The Milk of Life
No matter what your diet\u2019s like today, we all likely started life eating the same thing: breast milk, formula milk, or a bit of both. But both of these products aren\u2019t always easy to come by. Breastfeeding can be difficult or impossible for some parents, and formula milk isn\u2019t always safe, affordable, or even available \u2014 as we\u2019re seeing in the US, where formula milk is currently 70 percent out-of-stock. This episode, we tell the story of how we got here, and we explore what we should we do to make feeding babies easier in the future. Along the way, we find out what makes human milk\u2014or "white blood," as it perhaps should be known\u2014so unique, as well as why Parisian attitudes to feeding infants in the 1800s made it known as a city with no children. We've also got the story of when formula was first invented, the dirty tricks used to market it, and the competing pressures and changing advice that have swung the pendulum from "breast is best" to formula and back again. Listen in for the story behind the news, the tale of our first and most essential food.\n\nWe need your help! We\u2019re conducting an audience survey to hear from you. The information you share is important to help us keep making the podcast and, we hope, keep making it better! Head to Gastropod.com/survey to participate. We really appreciate it.\xa0\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices