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Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Infant feeding

formula - too rich? Tiktok/Mears

57 replies

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:32

My dd is 4 weeks old and until now has been exclusively breast fed. We got off to a slow start and she has gained 5.5 oz in the pat 2 weeks. Her correct birth weight is unknown as the scales were wrong.

Anyway, due to lots of reasons, i'd like to mix feed with EBM and formula as well as feeding her myself at least 1st thing in the morning/last thing at night.

So, I started her off on the mid morning feed on 4oz of SMA gold. She took to the bottle no problem and took the formula, well 2.5 oz of it. (I'd given her about 1.5 oz of EBM about an hour or so earlier). She brought a small amount of this up, but nothing alarming. Then, this afternoon, I gave her another 4 oz. She then went a bit clammy and pale for a while and subsequently brought a fair amount of it back up. I wouldn't think it was all of it and it wasn't exactly projectile vomit but after it had stopped, about an hour after taking it, she was fine. I've now breast fed her (2.5 hours later and she's ok but she's not fed for as long as normal.

All of this probably sounds quite normal to seasoned mothers but to a novice like me its a slight worry. I did take her temp earlier but that was fine and now shes ok, i'm happy but it did concern me when she went so pale and clammy. Anyway, to get to the point......does anyone think the SMA gold may be too rich and if so, what other formula would you recommend? I'm going to ring the HV tomorrow and see what she suggests but thought i'd put it to you lot as well. Sorry this is so long, just want to get it right. Thanks for listening

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DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:33

Meant to say, she was 7lb 4oz on Thursday just gone

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Gobbledigook · 15/05/2005 19:35

Must admit, my ds1 didn't take to SMA gold and I switched to Cow and Gate - all 3 have been perfectly fine on that - no colic, no trapped wind, no possetting or vomiting. Why not give that a try?

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:36

gosh that was quick GG. thanks alot, i'll see if I can get some tomorrow.

Anyone else had the same problem?

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emmatmg · 15/05/2005 19:38

My ds3 had loads of trouble with SMA, and it's known for being quite haevy and thick compared to other formulas.

We changed DS3 to Farleys.

How annoying about the scales, that would drive me nuts.

(How are you BTW? can't believe your little DD is 4 weeks already, that has flown by.)

Kittypickle · 15/05/2005 19:41

HI Delgirl. I had a bad experience with DD and SMA Gold, lots of sickness and bad colic . With DS when b/f didn't work out, I used Cow and Gate, then Aptamil. He was fine with both. I'm really looking forward to meeting Baby Delgirl on Thursday

gingernut · 15/05/2005 19:42

Our ds1 didn't get on with SMA Gold either, so we changed him to a Cow and Gate one but for ds2 we're using Aptamil which seems to suit him.

katylou25 · 15/05/2005 19:42

Also had trouble with SMA - sick, trapped wind, constipation - and changed to farleys a couple of weeksd ago and ds is a lot better..... and happier!

hunkermunker · 15/05/2005 19:43

I haven't had any experience of feeding formula, but I do know that before I got pregnant, I used to get the pale and clammy thing when I drank milk - I'd also feel sick. Pregnancy seems to have sorted that out though, for some reason - I can drink it now!

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:44

I'm good thanks Emma. I feel as if DD has always been here, she is just so lovely and very good on the whole. I've just felt like a dairy cow the last couple of days and i'm struggling a bit, hence the formula. I may have to go into hospital again soon and may not be able to breastfeed so she has to get used to taking a bottle now and then. She took to it, no problem, her stomach didn't do quite as well tho it seems. How are you?

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DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:46

wow, thanks for all your replys. I knew I could rely on mumsnet.

Looking forward to seeing you too Kittypickle. Have DD in my arms at the mo, bless her cotton socks, thats why im a bit slow to reply.

Cheers everyone, will see how the c& g versus farley debate goes. Suppose theres no harm in trying both on different days

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emmatmg · 15/05/2005 19:49

I'm good, thanks.

Much more interesting talking about you and your little dd though.

Seems alot of us have had trouble with SMA, I faffed and worried about changing formula for ages and Ds3 was absolutley fine with it. Poor chap probably hated SMA but I was too worried to change.

Hope everything is Ok, re the hospital.

emmatmg · 15/05/2005 19:51

TBH, DG I think the main thing is cost.

They are all pretty much the same, but according to a MNer when i was faffing around with a tiny DS3 Aptimal tastes the best as she tested them all

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:53

yeah thanks. its just kidney stones but theyre quite big so im not sure if they can blast them or whether they'll have to operate. hope not! having another xray in a couple of weeks. my sis just loves dd to bits as do her cousins so im sure she'll be a great help. they came down this afternoon (4 hour round trip) and they were only here for 2 hours or so!

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hunkermunker · 15/05/2005 19:55

Ow, DelGirl!

If you do want to keep bfeeding, and if the operation allows, the hospital should make provision for you to have DD in with you.

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 19:58

I think they use Aptimil in the hospitals actually.

Hunkermunker, yes i've heard that they should too. Its just that not knowing what they're likely to do and how long it takes to get over etc, thought I should at least try her on a bottle. Thought I could just give EBM but tbh it takes so long, I'd be feeding her and then expressing, then feeding again. I can't do both at the same time, its not physically possible for me

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hunkermunker · 15/05/2005 22:15

DelGirl, I think you're being very sensible, getting her used to a bottle before you go into hospital. I did wonder whether to post that last, since I didn't want you to think I was coming over all pressurey - it wasn't my intention! I just didn't want you not to know that the hospital should let you have DD in with you if you didn't know already.

As for expressing while feeding, I found the easiest way to do it was to hold DS rugby-ball style with lots of pillows supporting him, then express the other side with my Isis. Again, if you've already tried this, I'm not hassling you - just giving you a possible idea!

Will be thinking of you xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

DelGirl · 15/05/2005 22:23

Hi, thanks for the info, really appreciated. I've tried all the b/f positions with DD. Unfortunately, It takes both hands cos otherwise she gets enveloped and is in danger of suffocation due to my b/f size

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tiktok · 15/05/2005 22:30

Not sure what you mean by 'too rich', Delgirl....the fat content of infant formulas mostly used for young babies is more or less the same across the brands. In fact, the brands hardly differ, except in the additional ingredients which the manufacturers are now adding - the probiotics, the prebiotics and so on, of which each brand has its own formulation.

Just a word about your plans to mix feed - at four weeks, only bf twice in 24 hours and maybe expressing a bit will not be enough to keep a breastmilk supply going. You might find your mix feeding only lasts a little while, with that pattern. Just so you know!

hunkermunker · 15/05/2005 22:34

DG, totally understand what you mean! Am a G cup myself, and had the suffocation worry with DS too!

It changes though - as they get a bit sturdier, they need less support to feed.

If you can, try to breastfeed as much as you can now - you'll only need to express an ounce or so of milk to get her used to a bottle - not full feeds, especially as you're still establishing your supply.

DelGirl · 16/05/2005 07:19

thanks tiktok and hunkermunker.

How many feeds do you think i'm able to replace at this stage then. At the moment, i'd be happy just to replace 2. Not sure of the way to go at the moment.

Thanks

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DelGirl · 16/05/2005 07:19

thanks tiktok and hunkermunker.

How many feeds do you think i'm able to replace at this stage then. At the moment, i'd be happy just to replace 2. Not sure of the way to go at the moment.

Thanks

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donnie · 16/05/2005 08:23

we used aptamil for our dd1 on the advice of the health visitor and are occasionally using it with dd2 ( 8 days old!) with no ill effect at all. I remember the HV saying it was one of the better ones and easier to digest.

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tiktok · 16/05/2005 09:37

Delgirl. at this stage, replacing two feeds with formula is likely to have an impact on your supply. In the first weeks of bf, milk production needs to be stimulated often - leaving several hours between breastfeeds (which is what would happen if you give formula, or, for that matter, EBM) tells the body to stop making milk. You might get away with just one bottle feed in 24 hours - some mothers do - but I think you are pushing your luck to hope for 2.

I mean, you will be able to do it, but you are likely to see your breastmilk supply dwindle.

Mothers of older babies, whose milk supply is well established, can and do mix feed....but it's not something that works for very long at just four weeks, generally speaking, especially if you had a slow start, as you say you did.

mears · 16/05/2005 09:40

Since you seem to want to keep breastfeeding, have you considered expressing the feed that you miss when you give formula? That means you will actually get ahead of the game and be able to give more EBM feeds from the bottle rather than formula.
As Tiktok says, the formulas all have the same ingredients. It is a completely different composition to breastmilk so no matter what brand you use, dd will probably bring some back up.

The best time probably to give formula/EBM is probably in the evening. In order to keep breastmilk supply up I would continue with night feed. If you want to give 2 feeds, I would do the other one mid morning.
You should be fine just doing one bottlefeed a day though. You are still in the 'hard work' phase of breastfeeding. Once she gets older it gets much easier. Wait till she is smiling up at you

DelGirl · 16/05/2005 09:57

Hi both. It is hard isn't it? At the moment DD seems to feed for an hour and then after that seems to want more about an hour later. She does fall asleep alot and that's probably why its taking so long and why I feel she's permanently attached. Last night she wasn't easily settled. I know its early days but with the real shortage of sleep, yes part of the job description I know, I just think i'd cope better knowing that she'll at least take something from a bottle, be it formula or EBM. In an ideal world I want to give her EBM and thats what I had intended, its just with her feeding for so long and not being able to express at the same time makes it difficult. Sorry, rambling cos of tiredness.

Ideally, i'd like to give her maybe 1 bottle of something in the day or evening and replace 1 feed at night. Do either of you think this is feasible at this stage? Thanks for your help

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