Soy formula milk is milk extracted from soybeans that has been processed in such a way to be safe for babies. Some soy formulas are enriched with nutrients that are essential for baby's growth and development. This milk is often used as an alternative for babies who are allergic to cow's milk.
Cow's milk is known to have a lot of important nutrients for baby's growth and development, such as protein, calcium, and vitamin D. However, in some babies, cow's milk can cause allergic reactions which are characterized by the appearance of rashes or itchy bumps on the skin, vomiting, or diarrhea.
Because they cannot drink cow's milk, babies who have a cow's milk allergy are at risk for nutritional deficiencies. However, you don't need to worry because there are several choices of substitute milk that you can give your little one to meet their nutritional needs. One of them is soy formula milk.
Soy milk can indeed be given to infants and children who have an allergy or intolerance to cow's milk. However, soy milk or soy milk has a lower nutritional content. Therefore, giving soy formula that has been enriched with various other nutrients can be an alternative for babies who have cow's milk allergies.
Why Soy Milk?
Cow's milk allergy is an overreaction of the immune system to the protein in cow's milk. Cow's milk allergy is one type of allergy that is quite a lot experienced by infants and children. Symptoms of cow's milk allergy can appear as soon as the baby drinks cow's milk, it can also appear a few days after.
Therefore, Mother needs to monitor the condition of the Little One if he is given cow's milk, especially if the Little One has allergies to certain foods and drinks or other allergy-triggering substances. If your little one is allergic to cow's milk, you can give him an alternative formula with plant-based ingredients (plant-based milk) as a substitute, such as soy formula or soy-based formula.
Formula soy milk contains protein derived from soybeans or soy. Several types of soy milk have been enriched with various important nutrients that can support baby's growth and development, including prebiotics FOS and inulin, omega-3, omega-6, as well as various vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin D and calcium. Mothers are also advised to choose soy formula which is high in fiber.
Soy milk formula like this has more or less the same nutrition as cow's milk, so you don't need to be confused anymore to find ways to meet your little one's nutritional intake if he suffers from a cow's milk allergy.
Benefits of Soy Milk for Baby's Nutritional Needs
The following are the various benefits that can be obtained from soy formula milk:
1. Maintain the health of the baby's digestive system
A good soy formula is milk that has been fortified with fiber content. The high fiber content plus the prebiotics FOS and inulin are proven to be good for maintaining the health of the baby's digestive tract and preventing the baby from getting constipated.
2. Supports baby's development
A good soy formula is milk that contains various types of essential amino acids in it. Essential amino acids are needed to support the growth and development of babies and repair body tissues.
3. Optimizing brain development
Soy formula milk that has been enriched with healthy fatty acids omega-3, omega-6, and DHA is good for maintaining the health of your little one while supporting their growth and development. Omega-3 and omega-6 are known to be good for the brain development of infants and children, and can improve children's thinking and analytical skills.
4. Supports bone growth
To increase the nutritional value of soy formula milk, some formula milk products with soy ingredients are added with vitamins and minerals that are important for the growth of baby's bones and teeth, namely vitamin D and calcium.
In addition, vitamin A and vitamin B contained in soy milk are also good for the health of the baby's skin, eyes, and organs. These two vitamins can also strengthen the immune system, so the baby does not get sick easily.
5. Maintain baby's heart health
Soy formula milk has a high protein content and low saturated fat content, and is free of cholesterol. This makes soy formula very good for maintaining a baby's heart health.
Soy or soy and its processed products, including soy formula, are rich in protein and healthy fats. Therefore, soy formula milk is a good choice to replace cow's milk, especially soy formula which has been enriched with various important nutrients that babies need during their growth and development period.
If you see your little one showing allergy symptoms after consuming cow's milk, you should stop giving the milk first. Check your little one to the doctor to make sure if the allergy symptoms he is experiencing are really caused by cow's milk.
If it is true that the cause is a cow's milk allergy, the doctor may recommend another type of milk as a substitute, such as formula made from soy. The doctor will also give advice on the foods that your little one needs to eat to meet their nutritional needs.
