Can anyone recommend a good organic formula milk for newborns?

[megglewell]

Have read a bit about HIPP but no others..

megglewell, there are no independent comparisons between formula milks with regard to quality, and as all infant formula has to meet regulations about the proportion of ingredients, you can be pretty sure they are broadly similar.

The most widely-available organic formula is probably HIPP at the moment; if you are planning to stick with one brand, you can check your chosen brand is available where you regularly shop to save long searches when you run out

Of course, the best organic formula comes from your breasts

Surely you would have to be on an organic diet to get soil association certification tiktok??

breast milk?

I'm pretty sure that the difference (if we were able to measure it - which we're not) between the 'best' and the 'worst' formulas is negligable compared with the difference between the best formula and breastmilk!

Tik - but isn't there an age specific formula? Thought HIPPs was only for post 6 months?

tik, stitch, and the rest of you, stop being so insensitive - you don't know why tik can't breastfeed, I know with my new medication I won't be able to, and whatever the reason its her decision and your little comments won't help anyone.

megglewell - its your choice and your circumstances, don't feel bad

ilovemydog - um, where'd you get that idea from ?

HIPP has a range of formula, including follow on (which is only suitable from 6 mths).

weejie - I have no idea what lies behind the OP's question. I made no assumptions even that the question was on her behalf. She could be a student writing an essay for all I know.

I don't need telling off for being 'insensitive' - I wasn't. I was light-hearted and informative.

I'm also brave enough to point out to you that medication is hardly ever incompatible with breastfeeding, and it's not at all uncommon for women to be told they 'cannot breastfeeding with XYZ' and for this to be simply not true - see many posts in mumsnet archives. You may have to use one of the very few medications that really do present a risk to the newborn - principally anti-cancer meds, sometimes, seriously heavy-duty tranquillisers - and that's a real shame. Most of the others are usable with a timed dose, or actually have no more than a theoretical risk. I believe mothers should have information on their options so they can make a choice.

tiktok - you know nothing about me, you assume I am not intelligent enough to know that my meds are not compatible with breast feeding - believe me, they are. But this isn't about me - its about the OP.

and also believe me, you were not being light hearted and informative, You were being patronising. And I don't believe that you thought for a second about what might lie behind the opening post in your rush to make your breast feeding point.

the fact is, not everyone can breast feed, and not everyone wants to, and not everyone needs breast feeding pushed down their throat (forgive the pun) at every opportunity, along with the implicit judgments, so why not simply answer the OP without the additional comments?

weejie tiktok is just trying to be helpful So many people get WRONG breastfeednig advice and it is silly to jump on someone for offering the RIGHT breastfeeding advice.

Weejie
I symphathise with your annoyance at seeing breast feeding being "pushed down their throat", but I really don't think that that was what tiktok was doing. I think this is a case of "straw that broke the camels back" and think that you should not blame such a helpful well-informed sensitive poster for happening to be that straw. IYKWIM.

hey girls, calm down its only a internet forum.

I didnt really see anything insensitive in any of the above posts.
although i know what tik tok does as a living and is well entitled to say what she did, i also know from my job that what tik tok said about medication is also correct and is is only a few medications that cant be taken with breast milk.
the meds i deal with are anti d's and anti psychotics

I also might add i didnt breast feed my children and there fine and healthy and i didnt feel as if she was ramming breastfeeding down my throat and i have dealt with any issues i have regarding breastfeeding and why i didnt and i hold no regrets and therfor dont get upset when people refer to it!

Weejie, with respect - 98% of women are able to breastfeed.

Yes - a fairly large minority will choose to bottlefeed. But it's also true that 30% of women believe that formula is as basically as good as or better than breastmilk. (NCT feeding survey)

And.... 45% of women have do not have a detailed discussion about feeding with their midwives during antenatal appoinments. (National Maternity survey)

In other words - for every woman who CAN'T breastfeed there are dozens more who have made the choice to bottlefeed without fully understanding the differences between breastmilk and formula, despite the fact, that - as you say - they are having 'breastfeding pushed down their throats at every opportunity'.

I am not blaming tiktok per se, she was the only one who answered my post and debated on this subject with me, however I do take exception to her comment on meds.

My comments were aimed at EVERY poster on this thread who mentioned BF - fair enough point this out once, but to repeatedly mention it, and to singularly fail to engage on what the OP wanted to know - well, I wouldn't call that sensitive.

I'll repeat it again - not every one can, or wants to breastfeed - fair enough, point out the option, but to continue labour the point as the respondents here do - of the four who answered, three went on about breastfeeding and one was a joke. Is this seriously helpful?

and for the OP - HIPP is a good choice, as the milk basis is organic.

And good luck to you whatever you choose to do - breast or bottle for 6 months or however long doesn't matter - a lifetime of love is more important.

"I do take exception to her comment on meds."

As another poster has already backed up Tiktok's stance on drugs with breastfeeding, what are you objecting to ?

If you wished to post which drugs you have to take, maybe Tiktok or amazonianadventure might be able to suggest a situable link for information for you ?

weejie - not knowing that very few meds are incompatible with breastfeeding has nothing to do with intelligence...don't know why you think I implied you were not intelligent. Plenty of very clever women indeed have been misled and mis-advised on this very point.

Of course I thought about what might lie behind the OP's post - disbelieve me if you wish, and I will try my very best not to take offence But as the OP had given zero information (and could be, as I suggested, a student doing an essay, which does happen on mumsnet, or a neighbour of a new mum, or the partner of a new mum) I made no assumptions. She might be someone who has been told her breastmilk will not be suitable for her baby because she has to take (for example) anti-depressants, or allergy meds, or thyroid meds; she might be told she will 'never be able to breastfeed' because none of the women in her family have ever managed it; she might even think that formula is 'as good as' or 'almost the same as' breastmilk (as about a third of people do, many of them, I am sure, of normal intelligence). And I remained sensitive to this, and made a light-hearted comment to her - you saw it, and took enormous offence on her behalf - now that could be seen as patronising....

there are lots of people who find mumsnet via google... and googling things like breast feeding .. so it is important for the info to be given in sometimes a wider form than the question that is asked, and also it is good to offer a different perspective.

sometimes GPS etc are not best placed to advise which meds etc are suitable and compatible for nursing mothers.. so a person might happen to see this thread and realise that with a call to a breast feeding helpline, that they can breastfeed after all.

WRT to the question, HIPP organic is one i would recommend, having used it , albeit the follow on milk for my DD.

she has backed up her stance with a very limited selection of drugs, primarily anti psychotics.

there are a lot of new drugs which do not cross the placenta, but do pass into breast milk, and which are extremely dangerous - these are now being used in a wide range of auto immune conditions, and their use is set to increase.

someone coming on here and seeing tiktok's sweeping statement cold be left confused, or subject their baby to risk. so, if you want to give good and helpful advice, then be aware that your information is either out of date, or subject to a narrow range of specialisms eg the anti psychotics mentioned,and tell people to CHECK WITH THEIR DOCTOR! Tiktok clearly has limited knowledge of certain drugs and to make sweeping statements without caveats that there is much she doesn't know, and people should double check if they have doubt is either stupid or cavalier.

so yes, I object to your comment that most drugs are safe, some aren't and people should check before putting their baby in danger.

why is it breastfeeding makes people tell other people to take unresearched risks that you wouldn't recommend in other circumstances?

Does anyone know if there is any proper evidence about whether organic formula is any better than non-organic? I wonder if there is actually any difference after all the processing that is done on the milk but I know nothing about this.

and before we get too far off the track, my original point was that of the four people who answered, none actually addressed the OP, with 3 talking about BF and one making a joke.

so my point was, fair enough if one person wants to make the pint re BF, but for no one to answer and for everyone to only talk about bf was unhelpful, to say the least.

tiktok is an extremely well respected and knowledgeable breast feeding counsellor with a well known national organisation.

i would personally trust her advice, more than that of other HCPs who don;t have the same extensive knowledge and information and interest in the subject.

GPS are notoriously bad at breastfeeding advice on the whole... thread on here yesterday where a motehr was advised by a GP to give her poorly breast fed baby lots of extra juice and water. that is absolutely not correct

i shall ignore the breast/bottlefeeding debate and anwer the OP,

i use HIPP organic formula for ds4, i figured if i couldnt breastfeed he could at least have organic formula

fwiw i bfed my first three children until they were 3years old, but with ds4 is was just not working, giving him organic was the next best thing for me and he seems VERY happy with it, no consitpation or anything and he is a happy content baby

i did look at others but they are mainly only available from specialist food stores, babynat? or something was another one and VERY expensive, HIPP is reasonably priced and available it tesco, boots etc

you can actually buy it in bulk online too

thank you 4madboys

and tiktok - it might be worth checking out

infliximab (remicade) - bf possible but debatable

adalumimab (humera) - bf strongly contraindicated

coxibs - not recommended

and also to say, I luckily managed to breastfeed to healthy kids, but people at my clinic I know feel bad enough about a lot of stuff, and I know this is one of the issues of great concern to the mums I meet there, so handling this sensitively would help everyone concerned

so, MNers, please keep this in mind when answering questions on BF

I have to say I agree with Weejie - as soon as I saw the htread title, I was waiting for the "breastmilk" comments to come up.

The OP clearly and specifically asked about FF. If she had wanted advice on IF she could b/f, she would have asked that. She did not.

does the 98% of women include those who have had mastectomy's, cancer treatement and concieved by ivf afterwards?

Before suggesting BF, why can't people wait and see what the history is. Note the OP ahs not returned..... If was her, I'd have been put off already.

But.. to answer the question, or not, I'm afraid I don't know anything about organic ff

weejie, you really have offended me now. I would never suggest that anyone put themselves or their baby at risk. I stand by the information I posted earlier today - people are often misled about meds and breastfeeding, and there are very few meds with which women should definitely not breastfeed - clearly, one checks this out before making any decision i) to not take the drugs or ii) to not breastfeed.

Obviously, my examples of drugs which are definitely not compatible was not meant to be exhaustive - as the intelligent woman you claim to be you will have understood that. Actually, even someone a bit stupid might have understood that, too.

But just in case anyone, including you, needs clarification, I'll spell it out - and please don't now accuse me of being 'patronising':

• check with your medical advisers before making any decisions about meds and breastfeeding, bearing in mind they may get it wrong, and that it is your choice to get as much detail as you need in order to make an informed decision. If someone says you cannot feed, check it out by asking them their evidence for this, and doing some research yourself, if you want to.

I also addressed the OP, pointing out the lack of decent, independent comparisons between formula, and making the very sensible suggestion that finding out about local availability of brands is helpful.

Get down off your high horse and go and take offence at something that's worth your outrage