what would be better for the baby - ebf for 6 weeks then bottle feeding or mix feeding from begining for a year?

[wildpoppy]

Just a theoretical question as I can't change what we've done but I wondered what is better for baby as my antenatal group seems to have split into two types of breastfeeding mums - those who did it exclusively for 6 weeks then changed to exclusive bottle feeding and those like me who mix fed from very early on and are still doing so and intend to continue, so the baby gets breastfed, but not exclusively, for around a year. Any thought?

Interesting question :)

Some studies seem clear that it is any breastfeeding that makes a difference and that the longer you do any breastfeeding the better, unrelated to the actual amount of bf compared to ff.

Others find the difference lies in the exclusivity of bf.

Still others find a 'dose' effect ie the less bf you do alongside ff, the less the effect.

There is a risk of mix feeding from early on, in that it definitely increases the chances of an early cessation of bf, and this is pretty consistent across all studies (though obviously it is not a prediction for every mother and baby).

So I don't think there is an answer to your question about which is 'better' :)

I would have thought that for the first six weeks the ebf baby is better off and for the remainder of the year the mix fed baby is better off in terms of immunity, infections etc but I'm not sure about the longer term.

Mix feeding early on does carry the risk of pushing you into the other camp anyway as it can risk your supply. And EBF for 6 weeks then nothing is better than mix feeding for 6 weeks and then nothing.

But long-term, not sure.

I think - as tiktok said - the jury is out on this one scientifically.

Mix feeding does mean you have milk still so you could more easily get back to EBF (I mixed fed very early on after DD came out of SCBU so did do it).

What about the impact of even a small amount of formula on gut flora? Would you not be better off protecting that for as long as possible?

Actually, tiktok, if you come back to this do you know of any good research I could look into on this? I've come across some stuff about gut flora on the blogosphere but wasn't sure if there is anything more...mainstream?

In the style of the Fast Show, this week I have been mainly thinking about gut flora. Apologies for the digression!

I am not a great fan of the 'virgin gut' theory. There is plenty of evidence - theoretical, empirical, and observational - that even a small amount of formula changes gut flora - of course it does. But there is no evidence that this is harmful in the longer-term to the majority of babies' health, if the baby returns to full bf.

So I am not sure how you would quantify this for the 'which is better?' question!