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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

Which formula to use, so many to choose...

29 replies

cazwaz247 · 06/10/2006 18:12

my DS is 6 months now and am going to start introducing formula. He has been breast fed until now. So confused about all the different formulas and follow on milk don't know what to do for best. Any body got any recommendations or even if I use follow on or normal formula. Any help appreciated!

OP posts:
gegs73 · 06/10/2006 18:14

I have heard that Aptimil is very good though I never used it. I used Cow and Gate with ds which was very good and no problems. I tried SMA Gold first which made him very constipated - no poo for 7 days.

tiktok · 06/10/2006 18:15

Use normal formula - I think it's cheaper and follow on is certainly no better. Use a brand you can get where you do your shopping (though it won't matter if you switch brands). Honestly, any of 'em will do!!

moondog · 06/10/2006 18:16

Follo on formula is only a marketing ploy.Formula dvertising for newborns \was banned so they invented this to develop brand awareness.

Sorry,no not about formula but believe it's all pretty much the same stuff.

gegs73 · 06/10/2006 18:16

Didn't read the bit about follow on formula. I would use the one to match your ds age as they each have relevant ingredients in for different age groups.

gegs73 · 06/10/2006 18:17

Follow no formula is normally cheaper isn't it?

gegs73 · 06/10/2006 18:17

ON that should have been

hulababy · 06/10/2006 18:17

Some babies willt ake any formula, some babies won't. You need to see which suits your baby.

I think different formulas have different make ups? Not sure what they are though.

Original poster
cazwaz247 · 06/10/2006 18:19

Thanks, not so confused now!

OP posts:
noonar · 06/10/2006 18:24

really agree with tiktok. we used cow and gate with dd1 , but it was hard to get hold of locally. i then chose sma for dd2 as my local co op stock it. then i felt bad for not going organic, so switched to Hipp- also available at my local shops.

noonar · 06/10/2006 18:24

ps sma is handy as they do sachets that are good for travel.

ThomBat · 06/10/2006 18:28

The hospital I had Lottie in used Cow & Gate so once I'd stopped breastfeeding I went onto that with her and automically used the same with DD2 when she started on formula.

tiktok · 06/10/2006 18:29

gegs - sorry, you have been got at by the marketeers!

Which ingredients do you mean?

Follow on has more iron in it - but babies don't need this much, and for many of them, it's constipating (see numerous threads on MN).

The rest are all the same. Some may be whey based, some may be casein based - the casein based ones take longer to digest, because the protein in them is tough as old boots, so they are marketed for 'hungrier babies' though the calories are more or less the same.

But the idea that they all change to match the needs of the baby at different ages - nope, sorry

gegs73 · 06/10/2006 18:33

Oh maybe I was with my small child addled brain. Never mind stopped drinking it a year ago too old now. I'm sure it was however slightly cheaper in our supermarket for sure so no biggy.

amijee · 06/10/2006 20:33

i'm glad this thread was started because I wanted to ask a similar question. Is aptamil more superior than the other's? It's marketed as being the closest to breast milk - or is that a load of s*? The ads go on about probiotics etc. I was gonna ask - if it's that great - how come everyone's not on it?

gegs73 · 07/10/2006 10:20

Hi - One of my friends was told that Aptamil is one of the best formula milks by a Health Visitor however I can't remember exactly why. However I think it is slightly more expensive than for eg Cow and Gate or SMA which is probably why not everyone uses it. I know C&G also has probiotics but not sure about the other makes so not sure what makes it 'superior'.

Beaks · 07/10/2006 11:39

It is worth checking this out before you start as some are soy milk (SMA) and some are cow or goats milk based. This might be a factor if there are allergies in the family. Having said that my friend used SMA and her daughter developed a skin rash. I suggested HIPP which I had used twice with no probs.(liked the organic idea and they both loved the food). Rash disappeared! Can be a pain in the backside to get hold of though. Lots of info about the ingredients on the internet if you want to completely confuse yourself!!

tiktok · 07/10/2006 12:49

SMA isn't soy milk - it's a bog standard cows milk formula. There are no goats milk formulas allowed in the UK.

Aptamil has been heavily promoted to healthcare professionals which is why it is often recommended, and it is marketed to middle class mums - it's about a quid dearer and makes a lot of claims regarding its additional prebiotics (not probiotics). These health claims don't stand up to scrutiny, according to informed people : such as in this discussion on the govt's food website

I agree - if these added ingredients are important, they should be in every brand of formula. But they are not, because it is the commercial interest of the manufacturers to segment the market and to make claims that brand x is better than everything else.

Don't fall for it

yellowrose · 07/10/2006 13:14

Why has goats milk been banned ? Just interested !

Beaks · 07/10/2006 17:45

Apologies about SMA was told this by someone else -said that was what the S stood for- a normally reliable source! Last time I give out advice . Goat's was available I think when I was making this decision not too many years ago!

tiktok · 07/10/2006 18:11

SMA (part of pharma gigantic-corp Wyeth ) does make a soya formula called Wysoy. Soya formula is best avoided though unless a baby is truly unable to tolerate anything else - lots of risks with it (google on risks of soya formula if you want to know more).

Goats milk formula is no longer allowed to be sold in the UK - see govt policy here as it is not considered to give adequate nutrition.

tiktok · 07/10/2006 18:12

Beaks - just interested: who told you SMA was a soya formula? Please tell me it wasn't a midwife or HV.....

kiskidee · 07/10/2006 19:01

Cow and Gate and Aptamil are owned by the same conglomerate. so yes, i would believe that they deliberately segment the market.

Aptamil claims to be the closest to breastmilk. If they really wanted to tell you the truth, they would tell you that Aptamil is far closer to other formulas than to breastmilk.

oooggs · 07/10/2006 19:10

I used aptimil after breast feeding, as given to me in the Transitional Care Ward where ds and I were. I did change to the follow on milk in the same brand as it was cheaper when he was at that age.

Beaks · 07/10/2006 20:24

TT it was my Mum again! She said it made me sick.

loopybear · 07/10/2006 21:03

SMA Gold made DD severely constipated. On Aptimil she has developed Colic and reflux . GP advised they were all similar (she refuses to recommend)