Aptamil, SMA or Cow & Gate

[endlesslove]

I am a first time mum to be in 6 weeks. Already know I will be bottle feeding. Anyone have any preferences on the milk formulas above? I am not sure which to use.

i'm a normal sane educated person.

i didn't want to breastfeed. i had never seen anyone do it before, either. just didnt want to, and im happy with what i chose.

im now ttc dc3 and wondering, only from a friends excellent example, about BF-ing the new baby.

the poster says she wants to FF-just leave it at that, surely?

Aptimil because I read somewhere on mumsnet that it has something in it to make it easier to digest and has fish-oils in it.

It will all seem complicated to start with but you soon get into routines and it gets easier.

Good luck!

Sorry Scorpio- good luck with number 3.
(But I dont think anyone can argue that bf is not best for babies... and it is also very good for the mother)

Also... I had never seen anyone bf either, had my son when I was fairly young... but I knew what my breasts where made for...

Right I am going now...

i knew what they were for, just simply did not want to. i know its best for mum and baby, i know that. my choice, posters choice.

oh and yes, bottles are a faff!!

I breast fed for 4 months and then had to give up on doctors advice. I started using SMA but it was so thick and greasy and DD did not like it at all. In the end HV recommended Aptamil and it was so much better so that is what I would recommend.

I gave DD1 Aptamil when I stopped bf because the woman I worked for as a nanny was a doctor and it was what her and her friend used . At the time it was much more expesive than the others now I think the prices of milk are failry similar.

When I had dd1 I tried SMA, but it didn't seem to agree with her so changed to cow and gate. With dd2 used cow and gate.

Do you know which steriliser you are going to use, my friend used a microwave one and recommended it as it was quicker.

I used cow and gate for my dd and ds.

Have also got a tub of Cow and gate in for DS2 (due in 13days)

I will be trying to bf again,(neither of my other two would bf!) but if he wont will be expressing and ff .

Good luck hun.xx

Just remember each baby is different.. I have heard alot of stories re babies being sickly and constipated on SMA.

You could get a lot more advice about this if you posted the same question on the "Breast and bottle-feeding " thread.

The short answer is that there is no independent research to say which is the "best" formula. All infant formula sold in the UK has to provide a specified level of nutrients. The reason that Aptamil is often promoted by health professionals is due to the way in which it is heavily marketed in trade journals and so on.

dont feel bad about your choice, its your body and your child. i used sma (purely because my SIL did and i had planned on bf) and had no probs at all with it. but as far as i can gather they are pretty much all the same.

my dd had cow and gate and was sick until she was 6 months until i switched her to next stage diff brand and from then on she was totally fine!.HV kept telling me NO when i was asking about changing to diff brand, they said it would upset her tummy too much??, so stuck with it, wish id had more confidence in myself now though!

My DS would not take to the breast initially and the midwives gave him Aptamil while we established b/feeding. Although I have heard that Cow & Gate and Aptamil are very similar. Aptamil is expensive though.

Personally I prefer the Aptamil 'box' style packaging as its easier to use, I nearly had a tantrum when I tried a regular tin style formula and had to faff about with a knife levelling off the scoop . Petty I know, but it really annoyed me and it seemed less hygenic.

Used the Avent steam steriliser, seems fine. Bottles are a pain in the backside though.

I've never ff a newborn but from experience of mixed feeding an older baby, C&G seemed to suit dd2 but after reading all the rave reviews about aptamil tried dd3 with some and she spent the whole night throwing up! Don't know if that was just coincidence as she's normally breastfed? What about trying the cartons first so you only waste a small amount if it's not suited to your baby? (That also saves you the hassle of making up the bottles with cooled, boiled water but will work out more expensive)

I bf for first few months then started ff. Used Aptimil at first as it was recommended by everyone I knew. But dd was a very sicky baby (to the extent that it was possibly reflux and was causing all sorts of problems including waking several times in the night) and Aptimil didn't seem to make it any better. Swapped to SMA because we had moved temporarily overseas and it was the only formula I recognised, and never looked back. DD stopped puking and started sleeping - now wouldn't use anything else (and no I am not paid by SMA!).

Hi i used SMA for the first few weeks but Harry suffered with constipation and i was recomended Farleys, it was brilliant Harry was much happier, will definately be using Farleys this time too!!!!

I chose formula at random, probably start with the cheapest big brand one.

Have to say I would give bf a try. When I see friends bf now I realise it is MUCH MUCH easier. Don´t underestimate just how much you will HATE the whole formula feeding rituals, sterilizing, making up bottles,etc.; it seems to go on forever. Not to mention just how much it makes getting out and about a pain in the *.

Aptamil is no better than the other milks - our baby unit chose it to make life easy and not have loads of milks when mothers can't make up their minds. It really is as simple as that. There is no one formula that is closest to breast milk - they are all miles away and each company advertises some new addition that no other milk has. At the moment SMA Gold are advertising some new wonder addition.

Formula milk is adapted milk that is good enough for a baby but no where near breast milk in reality. When choosing to bottle feed, I would advise you get the milk that is most readily available in a store near you.

I used Cow and Gate for my DS because it was what the midwife gave DP to feed him for the first time in hospital. I have a vague recollection of being asked if I had any preference but I had no idea. It worked out fine anyway, he had no problems with it and it is about £1 - £1.50 cheaper than SMA and Aptamil. I think they are probably all as good as each other really.

In my local Tesco, SMA and Farleys are around £4.99 a tin, Cow and Gate is £5.98 and Aptamil is £6.98.

think every baby different, gave my dd cow an gate my sis used sma, sma smells very strong

I use aptimal - midwife recommended it. But, silly suggestion but mayb look what is in your local shop... our tescos express does aptimal only so that is good when we run out in the middle of night

Also, i agree wiht an earlier comment - my ds only ha room temparature formula,.no warm milk and saves a lot of hassle as when used expressed milk, was a pain sometimes to heat up in cafes etc

Am with Kathryn77 in giving room temperature milk, so much easier!

And please don't be put off by the anti-formula muffia. Bottle feeding is NOT difficult and is NOT time consuming and is no more of a pain in the backside in the middle of the night than BF is - its all down to the preparation!

FWIW - DS1 (10lb birthweight) thrived on SMA, so obvious choice for DS2 (9lb birthweight)who is now 13 weeks. He didn't take to SMA at all and is now a much happier and contented baby on Cow&Gate.

I would recommend you go with the brands which are most readily available - I liked Cow&Gate, Farleys and SMA as they also do handy 1 feed cartons which seems do be available in most places. These are excellent in emergencies!

(do pick one you can bear the smell of though - some honk when you open the tin...)