November 2018 Moms

Product Spotlight Series: Formula (w/o 6/18)

I've been majorly slacking on the product spotlight series. Sorry! This week the topic is formula!

S+TMs, do you have any tips about formula or specific brands/types that worked well for your LO(s)? 

FTMs, do you have any questions about formula, brands of formula, or something else related? 

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To view past Product Spotlights or view the upcoming schedule, click this link.

(Also just a reminder that if anyone wants to revive old threads to ask questions as we get further along and it becomes more likely everyone is doing further research, please feel free!)

*TW*
Me: 31 | DH: 33
DD1: 8/2014  <3
TTC #2: 6/2017
BFP 8/3/2017 | CP 8/4
BFP 10/16/2017 | CP 10/21
BFP 12/18/2017 | CP 12/28
BFP 2/15/2018 | EDD: November 2nd | It's a girl!
DD2: 10/2018  <3

Re: Product Spotlight Series: Formula (w/o 6/18)

  • edited June 2018
    Since DS was a preemie, we were told which formula to use - Similac Neosure. He received donor breast milk in the NICU until about 33 weeks gestational age, then they transitioned him to that formula. He stayed on Neosure until about 8 months old. After he graduated feeding therapy, we got the OK to switch to Similac Gentle, as DS had reflux. I think I'll most likely stick with Similac this time around unless something happens. They have a rewards program where they send you coupons and you earn points for using the coupons. After so many points you get a free can of formula. It's nice saving some money on something you are going to have to buy no matter what. I remember using these coupons and taking full advantage of Target giving gifts cards for spending $xx.xx on baby things.
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  • I used Similac Pro-Advance with DD and we never had any issues with it. It comes in both powder and ready to feed which was nice when we were going someplace. As MiddleSchoolMommy said, they do have a decent rewards program and my advice is to sign up everyone you know. I had coupons going to my dad's house, my sister's my mother-in-law's, my friends, anyone who let me! That combined with Target's gift card promotions helped us save a ton.
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  • DD was super easy when it came to formula. She seemed gassy on Enfamil Newborn, so we switched to Gentlease. She was on that until 3 months old, then we switched her to Enfamil Infant, then eventually to Target brand Infant formula because it was much cheaper. She did great on both. We loved the Target brand stuff.
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  • Apologies if this seems super bougie but a friend who's super Type A and does a lot of research on these things recommended this formula from Germany that's supposedly "the best". Anyone happen have any experience with it? https://myorganicformula.com/products/holle-organic-stage-1
  • @middleschoolmommy Question for you and I hope it doesn't come off as judgmental or anything, I am just curious. Was your body unable to produce milk since your son came so early? Again, no judgment whatsoever intended, I just wondered if the donor breast milk was because you were unable to produce it since he was a preemie. You can put me in my place if this is a stupid question to ask. :) 
    *TW*
    Me: 31 | DH: 33
    DD1: 8/2014  <3
    TTC #2: 6/2017
    BFP 8/3/2017 | CP 8/4
    BFP 10/16/2017 | CP 10/21
    BFP 12/18/2017 | CP 12/28
    BFP 2/15/2018 | EDD: November 2nd | It's a girl!
    DD2: 10/2018  <3
  • I feel like formula is SOOOOO dependent on the baby, it’s not something you can really plan for! Definitely sign up for all the coupons/rewards programs once you know you’re using formula.

    DD1 we used the target brand of similar sensitive, and then the target brand of similar AR due to her being a “happy spitter.” Never even fried anything else. We tried to stock up when target had baby sales/gift card deals going on. 

    DD2 we tried so many kinds...she ended up on Gerber Soothe, I think? And there wasn’t a generic for it at the time, and Gerber didn’t sent out coupons like similac and enfamil (and not all stores carried it).
     

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  • edited June 2018
    @offtoneverland it's a perfectly fine question! Yes, I was unable to produce. I have underdeveloped breast tissue to begin with, my boobs never got any bigger during pregnancy, and I was  only able to pump a half ounce at a time from one breast only. I the gave NICU the little I did produce, but I was only able to feed him for about a week or so. This was all with pumping every 3 hours and taking Reglan.
     I'm hoping it might be different this go around, but it's the main reason I won't breast feed. I'll pump, but I want to make sure baby girl is actually getting fed. 
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  • DD was fine with pretty much any formula and in the end we bought the Kirkland brand from Costco which was 99% similar to Similac.  She never had reflux and barely spit up.  I supplemented 25% with formula for 4 months (pumped the rest) then switched to all formula after that.

    The ready made bottles of formula, while pricey, were nice to have on hand to toss in a diaper bag for a "just in case" moment.
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  • We had to end up using enfamil reguline due to silent reflux and gas/poop issues. It only came in one size so it was $ after awhile. But it really helped DS.


  • We used the target brand, purple container that is similar to gentle ease due to gas.  Planning to do the same with #2. Stock up during weeks when you get the gift cards! 
  • @ginny_203 - We used Holle formula with my 3rd. With my first two we used Gerber Gentle and it worked great and they had no issues. When I weaned DS2 at 7 months he did great on Gerber Gentle during the weaning process but as soon as he was done weaning and was all on formula, he started projectile vomiting the entire bottle 1-2 times per day. We tried Gerber Soothe and lowered the amount per feeding and that helped a lot but didn't solve the issue. I didn't want to go with a soy formula because I've read bad things about soy and most other brands of formula have High Fructose Syrup (sugar) as their first or second ingredient so we were at a loss as what to do. Then someone suggested Holle and we used the Holle Goat milk based formula and all our ails ended and there was no more vomiting the rest of the year. So yeah, I'm a believer. It's pretty expensive though. One box only lasted 2.5-3 days for us as compared to 5-6 days for a tub of regular formula and each box was a few bucks more than the regular formula tubs. I am planning on bf'ing the whole year with this baby but if we end up feeding formula, I would probably still go with Holle even if it's more expensive.
    Lilypie Pregnancy tickers
    Me: 38 DH: 36
    Married 8/27/2011
    BFP #1 9/28/2011 DS born 5/22/2012
    BFP #2 4/24/2013 m/c 4/25/2013 at 4w
    BFP #3 1/31/2014 DD born 10/14/2014
    BFP #4 1/20/2016 m/c 2/12/2014 at 7w2d
    BFP #5 8/19/2016 DS2 born 4/29/2017
    BFP #6 3/7/2018 EDD 11/18/2018


  • We also used Gerber Gentle for Supplementing when my breast milk supply tanked around 9 months.  DD had no issues interchanging the two and did really well -- no added gas or anything like that.  I don't see as many coupons floating around for Gerber but we always stocked up when Target had gift card deals on baby products and Amazon's Subscribe & Save price was pretty competitive, also.  If we have to do it again, I will probably start with Gerber again.  My only concern is some study I heard about where baby formulas had high(er) levels of toxins in them than they should (arsenic, lead, etc) and I do recall Gerber being up there.  I will probably have to do more research if we do formula feed again.
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