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Long term effects of non-species specific milk in infancy...  

post #1 of 10
10/25/07 at 12:04pm
Thread Starter 
All of the studies about human milk vs formula seem to stir up feelings and bring out arguments about socio-economic status and access to health care and IQ of the mother, etc. Has anyone ever studied the long-term effects of feeding a cow's milk based formula for another species? It seems that we base a lot of our research on the effects of foods and drugs on tests done in rats and sweeping recomendations are made based on the outcomes of the rats. Would it not make sense to study the effects of species-specific milk vs. milk of a cow formulated to resemble the milk of that species? I know we commonly use cow milk based formulas for cats, dogs, even the tigers at the zoo who have their babies taken away from them ASAP for socialization purposes (don't get me started!). With animals, rats specifically, you COULD do a double blind, randomly selected, well controlled study. Has this been done?
post #2 of 10
10/25/07 at 12:59pm
post #3 of 10
10/25/07 at 1:05pm
You mean compare formula fed rats to rats fed rat milk?

But you'd have to bottlefeed all the rats, or you'd have a hard time knowing if the extra snuggle time with mama caused the better health, or if it was the milk itself. And how do you milk a rat?
post #4 of 10
10/25/07 at 2:42pm
Thread Starter 
OK, fine, there are some flaws to my original post. You couldn't do double blind and control for touch for rats. But you could still do a randomized selction that is impossible to do with humans. If the results consistently confirmed that the rats fed rat-milk from their mother fair better than rats fed cow milk based rat-formula, you could move on to similar trials with milkable animals, right? Aside from which, if it is touch and not chemicals that increase the health, that should be known.

My point was, has this been done? It's done with every other drug on the market and many foods.
post #5 of 10
10/25/07 at 4:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruthla View Post
And how do you milk a rat?
Itty bitty little milking machines. I saw it on the Simpsons once, and if you see it on TV, it must be true. :
post #6 of 10
10/25/07 at 4:46pm
Another problem is that most animals require colostrum or else they will die. Humans and apes/monkeys are the only mammals that don't "need" colostrum. So I think you would have to use a mammal more similar to a human for a study like what you're suggesting.
post #7 of 10
10/25/07 at 5:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by turtlewomyn View Post
Itty bitty little milking machines. I saw it on the Simpsons once, and if you see it on TV, it must be true. :
But of course!
post #8 of 10
10/25/07 at 5:12pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by lacysmommy View Post
Another problem is that most animals require colostrum or else they will die. Humans and apes/monkeys are the only mammals that don't "need" colostrum.
Can you cite this for me please? I can think of a few other animals that do not die without colostrum - my own dog did not recieve any colostrum and she is most definately alive. I am inclined to think that most mammals would die with out either their mothers milk or human intervention, but I am not a biologist or vet, so I am open to information.
post #9 of 10
10/25/07 at 5:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by My4Boys View Post
Can you cite this for me please? I can think of a few other animals that do not die without colostrum - my own dog did not recieve any colostrum and she is most definately alive. I am inclined to think that most mammals would die with out either their mothers milk or human intervention, but I am not a biologist or vet, so I am open to information.
Well I

'm NAK and pottying DD at the moment (I'm multi-talented!) but I did find something, though it isn't what I recently read about immunities. Maybe someone else has read what I did and can provide additional information? http://www.peteducation.com/article....&articleid=845

Read "Passive Immunity," which says that humans get most of their antibodies through the placenta wheras many other mammals including cats and dogs get most of their immunities via colostrum. Calves get most of their immunities through colostrum as well, and usually if they don't get colostrum they will die.
post #10 of 10
10/27/07 at 12:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by turtlewomyn View Post
Itty bitty little milking machines. I saw it on the Simpsons once, and if you see it on TV, it must be true. :
Um...no.

Everyone KNOWS you milk a rat with tweezers. That's the only way to get a good grip on the teats. :
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Mothering › Forums › Breastfeeding › Lactivism › Long term effects of non-species specific milk in infancy...