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Babies: 3 - 6 Months
EBF and Supplementing with Formula
I'm considering starting to supplement with maybe a bottle of a day of formula with DS just so that if I decided to have some "me time" I can without worrying about DS getting hungry or pumping. Right now I'm EBF and I don't want him to get attached to the bottle and not want to nurse. I asked his pedi what he suggested and told me to just do some trial and error with formulas to see what works best for DS. Then when I asked what to start with he just said it was up to me.
Well, I'm new to this and have NO clue where to start! So, hopefully you ladies can help me. I have a few questions about supplementing:
First, what type of formulas have you tried and how did they work for your LO (I know all babies are different, but just trying to get a starting point)?
How often do you formula feed throghout the day and how much do you give your LO?
What type of bottles and nipples do you use?
TIA for any help!!!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: EBF and Supplementing with Formula
I EBF now, but when she was really little and I didn't have any BM stored, I supplemented a little. I still don't mind now and then supplementing if she's at IL's or if DH has her.
Savi did really well with Similac, and really did not do well with Enfamil. I use Avent bottles. I found that the powdered formula was super easy, because you can make 2 oz at a time super super quick, so you never have a ton left over. She now drinks about 4 oz at a time (frozen BM) for this age/weight.
GL!
I don't suggest supplementing when there isn't a need to. If you want some "me" time, you can start by pumping for 15 minutes once a day and have that stored in the fridge. Supplementing with formula can sometimes mess with an EBF baby's tummy so doing it with no need isn't worth it.
I gave DD a taste of Similac Advance before I went back to work to make sure she'll take it in case I couldn't pump enough. She enjoyed it and didn't have any tummy issues after. She hasn't had to have any since then.
As for bottles: I recently tried Breastflow and really like it! It's slow and makes her work for the milk so that she doesn't forget how to eat at the breast. I would get slow-flow nipples.
I'm not supplementing, but I use Avent bottles with level 1 nipples when I give her bottles of ebm and they seem to work well; no nipple confusion.
At one point my supply was really low and I thought I would need to supplement so I did some research and ended up buying Nestle Good Start Gentle Formula (Protect Plus).
BFP#3 12/09/12 - EDD 8/11/2013 - D&C @ 12w :: BFP #4 2/17/14 - EDD 10/28/2014 - M/C @ 6w
Thank you! The reason I was wondering about formula for supplementing was because I have tried pumping and barely got anything out. :-( So, formula is the back-up. I guess I should have mentioned that instead of just saying not worrying about pumping!
We have occassionally supplemented with formula but in the last week have started a routine of one formula bottle as the last bottle before bed. I started with the free samples that came in the mail, first the Enfamil (which caused tummy issues) and then with the Similac Advanced (which has not seemed to cause any tummy issues). Both cans expired before I used all the formula, and I decided to stick with and purchase the Similac.
I have decided to do the one-bottle-a-day for two reasons. (1) We're now five days away from my 6-month goal and I'm ready to start a gradual wean; and (2) I needed to solve our terrible sleep issues and the bottle of formula gets us a consistent 4-5 hour stretch of sleep (versus 2-2.5 hours).