Need a back up plan in case BF is not possible - best formula?

[bethftm]

Hi,

I'm 23 week and first time mum-to-be! I desperately want to bf but need a back up plan just in case! Have been looking at different formulas but don't know which is going to be best? Can anyone help?

Thanks :)

I chose aptimil. They are all very similar and Cow and Gate is made by same manufacturer although the formula is slightly different.

Unless your baby has a medical issue, or reflux etc, they are all pretty similar.
I bought a selection of different ready-made cartons to try before I bought a full box of formula, just incase there was a reaction to it.

Thanks,

I have bought small ready-made cartons just in case! And have checked all ingredients for Aptamil, Cow and Gate and SMA, and all ingredients were pretty much like for like! But have now found HIPP Organic... and can't help but be attracted to the 'organic' side?

They are all subject to very strict legal standards - i.e. they are all basically the same.

There is HIPP if you want Organic.

Otherwise, get what is easily available nearby and compare price. Expensive is not better quality.

Great idea to have a back up plan. I really really wanted to bf but after only three days I had to stop.
I had already bought some of the Aptamil ready to use bottles just in case and we used them for a while.

We've just started mix feeding due to latching issues with lip tie and HIPP seems to be the one for us! Cow and Gate made my DD constapaited, and painfully so, whereas HIPP is supposed to be the most like breast milk ( I have to say, it tasted most like mine) and her tummy's happy on it!

This is a great unbiased piece of info on the different formulae: www.firststepsnutrition.org/pdfs/Infant_milks_%20a%20simple%20guide.pdf

DD1 had formula and we gave her aptimil, we tried cow and gate but it gave her awful colic. HV's suggestion was give her what's cheapest their all the same

My baby is in Aptamil (since 5 months). He happily took every brand I tried but I went with Aptamil as its the most readily available.

I'm a failed breastfeeder who had to switch to formula, you do not need to prepare for it. You will be able to get bottles and formula if you find you can't feed. It is not something you need to keep in just in case.

I found having ready made sterile bottles a real "reassurance" at the start.
They in no way tempted me to stop BFIng.

You can get a box with a few glass bottles with teats in most tesco for £5.99. SMA or Cow & Gate. Then you know they're there if you were taken ill midnight on sunday or whatever but you've not got to store kit you will never use etc.

However I never used them. I'm going to pass them on to any ff mums who I see using SMA, or just to make cereal with come weaning as I hate waste.

It's a little bit more expensive but try Holle organic formula. It's not easily available sostock uup when you get it. It's the closest formula to breastmilk you will find. My daughter thrived on it. Her breath smelled sweet and even her poo was not pungent. I switched her to Hipp at six months old andeeven though it is great you could smell the difference, kind of chemical smell that all formulas have
You won't find better than Holle, shame more mum's don't know about it.

can i suggest that if youre concerned about breastfeeding (or even if not) you ask your midwife for details of local breastfeeding groups and peer supporters? It can be a good thing to go along to before baby arrives so you know about stuff to look out for. Saying that, you often hear about people who struggle to bf (unfortunately it seems like a lot of people feel they have to justify ff) but so far (4 months) its been a smooth journey for us, there was a lot of support in the hospital and things have worked out. Im glad because i love breastfeeding! Good luck

Another failed breastfeeder here. We use Aptamil and Tommy Tippee bottles with anti colic teats.

I expressed colostrum from about 34 weeks pregnant and froze it. It was there to give DS when I had trouble feeding him on day 2/3. We didn't look back after that.

If you want a back up formula, make sure it's something you can get at your corner shop for those days when you haven't got the car and baby is pir rely and so are you and you've run out of formula etc etc!

I don't like the term failed breastfeeder at all. We are all mums trying our best, and not everything works out for everyone, plus breastfeeding support in this country is generally abysmal so it is hardly individual mums' "failures".

I found it easier not to have it in the house, but people will have different opinions on this. I live next to one of those 6am-11pm corner shops though, so I could have got it pretty easy. I found it easier to get through the growth spurts and sleepless nights without that option in the cupboard, I found it easier to trust my body without something to measure it against, I suppose. Completely understand if you feel the opposite though, and would find it reassuring.

I second the advice of going to a bf group before you have the baby, really helpful to hang out with other experienced mums. Having a number ready of someone to call with problems is useful too (Midwives are very hit and miss with breastfeeding advice).

agree weebairn, also at some point everyone has to stop bfing and i think its pretty rare that its because both mum and baby are happy to stop, im just beginning to realise this

I just wanted to say something about what Mumof3 said about a particular brand of formula... No formula is any closer to breastmilk than any other. They have to have basically the same ingredients by law. If any other ingredient is shown to be of benefit to babies then the law would change to then require it.