“Having a newborn is stressful enough:” Mothers’ experiences during the 2022 Infant Formula Shortage in Washington D.C.

Objective To investigate mothers’ experiences during the 2022 infant formula shortage in the United States and its perceived impacts on infants’ diet and health. Methods Mothers of infants under 8 months old were recruited from Washington D.C. using social media and neighborhood listservs and invited to participate in a virtual study meeting between June 22 and July 14, 2022. Mothers completed a brief survey with questions about their demographic characteristics, infants’ anthropometric characteristics, and infant feeding practices, and participated in an in-depth, qualitative interview about their experiences during the infant formula shortage. Survey data were analyzed using means and frequencies, as appropriate. Qualitative interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, coded, and thematically analyzed. Results The sample (n=28) was predominantly White and highly educated. Five overarching themes were identified, including the shortage had: 1) adverse impacts on mothers’ mental and emotional health; 2) significant financial and intangible costs; and 3) led to changes in infant feeding practices; and, 4) social and family networks were helpful in navigating the shortage; and 5) mothers felt fortunate to have resources to breastfeed and/or obtain formula. Most mothers reported the shortage had not yet detrimentally impacted their infant’s health. Conclusions Even among highly educated women with access to financial, social, structural resources, the infant formula shortage adversely impacted mothers’ mental and emotional health, and has been costly, in terms of financial and intangible costs. Findings demonstrate the urgent need to develop strategies to support mothers in feeding their infants, especially mothers who may lack the resources to locate and obtain formula.