Formula Feeding General Discussion

knottieamusements · July 2018

Hello!

Let’s use this thread for general discussion around formula feeding. Bring your tips, tricks, strategies, and questions!

Please remember “Fed is best” - every mom will figure out what is best for her and her baby.

Lisa3379 · July 2018

I already talked a bit about formula and nursing and all that in the breastfeeding thread, but I have a couple things.

I was a bit bummed when we had to start supplementing with formula with DS, but oh man, it was nice to have DH help out with feeding here and there. Also, watching his weight increase when he started out so slow was a good feeling too, so yeah, fed is best.

The formula we used that we really liked was a brand called Hipp. It’s German, but you can buy it online from US distributors. It was pricey, but DH insisted, so whatever. What was nice is that it didn’t smell weird - like, I smelled it and thought that I could probably be able to choke it down, so it’s ok for my kid, haha.

tropical1982 · July 2018

Both my kids I gave breastmilk and supplemented with formula. I can't smell @Lisa3379 lol so I have no idea what formula smells like - but we used Target brand - the regular one and even the sensitive one and they worked out pretty well.

Also, take the pre-made small bottles from the hospital if you get any! Great to have options.

KFrob · July 2018

To add to what @tropical1982 said, take and save all the samples, even if you think you're going to exclusively breastfeed! We got so many different brands and kinds of samples in the mail and they were a life saver at 2 am when DD wouldn't stop crying, I have bleeding nipples and I'm crying while DH was trying to reason with me.

Lisa3379 · July 2018

Also - don’t buy a ton of one type of bottle unless you know your baby is ok using it. We went through 3 types before we found one that DS finally took... or it just so happened it was at that time he decided he was ok with a bottle at all... so who really knows, haha.

sliztee · July 2018

And what type of bottle did he decide on, @Lisa3379?

bel194 · July 2018

+1 to the premade bottles from the hospital. You could probably even go to formula websites now and sign up for samples to be delivered closer to your due date. It's also nice because they will also occasionally send good coupons throughout the baby's first year.

jwebbbber45678 · July 2018

Sign up for free samples and coupons online for both Enfamil and Similac now. The monthly coupons are great and they give you a decent amount of free samples to start. In fact, get other friends and family to sign up too for more free product!

britvahok · July 2018

@sliztee I recommend Avent bottles. They've worked great for us. I have 1 Dr. Brown bottle that was given to me. I rarely used it because it was such a pain to clean.

tropical1982 · July 2018

I got the Amazon and Target free registry gifts and they have a few different bottles in them - for sure Avent, Dr. Brown, and maybe one other I can't remember. Keeping them all to see which one this LO actually takes to.

KFrob · July 2018

@britvahok I'm team hate Dr. Brown

Lisa3379 · July 2018

@sliztee the Dr Brown bottles, aka the bottles with the million parts. Such a pain to wash but he started taking bottles regularly with those, so there was no way we were switching again!

tlmill · July 2018

We hated Dr. Brown bottles so much, and of course they were all DS would take. They’re such a pain to clean because there are so many pieces.

Generic formula is the exact same as name brand, so don’t waste your money on Similac and Enfamil. We started DS on Similac Advance and switched over to the Up & Up Advantage to save money and there was literally no difference. Also, formulas that are “for supplementation” are no different from regular formula aside from having an ingredient that’s intended to make their poop look more like BF baby poop.

I’ll be the odd one out and say that we weren’t fans of the premade bottles. DS refused to take them.

Also making bottles room temp or cold will make the transition from formula to regular milk once they turn 1 much easier. It’s also easier for when you’re out and can’t easily warm up a bottle.

Go ahead and buy one of the formula containers that has the 3 compartments. It makes it so much easier to just dump one section into the right amount of water when you’re out instead of having to take a can of formula and measure it out.

And here’s my biggest piece of wisdom. Don’t worry that you won’t have the same kind of bond with your FF baby as a BF baby will with their mom. Yes, BFing DD was a wonderful experience and nursing was a special time for us. I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, bottle feeding DS was just as special. I have a very special bond with him and he loves his mama more than anything, and I don’t think that stopping our BFing journey early was detrimental to him at all. If anything, it made our bond stronger because I was no longer stressed and crying during feedings, and he was actually getting what he needed.

mommy2ane · July 2018

We had to supplement with both kids at various times. We used Similac and it was fine. The premade bottles were awesome for when we first came home and I was worried he wasn’t getting enough food. My son had horrible reflux but the Dr. Brown bottles were amazing in helping that. They’re a pain to clean but I had way less laundry and didn’t have to lug around a million extra clothes, so it was totally worth it to us!

mytrueloves · July 2018

My #1 formula tip: gentle-ease formula and the like are amazing. If I could go back, I'd start her on it from the beginning and leave her on it. It would have saved us both a lot of tears.
RE bonding: I had severe postpartum depression with ODD and part of it was linked to the fact that she had breast aversion, she was literally afraid of my breasts. I found feeding her her bottles to be a beautiful and wonderful experience once I let to of the need to breastfeed. I would feed her while doing skin to skin and it was lovely. It was only after someone made a nasty comment to me about formula feeding that I felt badly about it.

also, if you ever find yourself nursing and needing to supplement for whatever reason there are things called supplemental nursing systems where the baby receives the supplemental formula at your breast while you're nursing so your nursing relationship can continue. Just sharing because I didn't know that was a thing with ODD.

purplegoldfish2 · July 2018

+1 to Avent bottles

+1 to signing up for formula rewards or whatever it’s called and taking the formula samples from the hospital

+1 to the premade bottles. Even if baby won’t take them, you can always dump them into a bottle (s)he will take.

Ask your pediatrician if they have any samples they can give you. I was breastfeeding and my ped’s office loaded me up with samples every visit anyway (partly because it was twins, but they told me to ask for some every time I came in). I ended up needing to supplement for a while so it was great having those on hand.

Make sure if you’re using powdered mix that you actually boil the water to make it. It is a safety issue - the powder can be contaminated and using boiling water kills the germs so baby doesn’t get sick. Premade formula does not have to be heated/boiled (which made it great for trips).

Organic formulas can cause constipation (they don’t always, but are more likely to, not sure why). We weren’t aware that it could cause it and at 4 months my boys were both constipated and we didn’t find out about the organic formula connection until months later.

momoflogan20 · July 2018

My son was formula fed in the hospital after several failed bf attempts. It was a pain to find a formula he could tolerate and then he had to switch because of wic to gerber and he had to do the gerber soothe because he was so constipated. The soothe is reduced lactose and has thrived every since. He 9 months and was 20 pounds at 7 months. Hes fixing to be weighed again so not sure on the weight now.

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