

You can read many success stories and testimonials, as well as join online support groups for more info. Most Pediatrician are not familiar with this information as it is not taught in medical school, nor promoted by the commercial infant manufacturers who want to promote their products. If you need the support of your Pediatrician, print out information for him/her to read from various sources.

RAW milk from grass-fed animals vs organic pasteurized milk

• Raw milk from grass fed animals is a living food packed with live enzymes, minerals, and vitamins.
  
• Grass-fed animals make milk high in vitamins A and D, CLA, Omega-3 fatty acids, and beta-carotene.
  
• Easily digested by those intolerant to dairy (digests itself)
• Excellent for your health (contains enzymes, probiotics, omega 3s, CLA, and immune building compounds not in pasteurized organic milk)
• Helps prevent asthma, eczema, allergies, ear infections, GI problems, dermatitis, and auto-immune problems instead of causing them.
• Calcium and Magnesium are much better absorbed into your bones due to enzymes.
• Probiotics in the milk strengthen your digestive system and tolerated by those with IBS and allergies.
• Immune building compounds are excellent for infants & kids
• Raw goat dairy is most similar to breast milk and an ideal & delicious substitute to infant formula (recipe on this page)
• Good for the heart, kidneys, prostate, & blood pressure (while pasteurized milk makes these worse).
  

Here are some stats from 2008:
* 60 government-reported illnesses from raw milk per year.
* About 500,000 raw milk drinkers in the US.
* Rate of illness from raw milk can be calculated at .012%.
* 76,000,000 cases of food-borne illness from all sources in the US per year. (from deli meats, produce, chicken, beef, pasteurized milk, etc)
* Population about 300,000,000
* Rate of illness from all foods is 25%

Thus, even using inflated government statistics on illness from raw milk, you are over 2,000 times more likely to contract illness from other foods than from raw milk. PLUS, drinking raw milk protects you against illness from other foods!

The problem is with the big farms who are just concerned with profit and do things to increase milk production which in turn makes the animals sick, yet they still milk them even if unhealthy with infections. The details on this story are quite disgusting and sad. The health of the animal has everything to do with the health of the milk. Your main goal should be obtaining milk from healthy grass fed, free roaming, happy animals. 

Excerpt from Natural News article on traditional foods 10/24/08:
"...we recently posted a review of 102 studies purportedly that show that raw milk is dangerous. We went through each study and showed that in almost 95% of those studies they were just very biased and it was a foregone conclusion. They did not actually show that raw milk had caused disease. But they stated that it had in the abstract of the study. So there’s a tremendous amount of bias and prejudice against raw milk and this is reflected in the scientific literature...."

Another Natural News article on safety of Raw Milk
"...The Weston A. Price Foundation made several requests for clarification on the [raw milk illness] claims but none have been substantiated. There are also no accounts of these illnesses, hospitalizations, or deaths in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly or any other FDA or CDC document.

• Raw Milk Facts - Raw-milk-facts.com
• Raw Milk Resources - The Real Milk Project
• The Milk Paradox: Why is it, that in America it's easier to buy drugs, guns and political favors than it is to buy a gallon of raw milk?
• Summary of the story behind the problems with "normal" cow farms, and benefits of raw milk by Sally Fallon & Mary Enig, PhD in their book Nourishing Traditions.
• Mercola.com: The Real Reasons Why Raw Milk is Becoming More Popular 
• Farm to Consumer Defense Fund: FTCDF.org
  

Goat Milk Infant Formula Recipe
Makes 36 ounces
Prep Time: 10-15 min per day

• 2 cups whole fresh goat milk (or cow milk if tolerated) ideally "raw" unprocessed from goats (or cows) who grazed on grass/pasture and not grains. Where can I get this if its not in my health food store?
• 1 and 7/8 cups filtered water (=2 cups minus 2 Tbsp)
  
• 1/4 cup liquid whey (buy from a farm or make yourself)  Note: Do NOT use whey from making cheese--it will cause the formula to curdle. Use only homemade whey made from yoghurt, kefir or separated raw milk.
  
• 4 tablespoons lactose (milk sugar found in breast milk)
• 2 Tbsp good quality goat cream (or cow cream) not ultrapasteurized. (Use more if you are using milk from Holstein cows as they have lower fat milk.)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon infant probiotic (i.e. HLC Natogen - good flora for gut)
  
• 1 teaspoon regular Cod Liver Oil (Omega-3, Vit A & D)
  
• 1 teaspoon expeller-expressed Sunflower Oil (for Vitamin E and omega-6)
  
• 1 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil (omega-9)
  
• 2 teaspoons organic Coconut Oil (MCTs, anti-viral/anti-bacterial & immune)
  
• 2 teaspoons gelatin (improves digestibility)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon acerola powder (food based vitamin C)
  
• 2 teaspoons organic raw chicken liver (for goat formula only, not cow) *See my substitute below if you cannot get good liver. First freeze liver for 14 days to use raw or you can simmer/steam it, finely grated and added to the batch of formula. (provides B-12 missing in goat milk). 
• 2 teaspoons Frontier brand nutritional yeast flakes* (see my substitute below) Provides folic acid and B-vitamins.
• *Note: I often use Multivitamins Liquid CWS by Pharmax (5-8 drops per day) instead of the liver and yeast flakes. This is MY variation, not the original recommendations by the scientists who created this formula. The liquid vitamin contains B-6, B12, Folic Acid, Vitamin A, D, and E. Yet, using the foods is ideal since if your baby tolerates them (foods tend to provide better nutritional absorption of the vitamins they contain and in a more natural form)
• If you want to add just Folic Acid and B-12 drops into the goat milk with no added other multivitamins, use the Super Liquid Folate drops (B12 +Folic)
  

To serve, shake up glass jar and pour 4 to 8 ounces into a very clean glass baby bottle, and heat with baby bottle warmer to body temperature, shake bottle well and feed baby. (Never, never heat formula in a microwave oven!) Note: If you are using the Lact-Aid, mix all ingredients well in a blender.

Time Saver: Bulk preparation
Homemade Formula in just 10-15 min per day!

By following these guidelines, your formula ingredients will be pre-measured and ready to go from the freezer for a couple months.

• Ice cube trays filled with whey (buy from farm or make at home from yogurt), 2 TBSP per cube. Frozen, then popped and stored in plastic ziploc bag in freezer, ready to toss in recipe.
  
•  Ice cube trays filled with cream from raw milk dairy, 2 Tbsp per cube. Frozen, then popped and stored in plastic ziploc bag in freezer
• Ice cube trays filled with 2 tsp coconut oil, 1 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1 tsp expeller-expressed sunflower oil, 1 tsp Cod Liver Oil. Once frozen, pop them into a ziploc bag in freezer.

Batch preparation:

• Two cups filtered, boiled water in small stainless steel saucepan on stove, medium heat
• Remove 2 TBSP water from pan
• Stir in 2 tsp gelatin, whisk until dissolved
• Stir in 4 TBSP lactose, whisk until dissolved
• Stir in 2 tsp nutritional yeast, whisk
• Turn off heat, throw in 2 cubes whey, 1 cube mixed oils, whisk often while preparing blender ingredients
• In blender, 2 cups raw milk
• Add 1/4 tsp acerola, blend gently
• Add 1/4 tsp probiotic (bifidum infantis), blend gently
• Once cubes are dissolved in water, give a final good whisk, then
• Pour into blender while blending gently.
• Pour into glass Pyrex measuring cup (can't pour into bottles directly from blender spills too much).
• Pour into glass baby bottles as soon as possible before separation occurs.

Can I freeze a few batches of homemade formula?
Yes, it is possible to freeze the formula in individual bottles or breast milk storage bags if it is done only OCCASIONALLY and INFREQUENTLY, for example during travel. Ideally, you make your batch fresh daily and keep it no longer than 24 hrs in the fridge. Your goal is to feed your baby the freshest and most nutrient dense food. 

Can I travel with my infant's homemade formula?
If you are traveling out of town, many moms report that they have successfully frozen numerous breastmilk bags containing the formula and put them on ice and taken them past security check and on-board with them with no problems. Most airlines security check points seem to be very lenient with large quantities of breast milk bags carried on board (as long as you declare it and explain its for each day of your trip, etc). You can also luggage-check your box of formula bags on dry ice. Keep a copy of the recipe inside the box or luggage containing the formula or ingredients in case security inspects it and is curious. Check out Yahoo health groups NewWAPHB for more tips from savvy experienced using the formula.   

Is Goat Milk Formula similar to breast milk?
Human milk is richer in whey, lactose, vitamin C, B12, folic acid, niacin, and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids compared to goat’s milk but leaner in protein (casein- the milk protein). See comparison chart below.

The recipe offers a formula which is second best to breast milk and puts commercial infant formula to shame. This homemade raw goat milk infant formula is living food for your baby, and easy to digest. Unlike powdered formula, it will provide your baby with enzymes, probiotics, absorbable food based vitamins, nutrients, and Essential Fats found in natural healthy oils.

Gelatin will make the formula more digestible. Lactose is critical for myelin and cerebrosides in the brain. Quality of the oils you use is of utmost importance since most commercial oils are rancid and fish oils can be polluted. Expeller-expressed oils contain necessary vitamin E.

Breastmilk is the ideal milk for baby, but if he cannot be breastfed, the second best option is clean, whole raw milk from old-fashioned cows (or goats), certified free of disease, that feed on green pasture. For sources of good quality milk, see www.realmilk.com or contact a local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation.

If the only choice available to you is commercial milk, choose whole milk, preferably organic and unhomogenized, and culture it with a piima or kefir culture to restore enzymes (available from G.E.M. Cultures 707-964-2922).

Comparison Chart: Breast Milk, Raw Milk and Pasteurized Milk

See comparison between Breast Milk, Raw Milk, and Pasteurized Milk on this chart:

Research on raw milk and prevention of Allergies and Asthma

In a study of 14,893 children aged 5-13, consumption of raw milk was the strongest factor in reducing the risk of asthma and allergy (whether the children lived on a farm or not). The benefits were greatest when consumption of farm milk began during the first year of life. Clinical & Experimental Allergy. 2007 May; 35(5) 627-630

Vitamins and Healthy Fats for formula
(available on this site)
Here are some vitamins & nutrients I add into my homemade infant formula:

• Cod Liver Oil by Pharmax (very "clean" mercury free oil)
•  HLC Neonate probiotic
• Multivitamins Liquid CWS by Pharmax
• Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
  
• Alive Organic Vitamin C Powder (from acerola fruit)

Here are the studies on why adding EFAs are so critical for your infant's brain development.
 

Goat Milk vs Cow Milk
• Nutrient content of goat milk is slightly less than cow milk but goat milk is more digestible because the fat molecules are one-fifth the size of those from cow milk -- making it easily tolerated by those with compromised digestive systems.
• Seventy-two percent of the milk used throughout the world is from goats. It is one-third richer than cows milk but more nourishing and easier to digest.
• The flavor of goat milk is comparable to that of cow milk. Goat milk has a milder taste.
• Goat milk has no cream separation because of smaller fat molecules.
• Goat milk contains pre-formed Vitamin A in the milk fat that allows it to be readily available for use by the body.
• Goats milk contains a more highly-evolved cholesterol than cows milk, making it more available for absorption to the brain and body. (Cholesterol is essential to the health of the myelin sheaths "white matter" of the nerves in the brain.)
• Goat milk is closer to human milk and is therefore easily accepted especially by those young or frail.
• Goat milk has an alkaline reaction the same as mother's milk. Cow milk has an acid reaction
• Goat milk does not form mucous (phlegm) and is therefore better tolerated by asthmatics and those with allergies. (homemade raw goat milk formula ideal for asthma)
• Goat milk contains more chlorine, fluorine and silicon than any other domestic livestock. Chlorine and fluorine are natural germicides and fluorine assists in preventing diabetes.
• Goat milk contains 2% curd, which precipitates in the stomach. Cows milk is 10% curd.
• Goats are naturally immune to diseases, such as tuberculosis, and are used in third-world countries to actually cure tuberculosis because of their inherent antibodies.
• Goats milk is tolerated by a compromised /damaged liver because of the smaller fat molecules and it's naturally homogenized.
• Goats milk has the ability to "sweeten" the intestinal tract and assist with constipation.
• Goats milk contains a higher evolved carotene (pro-Vitamin A). Researchers have found this to have cancer preventing properties.

Source for above: Natures Prescription Milk by Gloria Gilbere, N.D., D.A. Hom., Ph.D.

• Goat milk is more similar to human milk than cow milk, but goats milk can be lower in B-12 and folic acid depending on if the goats are grass fed.
• Goats milk is higher in essential fatty acids than cow milk: Caproic, caprylic, capric and lauric acid. It has a greater chain of medium and short chain saturated fatty acids making it easier to digest than cow's milk.
• Goats milk contains less sodium but more potassium than cow's milk.
• Goats eating weeds and grass have milk which contains more folic acid.
  

Cow Milk-Based Infant Formula

This milk-based formula takes account of the fact that human milk is richer in whey, lactose, vitamin C, niacin, and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids compared to cow’s milk but leaner in casein (milk protein). The addition of gelatin to cow’s milk formula will make it more digestible for the infant. Use only truly expeller-expressed oils in the formula recipes, otherwise they may lack vitamin E.

The ideal milk for baby, if he cannot be breastfed, is clean, whole raw milk from old-fashioned cows, certified free of disease, that feed on green pasture. For sources of good quality milk, see www.realmilk.com or contact a local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation.

If the only choice available to you is commercial milk, choose whole milk, preferably organic and unhomogenized, and culture it with a piima or kefir culture to restore enzymes (available from G.E.M. Cultures 707-964-2922).

Makes 36 ounces
Prep Time: 10-15 min per day

• 2 cups whole raw milk (from pasture-fed cows)
• 1 and 7/8 cups filtered water (=2 cups minus 2 Tbsp)
• 1/4 cup liquid whey (make your own or buy from farm) Note: Do NOT use whey from making cheese--it will cause the formula to curdle. Use only homemade whey made from yoghurt, kefir or separated raw milk (recipe below).
• 4 tablespoons lactose (milk sugar found in breast milk)
• 1/4 teaspoon infant probiotic (i.e. HLC Natogen)
• 2 or more tablespoons good quality cream (not ultrapasteurized), more if you are using milk from Holstein cows
• 1 teaspoon regular Cod Liver Oil or 1/2 teaspoon High-Vitamin Cod Liver Oil.
• 1 teaspoon expeller-expressed Sunflower Oil (for Vitamin E and omega-6)
• 1 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil (omega-9)
• 2 teaspoons organic Coconut Oil (MCTs, anti-viral/anti-bacterial & immune)
• 2 teaspoons Frontier brand nutritional yeast flakes (see my substitute below) Provides folic acid and B-vitamins).
• 2 teaspoons gelatin (improves digestibility)
• 1/4 teaspoon acerola powder (food based vitamin C)
• *Note: I often use Multivitamins Liquid CWS by Pharmax (5-8 drops per day) instead of the yeast flakes. This is MY variation, not the original recommendations by the scientists who created this formula. The liquid vitamin contains B-6, B12, Folic Acid, Vitamin A, D, and E. Yet, using the foods is ideal since if your baby tolerates them (foods tend to provide better nutritional absorption of the vitamins they contain and in a more natural form)
• *Note#2: If you want to add just Folic Acid and B-12 drops into the formula with no added other multivitamins, use the Super Liquid Folate drops (B12 +Folic)

Directions: Add gelatin to water and heat gently until gelatin is dissolved. Place all ingredients into a very clean blender and mix. (You can also mix using a glass or stainless steel bowl). Either store in a big glass bottle or pour directly in individual baby bottles for the day. Keeps 24 hours in refrigerator. Can be frozen for travel or emergencies. Note, see "Bulk Preparation" and "Time Saver" tip under Goat Milk Recipe.

Liver-Based Formula (non-dairy infant formula)

Makes about 36 ounces
The liver-based formula also mimics the nutrient profile of mother’s milk. It is extremely important to include Coconut Oil in this formula as it is the only ingredient that provides the special medium-chain saturated fats found in mother’s milk. As with the milk-based formula, all oils should be truly expeller-expressed.

3 3/4 cups homemade beef or chicken broth
2 ounces organic chicken liver, cut into small pieces (rich source of B-12, many vitamins & iron).
5 tablespoons lactose
1/4 teaspoon probiotic (HLC Natogen)
1/4 cup homemade liquid whey (make yourself or buy from farm)
1 tablespoon organic Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Cod Liver Oil or 1/2 teaspoon high-vitamin cod liver oil
1 teaspoon unrefined Sunflower Oil
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon acerola powder (food based Vit C)

Simmer liver gently in broth until the meat is cooked through. Liquefy using a handheld blender or in a food processor. When the liver broth has cooled, stir in remaining ingredients. Store in a very clean glass or stainless steel container. To serve, stir formula well and pour 6 to 8 ounces in a very clean glass bottle. Attach a clean nipple and set in a pan of simmering water until formula is warm but not hot to the touch, shake well and feed to baby. (Never heat formula in a microwave oven!)

Homemade Whey Recipe
About 5 cups
Homemade whey is easy to make from good quality plain yoghurt, or from raw or cultured milk. You will need a large strainer that rests over a bowl.

If you are using yoghurt, place 2 quarts in the strainer lined with a tea towel. Cover with a plate and leave at room temperature overnight. The whey will drip out into the bowl. Place whey in clean glass jars and store in the refrigerator.

If you are using raw or cultured milk, place 2 quarts of the milk in a glass container and leave at room temperature for 2-4 days until the milk separates into curds and whey. Pour into the strainer lined with a tea towel and cover with a plate. Leave at room temperature overnight. The whey will drip out into the bowl. Store in clean glass jars in the refrigerator.

Nutrient Comparison Chart: Breast Milk vs Homemade Formula
From Weston A Price Foundation
Based on 36 ounces