A new mum says she is struggling to feed her two-month-old daughter because of a national shortage of a special formula for premature babies.
Shannon Gadd, 25, gave birth to Fiadh Rose Hughes in November at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby.
She was born weighing two pounds and 12 ounces and requires Cow & Gate's Nutriprem 2 formula - which helps preterm and low birth-weight babies gain weight after leaving the hospital, GrimsbyLive reports.
The formula is full of key vitamins and minerals to support their nutritional needs before they can start on a normal infant diet.
Shannon has been unable to buy the formula because of a national shortage, which caused little Fiadh to become sick and dehydrated.
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She said: "Not being on the formula is taking its toll on Fiadh's health.
"She's started to have more reflux and she also started having a tar-like bowel motion.
"I'm so worried for Fiadh because the doctor has confirmed that it’s to do with the many diet changes.
"The question I ask now is, how am I going to feed my baby?
"We’ve had to go out and get normal milk which we know makes her sick and it’s not enriched enough so she's going to lose weight.
"I don’t know what we are supposed to do."
Shannon says her formula first ran out on December 27 and she's been struggling to find any since.
The new mum said: "I was told Fiadh had stopped growing two weeks prior to her birth because of a growth issue so a doctor's performed a Caesarean.
"She was taken into the NICU for five weeks where I used breast milk in a bottle for eight weeks to give her the best fighting chance.
"But her weight dropped and she needed extra calories because my milk wasn’t enough for her growing appetite.
"I took the very hard decision to try and transition her into the formula with Cow and Gate Nutriprem 2 recommended.
"She loved it but we last ran out on December 27 and haven't been able to order any since.
Shannon has resorted to using a different formula, which she says has had a detrimental impact on Fiadh's development.
She said: "We were doing well until Fiadh took a turn for the worst on December 28 when she began to be sick from the new formula.
"She was taking a little amount of milk and then bringing it back up so she was really hungry and upset.
"I was getting worried about her so I rang 111 and they told me to be seen by someone immediately.
"A doctor admitted us straight away and said Fiadh was going to need to be treated for dehydration."
Shannon said: "She only weighs five pounds and six ounces to this day and is below her centile - a growth chart indicating where a guideline baby should be at their age.
"I've been told how important the Cow & Gate formula is but I can't buy it anywhere.
"I've been to chemists and pharmacies in Hull, Scunthorpe, Immingham and Grimsby to be told it's out of stock.
"I've tried contacting Cow & Gate to find there's a national shortage of this product.
"It feels like I’ve been passed from pillar to post without any joy. How can it be out of stock when it’s made only for premature and underweight babies?"
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A representative from Danone said: "We were sorry to hear about Shannon’s story.
"We are experiencing some short-term, isolated incidents of low availability on our Cow & Gate Nutriprem 2 800g powder formula product.
"We do appreciate how unsettling and frustrating it can be for parents to not be able to find the products they need.
"We are working hard to get products back onto shelves as soon as possible.
"We are sending out supplies of Nutriprem 2 800g products, and these should start to be available in stores towards the end of this week.
"Although this may vary by store and region. We have good availability of our Nutriprem 2 200ml liquid product (same formula) which is also an option.
"In the meantime, we want to do everything we can to help. If Shannon would like to get in touch, we can help locate supplies or possible alternatives."
