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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

Aptamil v Hipp Organic

17 replies

ap1984 · 23/01/2012 16:44

Hi Ladies

I plan on breastfeeding but I am being super organised and i'm buying in things now whilst I have the money

I want to buy in some formula (in case I can't breast feed) or for when i'm finishing

My question is whether I should buy Aptamil or Hipp Organic? Is there much difference...?

OP posts:
RitaMorgan · 23/01/2012 16:47

I think Hipp is suitable for vegetarians and Aptimal isn't, if that is important to you. Otherwise no real difference.

naturalbaby · 23/01/2012 16:48

I didn't bother, but there's a 24hr supermarket down the road and I had a pump. I'm the type of person that would have wanted to use it if it was in the cupboard as well. I didn't expect ds1 to be so sleepy he wouldn't feed properly for almost 24hrs but the mw's were happy so we just carried on.

BertieBotts · 23/01/2012 16:49

Don't get any. If you really really need it there will be a garage you can go to, having it in the house makes it all too easy to reach for when you're having a bad day/night rather than when you really need it.

KnitterNotTwitter · 23/01/2012 16:53

I bought 2 ready made cartons 'just in case' - think it was Aptamil.. Didn't want to shell out on boxes of the stuff only for it to go out of date. The ready made stuff can live in a cupboard and the theory was it was ONLY to be used if I was rushed to hospital and DH had to feed DS for some reason. Went for carton as then we wouldn't ahve to read any instructions beyond getting it to a sensible temperature in a sterile bottle.

In the end I gave them to a friend a month before they went out of date...

Don't spend too much and remember that there are shops where you can buy this sort of stuff open 24x7...

Good luck with the BFing... remember that newborns don't need any food for about 3 days - so don't expect your milk to come in from the first moment - and don't let well meaining people undermine you when it doesn't. My MIL was not encouraging about the BFing and I might have caved if I hadn't been very stuborn and determined to prove her wrong...

Gribble · 23/01/2012 16:55

I think its a good idea to have in handy, if for whatever reason you cant or dont want to carry on it will be even more upsetting / angering / frustrating if you have to fanny about going out to get some.

No offence to anyone here, as I really cant think of any other way of putting this so I apologise if I do cause offence, but I think its a bit off to say dont have it in as you'll be tempted. IMO You say that to someone who is dieting and wants to give up chocolate, not to a mother who is just trying to cover all bases by making sure she has something in just incase she wants to stop bf-ing.

But as for brands there really isnt any difference. Maybe get a couple of the small cartons in of each and see which baby likes best if you do decide to use them.

Original poster
ap1984 · 23/01/2012 16:56

KnitterNotTwitter

I am confused, sorry this is my first pregnancy adn no one has mentioned anything about not feeding for the first few days - why is this?

Perhaps you are right, having the milk in may end up with me giving in after a bad nights sleep - it was more curiosity really whether one was better than the other

Like you say, I can always pop out and pick some up as and when I need it

Think my baby brain is taking over and i'm trying to get everything organised well in advance but probably before I even need it

:-)

OP posts:
KnitterNotTwitter · 23/01/2012 17:07

Agg - didn't mean to confuse...

Basically for the first few days your body will produce a very small amount of yellowy stuff called collostrum - it won't be pints and pints of the stuff and anyone who is used to formula feeding might say 'you're not producing enough' or unhelpful things like that. BUT collostrum is full of antibodies and other things that are fab for babies and isn't your milk. Then on day 3ish your milk will come in - and you'll be making the creamy white stuff that looks more like bottled milk.

But the whole time you want to be demand feeding - that is feeding whenever your baby looks like they might be half interested in having a suck... letting them suck as much as they want is nice for baby as it is comforting for them AND it tells your body/boobs how much milk they need to produce when they get going with the milk... If you were to loose confidence in those first 2/3 days before your milk comes in and give a bottle or two (because your MIL someone helpful tells you that the baby is 'starving') then that can cause issues with your supply... And your baby won't be starving. They're born with enough food reserves to see them through until the milk comes in.

It's a bloody clever system IMO :)

RitaMorgan · 23/01/2012 17:09

You do feed in the first few days (feed as frequently as possible in fact!) but the baby gets small amounts of colostrum at first and the milk comes in properly about day 3.

KnitterNotTwitter · 23/01/2012 17:09

I defnitely didn't mean that you shouldn't feed them for the first 3 days it's just that they won't get any 'food'/milk yet - but that it doesn't matter - does that make sense...? Just let them suck and it'll all be fine...

KnitterNotTwitter · 23/01/2012 17:11

The other time that DH was tempted to get the formula out was at the 12 week growth spurt - my boobs were literally flat and DS was crying for milk... But it was just a case of going to bed naked with DS naked apart from a nappy; putting DH in the spare room and feeding all night - by morning my boobs had caught up and all was fine again...

KnitterNotTwitter · 23/01/2012 17:11

ok -I think i'm over compensating now... will shut up... Just want it go well for you...

BertieBotts · 23/01/2012 17:29

Apologies - this is going to get slightly political. The argument about not having formula in the house is not about formula being "bad" like chocolate might be to someone on a diet, but more because it can be undermining, especially in our culture which is quite undermining to BF anyway. I read a brilliant analogy in a book which was to imagine that it's a young man's wedding night, he has not had sex before, and there is a lot of pressure on him to perform and get it "right". Now imagine that his fiance produces a large dildo and advises him "Hey, this it just in case you can't get it up, or you're worried about your performance. You don't have to use it! It's just a backup, but at least you'll know you're sorted one way or the other." Now how do you think he feels when he goes to make love to his new wife?

meala · 23/01/2012 17:36

Hipp is not vegetarian anymore. It contains fish oils (like most of the main brand formula). I used Aptamil alongsside breastfeeding if I was needing to leave a bottle and hadn't expressed. Baby had no issues changing between the two. I didn't have it in the house though at first, only moved to that after breastfeeding was established.

Gribble · 23/01/2012 17:49

Bertie I agree about how it can undermine breastfeeding, but it can also rescue someone who is about to give up.

If I hadnt had that one carton in during that first week of bfing...Im not sure but I think I would have given up tbh and sent DP out to get a full size carton. I didnt expect it to be as hard as it was, and no-one IRL ever tells you that it can hurt for a little while. Just having DP give him that one bottle gave me a boost and my nipples a bit of a rest, and I felt ready to tackle it again and am still bfing happily nearly 4 months later (with one FF at night so I can sleep for a bit and have a bit of 'us' time with DS1)

SpannerPants · 23/01/2012 19:40

I bought a couple of cartons of hipp because it was cheapest! I've just thrown them away actually because they've passed the expiry date. I only realised because we were going to try DS with some.

nannyl · 23/01/2012 20:03

I would go along with not having any in the house too.

I am VERY stubborn and always intended to exclusively breast feed no matter what. I really feel very very strongly about this.

There have been 2 occasions so far (DD is 4 months old) where im pretty sure if we had had some formula in the house DD would have had some. (Once when she was about 3 days old)

I KNOW (and always did know) that she didnt need it at this point in her life, but in the hormones / exhaustion i would have caved in i think. (OH even asked where i kept the carton i was planning to buy 'just in case' and was not amused i hadnt bought any, as he was going to get it!!!!) (we live 5 min walk from Co-op open 6am - 11pm)

I am delighted to have a 4month old with her virgin gut in tact, and im quite sure if i had any formula in the house 'just in case' I wouldnt.

When she is 6m old i will give her 1 bottle of formula a day (at the moment i express 8oz a day and i HATE expressing) and then I have already chosen to feed my baby one feed a day of HIPP, and the rest breast milk direct from my breasts.

Just my choice, and because i would rather she had processed organic cows milk without routine use of growth hormones and anti-biotics.

Original poster
ap1984 · 24/01/2012 08:13

Thank you ladies, again as always very helpful

Think you're right, temptation would be there and can always call out and get it in an emergency if its needed

Gosh can't wait to start my NCT classes - so much to learn, but equally so excited :-)

xx

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