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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

Follow on milk

12 replies

Panzee · 07/08/2013 10:28

My son is coming up to 6 months. He's been formula fed for a good while now and I was thinking about switching to follow on milk for the points at Boots.
I know why follow on milk exists, to get around the advertising restrictions, so I was wondering if that meant there's actually no difference between first milk and follow on. Does anybody know? Has anyone made the switch, good and bad stories please? Thank you :)

OP posts:

AnneUulmelmahay · 07/08/2013 10:52

There is a difference, I cannot recall the details atm. The WHO has v recently come out and said no benefit to babies under one, not recommended and unnecessary.

Cant link on stooopid phone. We were discussing on here I think last week?

KatAndKit · 07/08/2013 11:05

There is a difference in the milk proteins. Infant formula is whey based but follow on is casein based. It may not agree with all babies so if yours is happy on first milk you don't need to change but i don't think follow on does any harm and if your baby doesn't get on with it you can swap back

ricecakesrule · 07/08/2013 11:14

I breastfed, but our HV said at 6 months that there was no benefit in giving follow on milk over normal full fat cow's milk during weaning, don't know if it's different if switching from one formula to another as obviously with bf it's more of a gradual change. Certainly with the toddler milk from 1 yr on she was very scathing about it being an advertising ploy!

UriGeller · 07/08/2013 11:23

Follow on milk has no benefits at all to the baby.

It contains 'thickeners' to make it denser and is actually LESS nutritious than formula.

Your baby will be better off with his usual formula til one year old.

Original poster

Panzee · 07/08/2013 17:06

Thank you for the comments.

I did look back at older threads, must have missed that one. Will look again, thanks. Although WHO is probably saying don't use it to replace breastfeeding? That makes sense but my son is already formula fed. I'll go and look in the forum.

The casein is what the hungry baby formula is based on , have I got that right? I read in a different thread it is the older style formula, probably what I was fed as a baby! Maybe it's more like that than first milk. I am a bit uneasy about caesin over whey.

I know toddler milk is only really about taste, I bought some once to take on holiday because I wasn't sure about the cows milk where we were going.

I am a bit unsure about why follow on can have no benefit to the baby at all. Whether there's any point if he's on first milk, I guess that's what I'm trying to work out.

Re "thickener": the caesin would make it thicker I suppose. It's not adding thickener like cornflour though!

Lots to think about, thank you everyone. :)

His anybody gone from first milk to follow on? How did you find it?

OP posts:

wigglesrock · 07/08/2013 18:15

I didn't bother at all moving from Stage 1 with dd1, but with dd2 and dd3 (now 5 & 2) I moved to stage 2 formula as soon as they were 6 months. I moved purely for financial reasons, when the stage 2 was on offer ie 2 for £14, it really did make a difference money wise. It didn't make ant difference health wise and like I said, I didn't change at all with dd1.

wigglesrock · 07/08/2013 18:18

Oh and the kids made the swop with no bother at all. Same at 1 year they went straight to cows milk without blinking.

tiktok · 07/08/2013 18:23

It's not 'less nutritious' than regular formula and it is not thicker.

Where have you got that info from, UriGeller?

It is casein-dominant, and it has extra iron in it. I don't think it is like formula used to be - the fact it is casein-dominant is indeed like old-style formulas, but the extra iron is a comparatively new thing.

I have not heard that the WHO have a position on follow on in comparison with first formula - they certainly do affirm that breastmilk is better.

Bunbaker · 07/08/2013 18:26

"and I was thinking about switching to follow on milk for the points at Boots."

Sorry, but I think that is the wrong reason for getting follow on milk. If your son needs it then get some, but if he doesn't just stick to what you are already giving him.

AidanTheRevengeNinja · 07/08/2013 18:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

wigglesrock · 07/08/2013 18:37

If there's no difference why wouldn't you make a choice that would financially benefit your family

My children were all formula fed on demand, way past 6 months. So store "points" added to the actual saving did mount up.

Original poster

Panzee · 08/08/2013 18:38

Again, thanks for all comments. I bought a small bottle of follow on today to compare the ingredients/nutrition info. They have the same number of calories and the nutrition does vary a little, but only really in that there is more iron. In fact there's more whey in the follow on, despite it having caesin in too. Apart from that there's so little in it I think it's worth a go. Thanks again :)

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