The price of NEOCATE - OMG!!!

[misscutandstick]

went to local chemist this afternoon after seeing a thread on here that said it could be bought from the chemist.

she hadnt a clue at all, and had never heard of neocate but she rummaged in an ordering book she had and said that it would be in for 4.30 that afternoon. great! i thought. I asked aobut the flavoured kind (again after someone on here mentioned it) and she looked puzzled and did some more rummaging and went to phone someone.

anyway 10mins later she came back and said that it would be there for 4.30...

I arrived at the chemist at 4.30, and was told "my order had arrived, but had anyone mentioned the cost?" i answered no, and assumed i would be looking at the £20 range...

OMG COULD I HAVE BEEN MORE WRONG!!! For a box of blackcurrant 14 sachets it was.... £68!!! thats a £5 a sachet, how can they charge that much??? (BTW the plain variety in a tin 400g is £29.75!!!) i nearly had a coronary obviously i wasnt prepared for that price and really cant afford it. I explained the problems (milk intolerance, FTT, docs in denial) and she advised going back to doc and basically begging.

WWYD???

i do wonder if the problem with 'sip feeds' and children is the problem of dependancy - that its easier for picky children to fill up on juice than to eat... and that i suppose is almost as bad a problem than them not eating enough calories in the first place!

I read the links you gave me, especially the info ones, and it states that children should only be given the sip feeds (not milk as used daily- thats ok) until optimum weight is acheived, which would solve the problem of dependancy especially if used correctly as an 'extra' and not as an 'instead of' - but TBH that really is my intention anyway but at least i know im on the right tracks.... with or without assistance from those who SHOULD!

thanks again!

Ds used them as a top up but when he was ill or not eating much we would up them to make sure he was getting enough calories.

Also just thought of another milk free supplement which is taken in low doses so wouldnt fill you up, its called Calogen and its a high energy, long chain triglyceride fat emulsion, sounds lovely eh?

Its usually taken 3 x 30mls a day which gives you around 400 calories, which is great for so small a quantity!

oooh that sounds errr 'lovely' - deffinately sounds like something to look into.

Actually by the time i finished typing that sentence i remember someone on here mentioning that before - and when her LO was sick... she said it was like an oil slick, [vomit icon]! still worth looking into tho. thanks for mentioning it. will try get an appt through on monday for dietician.

yeah that might have been me actually, it does look like an oil slick but ds had terrible reflux and everything was coming up.

you can dilute it tho so might make it go down/stay down a bit easier.

i'll shut up and stop bothering you now, lol

Is there another dietician you could see? For us it is the dietician that says my DD needs neoctae and she faxes a letter to the GP saying prescribe. Who does!

im not sure elf, who do i ask for another referal? and wouldnt it just look like sour grapes on my part because im not getting my own way?