Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
As parents across the United States struggle to find formula to feed their children, the pain is particularly acute among Black and Hispanic women, who have historically faced obstacles to breastfeeding, including a lack of lactation support in the hospital, more pressure to formula feed, and cultural roadblocks (Source: “Baby Formula Shortage Highlights Racial Disparities,” Associated Press, May 27, 2022).
Low-income families buy the majority of formula in the United States and face a particular struggle. Experts fear small neighborhood grocery stores that serve these vulnerable populations are not replenishing as much as larger retail stores, leaving some of these families without the resources or means to access formula.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 20% of Black women and 23% of Hispanic women exclusively breastfeed through six months, compared to 29% of white women. The overall rate stands at 26%. Hospitals that encourage breastfeeding and overall lactation support are less prevalent in Black neighborhoods, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The racial disparities reach far back in America’s history. The demands of slave labor prevented mothers from nursing their children, and slave owners separated mothers from their own babies to have them serve as wet nurses, breastfeeding other women’s children. In the 1950s, racially targeted commercials falsely advertised formula as a superior source of nutrition for infants. And studies continue to show that the babies of Black mothers are more likely to be introduced to formula in the hospital than the babies of white mothers.