Starting Formula | Imamother

justanothermother

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 4:20 pm

I guess I am not as stubborn as I thought. After more than three weeks, he is still losing weight. I am sick as a dog. I am scheduled for surgery on Monday, I will go under general and have to stay overnight. I haven't had more than two hours of sleep at a time. I am falling apart, my baby is suffering, my whole family is suffering. So please do not comment about how I could have tried harder, I will lose it.

Anyway, here is my question. I have never used formula before. Is there anything I need to know? How many ounces is normal per feeding? How often? Has anyone done formula and co-sleeping? Is it normal for a baby to spit up so much? What is a good brand of bottle to use that doesn't make bubbles? Any other tips or advice?

Kmommy18

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 4:31 pm

First of all, how old is your baby? This will matter when it comes to how much formula and how often...

As for the formula itself, Enfamil Lipil is the best and smells the least (lol). You put 1 scoop of formula for every 2 ounces of water. A good bottle that makes the least bubbles is the Playtex VentAir. The only thing that is annoying is that it has a few parts that have to be seperated and then washed.

As for spitting up, how often does your baby spit up and how much? It may just be normal baby spitting, or it may be reflux. Does your baby squirm and act uncomfortable ever?

zigi

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 4:33 pm

refua shlaima! hugs!

if you don't have any milk alergies in your family you can start with a milk based formula, a newborn can eat 2-3 oz in the begining about every 3 hours. when he gets bigger it goes to 4 oz. I don't have a back of a can with me now but its also calculated by weight,

I used an avent bottle. my baby used to spit up every time but if its a lot of spit up and he is crying you might want to swtich to another formula. I used to go through about 3-4 cans a week.

f you are co sleeping you might want to try a bed rail. I never co slept when I wasn't nursing. if he had a bottle at night my ds was in the crib and I co slept while I nursed him for a nap.

flowerpower

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 4:35 pm

Find good bottles that don't allow air to enter.

I coslept and bottlefed.

Start out with milk formula(ready to feed or powder) and see how well he takes it. If he doesn't take it well then you can try soy. Try a formula that is not too heavy. They sometimes tend to drink it quickly so try to take breaks in between the feeding so he can burp and then continue the feeding. This prevents spitting up sometimes. Also feed him in an almost sitting up position.

Good luck and feel better!

Last edited by flowerpower on Fri, Jun 13 2008, 5:09 pm; edited 1 time in total

justanothermother

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 4:43 pm

He is 3 weeks old. He never spit up from nursing, but he never really got that much milk either. I started him on Similac Isomil b/c I had it in the house. It does really stink, but he likes it, so if it aint broke...

Tehilla

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 5:03 pm

JAM, my first was bottlefed after trying for 5.5 months to nurse her with the help of an LC.

the only formula/bottle combo she could handle was Materna soy/Gerber bottle. it will really vary for feeding. I noticed sometimes they'd take a couple ounces and sometimes 6-8oz! this could all depend on growth spurts and everything of course.

by the time she was on formula for a couple months, she got horrifically constipated and her ped said to give 1 oz prune juice mixed with 2 oz warm water. hopefully you won't have to go down that route though.

as long as you know you did your best, then don't worry. I'm sure you're a wonderful mother, and it's easier to be harder on yourself when your at a low physical/emotional point like this from not being well & postpartum. the important thing is your whole family's well-being. refuah sheleima to you!

myfriends715

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 5:08 pm

dont give isomil unless he is havibg trouble w/ milk.. soy has estrogen in it and is not so good for them.. unless necessary.. we r cholov yisroel so rov said we have to use chalav yisroel.. we are on similac advanced... it is a bit pricey cuz cholov yisroel only comes in ready to feed... but b"h no problems here..

as far as bottles you have to decide what you feel about the whole bpa plastic bottle controversy.. we use dr. browns which is great at getting rid of bubbles.. and they just came out in bpa free but they are pricey as well..

let me know if you have any questions

justanothermother

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 5:24 pm

myfriends715 wrote:

I don't recall seeing Dr Browns bottles at the pharmacy. I live OOT, what type of store would carry them?
What is the bpa controversy in a nutshell?

Thank you all for your advice. I will try a milk based formula and see if he takes it.

NotInNJMommy

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 5:56 pm

my lactation consultant felt almost all bottles were the same. The only difference I noticed after trying different ones was the cost or how difficult is was to clean.

The only difference re: gas, I noticed when switching formula. I had to urgently go on formula and couldn't get CY, so I used regular similac with iron, and then when I switched to materna mehadrin CY, she got gassy, but it passed.

The most important thing I learned was to start with slow flow and pace them. They will want to suck and suck and suck, esp if they are kvetchy, and then many times suck too much and get a tummy ache and spit it up. DD did this during her colicky stage in the evenings (I'd offer her a little more, and she'd down it, and then continue to scream and then spit up big time...so after twice of that I didn't give her more despite her protests.)

I highly reccommend starting on dairy, and only look to soy if there's an issue.

Be aware, that changing the diet may effect many things (diapers, sleeping/eating schedule). This doesn't mean something is wrong. It just takes babies' tummies time to adjust to something new.

mc'cutie

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 6:11 pm

I have tried the Dr. Browns bottles and the Playtex Ventair. The Playtex Ventair is so much better it eliminates all the air bubbles, plus it doesnt have that thing inside which can be a pain in the neck. I dont find the Playtex Ventair bottles hard to clean, since u can open the bottom you can clean it very well.

I started my baby on Enfamil, the milk based one he was very gassy from it so I was told to try Soy based, which was a big mistake, he was so constipated and kvetchy. So now I use the Meterna milk based, its very good. Very much like breast milk its not very heavy either so thats good.

Dont feel bad about the nursing part, (I had to stop cuz I had no milk after 5 months) your baby will be happy and so will you.

octopus

Fri, Jun 13 2008, 6:25 pm

I also agree about the soy- don't give it unless you have too. I also heard that it contains (or makes a prsn produce) estrogen- not really good for boys. (soy is great for menapausal women btw). I have no experience with formula, but from what I hear, ppl usually use similac.
I never heard of having to give a baby chalav yisrael, but to each his own.
Anyway- DO NOT feel bad that you are stopping to nurse. You're a good mother because you are doing what's in the best interest of your baby. If your baby is losing weight, and you are falling apart, then you are doing you and your baby a tremendous chessed by switching.

gold21

Sat, Jun 14 2008, 10:12 pm

Firstly, why would you feel even one iota of guilt or uncertainty about going on formula? Of course you should be giving your baby formula in the situation you are describing! It would be wrong of you to continue breastfeeding a baby who is losing weight at this point, and it would be wrong to your family and to yourself to continue nursing if you are turning into a basket case.

It is disturbing how the obsessively-pro-breastfeeding crazies have infiltrated our lives and our seichel.

Anyhow of course you can co-sleep and bottle-feed! Keep prepared bottles in the fridge at night, or only use ready made formula at night, or, as my dear friend does, simply keep room temp water next to your bed with clean bottles and formula, and prepare the bottles as needed. If you are a fan of cosleeping, definitely continue!

Similac Advance is generally recommended. Some formulas contain iron and some don't: I think you need the one with iron til 6 months, tho you gotta check with the doc.

We are happy with the Avent bottle. Start at the slowest flow, and work your way up over time to the fastest flow. The recommended age per flow is listed on the packaging of the nipple.

Good luck, and feel well!

losingweight

Sun, Jun 15 2008, 9:19 am

JAM I support your decision to switch to bottles. The baby will never remember if it was bottlefed or breasfed and you will never forget what a hard time you had breasfeeding. You will brobably be much calmer with bottles right now. As far as formulas are concerned, I just started giving formula to my dd and she had a reaction to the dairy Materna so I have to use the soy. She is very happy with it. BTW, Materna is the cheapest in price and the quality is great.

chavs

Mon, Jun 16 2008, 8:24 pm

I used the milky remedia for ds (the problem was with soy not the dairy one), we started withh materna but he didnt thrive on it, and when we switched him to remedia he was and we were happy.
My first advice is to read the instructions on the formula.
Get an easy way to sterilize your equipment.
prepare the formula in the morning so its ready when needed.
try to feed your baby the same way you would if he was breastfed, meaning pick up your shirt and make him comfy next to his mommy
put him skin to skin as often as you can.
Be happy with your decision, you are his mother and you know best!
Hatzlacha with you both, I hope all goes well