Well knock me over with a feather! For as long as I can remember -- or at least since I started reading every book I could find on babies during my pregnancy -- I've heard that formula is harmful to moms trying to initiate breastfeeding. And now a bunch of researchers say that's not really true.

Word out of the University of California San Francisco is that early formula use can actually -- gasp -- help breastfeeding moms.

Ready to fill up those bottles?

Breastfeeding. It’s a personal decision. It’s the way God made mothers; it’s best for baby; blah blah blah. Look, in a perfect world, breastfeeding would be a beautiful, wonderful bonding experience for every mama out there, and we would all do it for just the perfect amount of time before creating a national scandal by nursing your preschooler on the cover of a magazine.

But it’s not a perfect world, and that’s why God gave us scientists and nutritionists to make formula. Or something. But if any of you moms-to-be out there are still wavering on the whole issue, a new discovery might influence your decision: Breastfeeding exclusively for six months significantly reduces your chances of getting cancer later in life.

She definitely had very valid reasons for quitting breastfeeding, but after hearing that Kristin Cavallari is feeding her baby goat's milk instead of giving him formula, I can't help but be a little bit, ok, a LOT grossed out.

Apparently Kristin's fiance, Jay Cutler, is the one who discovered the "goat's milk concoction" that baby Camden is eating these days -- and he even "makes it up" for the little guy every day.

Goat's milk, huh? When I first heard that, I totally pictured old-fashioned style milk bottles full of the stuff lining the shelves of Kristin and Jay's super high-end fridge. But as it turns out, it's not quite (I said quite) as disgusting as it sounds.

When it comes to the debate over which is better for baby -- breast or bottle -- the answer seems to be whatever is best for mom. But there's a new study out that shows a dangerous trend among some bottlefeeding moms. Moms, take heed: it turns out there is one time when formula really is dangerous for babies.

Researchers recently looked at how the economy is affecting how moms feed their babies. According to the study in Clinical Pediatrics, a scary number of moms who are struggling to make ends meet are doing what is known as "stretching" their babies' formula these days.

We all know breast is best when it comes to feeding our babies. This is just fact and not a statement to make anyone feel bad. Formula was created to feed babies when mom isn't going to breastfeed for whatever reason. We shouldn't rag on moms who go the formula route, either. It's also a fact that not every single mom can breastfeed. What we should all agree on is that formula needs to be better, safer for babies. Because what we have now isn't good enough and has been proven to be toxic to some infants. This is the saddest fact. A recent study revealed that the digestion of formula can be so toxic it can lead to cellular death, also known as cytotoxicity, and could cause a baby to die.

Instead of panicking, we need to do something. I have some ideas. Formula can be especially dangerous for premature babies because they aren't fully developed yet at birth. And what's so heartbreaking is that many times when a woman has a preemie, her body sometimes doesn't produce enough milk.

I almost didn't make it as a breastfeeding mom. I took it all seriously, of course. I took a breastfeeding class while I was pregnant, and after I had my son, I pestered every nurse in the maternity ward to help me latch on correctly. I was surprised -- turns out breastfeeding doesn't come naturally after all, at least for me. It took a lot of practice and determination.

And even after I got a latch going, I wasn't exactly Lady Bountiful with the milk supply. And my son just wanted to nurse constantly -- all day, all night, always on the boob. Was it because he wasn't getting enough? I turned to the experts: La Leche League. I know these well-meaning people have helped countless moms. But wow, they sure led me down one crazy breastfeeding rabbit hole.

Moms in Sweden who choose to formula feed their babies instead of breastfeeding them may feel like social outcasts pretty soon, because the country is considering banning babies' images from all baby formula ads.

No more adorable blue-eyed babies on formula cans, no more formula ads in magazines because they'll only be able to be published in medical journals, and going one step further than the ads -- Sweden also may ban giving out formula samples and selling formula at a discounted price.

And as for the containers of formula that do make it into parents' hands? Yeah, there will supposedly be a warning label saying they should not give formula to their baby without the recommendation from a professional. (Wow. It's almost like they think feeding a baby formula is some sort of crime.)

Whenever I think about another baby, one thing stops me: Night feedings. It's bad enough that my second child didn't sleep through the night until he was four; the idea of voluntarily signing on for the mind-numbing exhaustion that comes from being awakened every two hours or so by a hungry newborn is why I am thrilled with the two I have and not planning on another!

If you opted not to breastfeed, that means dad can help you out in the night with a bottle feeding. But can a dad get a bottle measured and mixed in under a minute?