Changing to Formula

B.,
Congratulations on your baby!!! We also switched formulas while our twins were younger. We just switched ONE bottle per day at first, and then if there were no adverse reactions, we stepped it up from there (Two a day, and so on). it worked really well for us. I hope this helps, and good luck!! P.

Danielle gave you great advice about moderating the change. I was working retail when breast feeding my youngest. the hours were inconsistent making it hard to feed or pump on a regular basis. Only thing I'd be aware of is possible constipation in the beginning because breast milk isn't as heavy as formula and her body will have to adjust to digesting it. The full adjustment to any new food is normally 2 weeks. It's also a great way to track allergic reactions for when you later switch to solids.Enjoy you precious little one and welcome to the real fun of motherhood.

My son is six months old, i have not yet switched to formula but at a recent visit to the doctor I asked his advice. He said that for example if the baby is eating six ounces that i should put five ounces of breast milk mixed with one ounce of formula. then the next week go to four of breast to two of formula and so on until you are at all formula. He said that this eases the baby into the formula and doesnt upset their tummys as much as upright switching. Hope this helps.

Hi B..

My daughter was on breast milk for 10 months. Afer I went back to work I 'pumped' milk for her so she was already used to the bottle. And because the bottle was so much easier to drink from she eventually refused the breast (broke my heart). But anyway... to respond to your question, I mixed the breast milk with the formula about half and half for a couple of weeks... then gradually mixing more formula than breast milk till it was totally a smooth transition. It probably will be harder on you (the mom) than her. :) K.

Try giving her a bottle of formula a day and see how she takes it. Then simply increase it to two, then three, etc. bottles a day. If she's never had it before then I feel this would probably be a safe way to do it and by safe I mean smooth. I started formaula bottles (one) at night with both of my children at about 2-3 months so they would sleep through the night or atleast longer at night. For some reason breastmilk just didn't suffice. Then when I decided to stop nursing I simply switched to formula without the whole weening process (I never had TONS of milk, so I didn't have to ween myself or the baby.

Hi B.,

I have to agree with "M". Breast feeding is SO important to your child's future...it gives them a healthier immune system. I feed both of my children for at least 10 months...I was able to pump for my son when I went back to work & had the honor of staying home with my now 16 month old daughter. They are both very healthy children because I was able to give them the BEST milk GOD intended for our children. I don't know your reasons for wanting to change to formula, but if you can, continue with the breast milk...you will not regret it. "M" made a lot of valid points that I don't have to repeat. When I did quit nursing, I switched to Parents Choice Organic Formula found at WalMart. Mixing it with 3/4 breast milk for a couple of days & then 1/2 breast milk for a couple of days, then down to 1/4...this will give your daughter time to adjust to the taste difference. I know have my 9 yr. old son & 16 month old daughter on Horizon's Organic Cow's Milk. No growth hormones! It costs more, but it's worth it!
Best wishes on your decision...and Blessing to you & your new daughter.

I would also agree with the earlier post of the benefits to longer nursing. The first few months are the tough ones, then its all much easier!

When we switched my son from breastmilk to formula, all the pediatrician told us to do was to add formula to the breastmilk. If you add a little more each day and decrease the breastmilk that will make the transition easy.

Whatever your reasons for switching, it's a personal decision and one that should be respected. Maybe you're just plain tired of breastfeeding. It happens, and there's nothing wrong with that. We all have to make this choice based on what's best for our individual families. Nobody else is living in your house or walking in your shoes, so please don't feel like you're doing something "bad" because you've chosen not to BF anymore. Lots of babies are formula fed for lots of reasons and they are TOTALLY healthy. My son was a preemie who had to have a special high calorie formula. We switched over to formula at four months. But even before that, the wonderful nurses in the hospital where he was born told me that if I wasn't making enough milk to keep up with his needs, there was no harm in supplementing the milk with some formula. It's about keeping your baby full and growing.

So anyways, good luck to you with your transition. Hope this advice helps!

....L

My children never had any problems switching to the bottle. Both of them nursed and had a bottle of formula early on so I didn't need to worry. My friend said that she would mix breast milk and formula together. She would start out with almost all breast milk until she got down to all formula. Her daughter adjusted very well to this.

Not sure if you will find this helpful, but here goes:

I am an 'exclusive pumper' who feeds my 3 week old son breastmilk from a bottle for every meal EXCEPT the last meal before he goes to bed. He takes formula for the last feeding, and it doesn't seem to bother him in the least. Granted, I've only done this for about a week, but during that time he hasn't had any major spit-ups, vomiting, reflux or other problems as a result of supplementing the breastmilk with formula.

Every baby is different, so you may need to experiment some. Good luck to you and your baby!

I definitely do not know (and I'm not asking you to justify at all!) the reason for switching from breastmilk to formula. And please, please forgive me if the following is stuff you already know. Just in case no one else in your family or circle of friends has breastfed past 3 months:

1) 3 months old is a HUGE growth spurt time for your baby, so even if you feel like you might not be making enough milk (if that's the reason you're considering switching to formula), please know that you likely ARE making enough milk and it's just that she's trying to increase your supply to match her needs (normal, happens just like this, is biologically really cool!)

2) it's ok to breastfeed past 3 months (even if other's are giving you a hard time about it)

3) a really good, double electric breast pump runs $240-400 bucks -- this is WAAAAAY cheaper than formula will cost you over the next 9 months, so if you want to continue to give her breastmilk, you can (or even 1/2 breastmilk, 1/2 formula - you'd still be saving $$)

4) breastfeeding DOES get easier with each passing day, and I'd say the first 4 months are the most intense - if you're just feeling too burned out, please know that it's not always like this, the breastfeeding relationship changes as quickly as your baby grows :)

5) if switching to formula is still your desired plan, I wish for both of you a very smooth transition, and keep an eye out for signs of intolerance/allergy (gassiness, eczema in the form of red/rashy cheeks and dry/red patches of skin, sleeplessness, increased fussiness, mucousy or green or foamy stools, small streaks of blood in stools, etc.). Cow's milk and soy, the 2 things formulas in the grocery store are based off of, are 2 of the "big 8" allergens (90% of people w/ food allergies are allergic to these 8 things: cow's milk, soy, eggs, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish http://www.foodquality.com/mag/10012006_11012006/fq_10012...
). If your baby would show any physical signs of discomfort due to the change to formula, contact your pediatrician for hypoallergenic formula. This is not said to scare you - my son was not on formula, and he was allergic to cow's milk products via my breastmilk! But I have lots of friends who formula feed, and several of them had babies with the same issues as my little guy, and it turned out that it was allergy too, and hypoallergenic formula was what helped them.

Congratulations on your new little girl, and don't stress about what/how you feed her - what matters most is the quality time and the love that you give her! :)

B.,

First off, when you are a new mom there is no dumb question and you will find that everyone has an opinion even those people that don't have kids and have never dealt with kids. We have switched my daughter's formula three times and each time all that we did was slowly mix in the new with the old. So on the first day give her what she is used to and at a time during the day when she is pretty hungry, give her the new formula. It seems that when they are more hungry they are more willing to try something different. If she accepts that bottle ok then the next day you can make two bottles of the new and so on until she doesn't seem to notice. I did this for about a day or two (typically over a weekend) and then gave her whatever formula was handy. By the time my daughter was done with formula she would have one brand at daycare and a different brand at home (on off brand) and she never noticed the difference. I also did the same thing when I switched her to regular milk.

Also, keep in mind that all formulas are pretty much the same (if you compare the labels they all have about the same amount of everything) unless you are going from soy to regular formula or something like that.
Good Luck and feel free to contact me if you have any questions or just need to talk!

Hello B.. I want to say first off that there really are no dumb questions that have been asked; weather a new mom or a mom of several children. We all encounter new situations that we don't know what to do about! I think that you should feed your daughter either breastmilk or formula; which ever you prefer and not let other moms "brow-bash" you for your decision. My MIL gave me a really hard time b/c my youngest was having trouble latching on and telling me how she was a better mom than me b/c her children didn't have any problems latching on (I recently found out that her children didn't have any problems latching on b/c she NEVER even TRIED to breastfeed)!
With my little one when I intorduced formula she was eating 6oz and I mixed 2oz of formula with 4oz of breastmilk. One important thing to consider is your water source. I live in a town and I frequently get reports about bad water that infants (or nursing/pregnant women) shouldn't consume. So I buy bottled water that I drink and that is what I use when making a bottle, brushing babies teeth, or when giving her a drink. I didn't see any other warnings about water supply and I thought that might be important. Good Luck and Please don't give much thought to the women who speak negatively about formula feeding!