I decided to use goats milk formula on the advice of my midwife, who suggested that my son's "vomiting" problem could be due to an intolerance or allergy to cows milk formula. At the same time as changing to goats milk formula, my son, who was two weeks old at the time, was also commenced on Gaviscon by the doctor. The vomiting subsided so then I was not sure if the improvment was due to the Gaviscon or the goats milk formula. I re-tried the cows milk formula plus Gaviscon and the vomiting commenced again. My son has therefore been on goats milk formula ever since. I have found the goats milk formula to fully meet the feeding requirements of my son. He is healthy and steadily gaining weight 8-14oz per week. Jane B, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Oliver is our third child. He was a healthy normal baby but cried almost constantly for the first four months of his life. He would never sleep longer than 45 minutes, day or night. When I was breast feeding him, he would stop sucking to squeal and seemed in pain, drawing his legs up. I tried infant formula but no change. I had many trips to the doctor, who kept telling me there was nothing wrong with Oliver, and that all babies cry. I tried every colic powder etc available, even took him for cranial massage, but still no change. However after discussion with a Karitane nurse who suggested it could be a milk intolerance (which my doctor said was absolute nonsense), I tried Oliver on goat milk infant formula and the transformation was instant. After one bottle, he woke only once that night instead of the usual 8 or so. And best of all he started smiling!! Something we hadn't seen a lot of. Oliver is now two and a half and can tolerate small amounts of dairy cow products, but still primarily drinks goat's milk. I now buy hum the long-life 1-litre cartons available from most supermarkets. He certainly is a happy healthy boy now and my only regret is I didn't get on to his problem sooner. By the way, I now have a new doctor. Chrissie Wright Penang, Malaysia

Our daugther Ashleigh went on to cow formula at about 10 month, however it did not agree with her. She found the formula difficult to digest and it caused her stomach upset and general discomfort. We decided to try goat based formula and it certainly made a difference. Kim & Sandra H, Hamilton, New Zealand

Emily was 4 months old when we put her on infant formula. She had always been a fussy, self-limiting eater and feeding time was a long-winded and draining process. Emily also had severe eczema and silent reflux, which seemed to flare up when we used any cow-based formula. After tiresome attempts of visiting doctors, osteopaths and natural therapists we switched from cow formula to goat formula. After a few weeks, feeding time became a lot easier and Emily seemed to show a better tolerance to the goat milk formula. We are now at the point where she will drink a full bottle without screaming. Emily is now a happy baby who enjoys a full stomach and has good weight gain. She even started sleeping through the night, which for us was an added bonus. Tania L, Hamilton, New Zealand

Human breastmilk is the very best food for infants. There is no question that "breast is best". It must be kept in mind that the decision of how to feed a new baby is not just a menu choice. However, it is important that a "next best" option is available. This option is known as artificial or formula feeding. Formula feeding is not equivalent to breastfeeding. Breastfeeding has many additional non-nutritive benefits to both mother and child. Formula feeding A formula is a combination of food components that are manufactured to be as close as possible to the food and nutrition value of breastmilk. At this stage, these formulas lack many of the biological advantages of breastmilk. Formula feeding cannot replace breastfeeding. Cow milk has been used as the base for formula manufacture largely because of its convenience. There are a lot of dairy cows, which are well domesticated and can produce large volumes of milk. However, cow milk is not necessarily the best choice for a baby's first food proteins. There are many major differences between cow milk and human milk, so cow milk needs to be greatly modified to make it suitable for infant consumption. Indeed, the prevalence of cow's milk allergy has been found to be about 5% of the paediatric population (that is one in 20 babies have clinical reactions to cow milk proteins). Nevertheless, cow milk is promoted as standard baby fare. Goat milk has been used for feeding babies and children with allergies for decades. However, without being fully pasteurised and fortified, it is not a satisfactory food for infants. If goat milk is to be fed to infants, it must be as a fully constructed infant formula. Goat milk has a number of beneficial properties compared to cow milk. Soy milk . Soy proteins are used to create an infant formula as an alternative to cow milk. These preparations are now called "soy milk" and used in babies with milk allergies. Although soy formulas have had an important role as a cow milk substitute, there is currently concerns at the high amounts of phyto-estrogen that they contain. Soy proteins have the same allergenic potential as cow milk proteins. There are a number of good arguments to chosse a goat milk-based formula rather than cow milk: - goat milk fats are more readily digested and absorbed. - goat milk has a softer curd. Subsequently, its faster digestion may reduce the development of allergies. - micronutrients such as iron, copper and calcium appear to be more bioavailable. - there are additional beneficial biochemical substances that reduce the likelihood of gut infection and inflammation. Price could be a disadvantage. However, the price differential is small for the benefits that can be accrued. Summary Goat milk has an important role in the feeding of infants who have been weaned from the breast and in those babies who have cow milk intolerance. Although there are well-documented allergic reactions to goat milk, there are also similar problems with cow milk and soy preparations. As goat milk has other nutritional benefits, a properly constructed goat milk infant formula has an important place in the nutrition of babies and children. Dr Rodney Ford, M.D., F.R.A.C.P. Clinical Associate Professor in Paediatrics Christchurch, New Zealand