Need Help Getting Baby to Take Formula

At 7 months 'switching' to formula is not necessary. The proteins in formula are larger than the molecules in breastmilk so it actually blocks the good stuff that you want for your baby. Since you are planning to wean her at 9 months you could try water in a sippy cup and then switch to milk. It completely understandable if you want to wait a year to give milk. Some alternatives are almond milk or other high protein foods like avocado. My advice...skip the formula all together! P.S. Great job nursing for 7 months

Is it possible for you to pump until the baby is set on solid food and juice and water? Every time I see formula I gag at the odor and the chunkiness of it all- it looks like a protein shake. =)
Just a thought.
Anyway, I hope this helps!

Hi L.,

I ended up using Nestle Good Start with Natuarl Cutltures -Green Can-. I tried pretty much every other type and this is the one that went over the best. Most babies I know like nursing more than the bottle and if they are used to breastmilk in the bottle it is probably a little shocking when its tastes so different. If you can I would say only give her formula in a bottle and breast milk via nursing.

HI L.,
This is very common. Here's what you need to do to transition. First few times or days, mix 3 parts breast milk with 1 part formula. Once she easily takes this, mix 2 parts breast milk with 2 parts formula. Once this is tolerated well, mix 3 parts formula with 1 part breast milk and continue with this until you think she is ready for full strength formula. This will probably take a few weeks to switch over but it's probably the least painful for all around. Hope this helps. Great job for breast feeding your little one up until now. Good luck !

By starting out half formula and half breast milk and then keep adding more formula and less breast milk over a period of time. Or start out 3/4 breast milk and 1/4 formula.
F.

I don't know why you are wanting to stop nursing, so I am going to assume either your situation has changed or you are just plain done nursing. That being said, formula tastes really, really, really bad - especially if you are used to the sweetness of breast milk. I wouldn't recommend mixing breast milk with formula only because my pediatrician advised against it because it can wreck havoc on baby's tummy. Check with your pediatrician - usually a phone call or email to your pediatrician is enough. Basically, breast milk or formula is the primary food until baby turns one to one and half, so don't just quit. Right now food is mostly for practice - the chewing, finding the right place to put it, swallowing, etc not really for nutrition. My son was also breast fed (until 18 months when I was done) and would only take formula when I was no where around. I had to be out of the house. Try having someone else give her the formula from a cup while you aren't there. I wouldn't do a bottle only because you'll need to break her from the bottle at 12 months anyway or it will be a huge power struggle. Plus, if she gets breast milk from a bottle she may reject the formula because it is nasty and she's expecting sweet breast milk. The cup will be novel and she might be more willing to try it. Good luck!

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Hi L.,
I used Earth's Best because it has less junk in it than many other brands and at first she preferred breast milk, but she got used to it, and actually preferred the formula after a few months. Good luck.

Try mixing it with your breastmilk and change the ratios till you're at a full formula bottle at the end. Also try different temperatures of the formula. Remember you breastmilk is always the right tempt....I found for my son it had to be room temp or he wouldn't take it. My friends daughter would only take it if it was heated up to a point where she thought it was too hot, but since she runs warm, her brestmilk was warmer than she thought.

Good luck

I don't know if you are feeding solids and using a poly-vi-flor solution with your baby but provided you are and you are open to alternatives you could try goat's milk. My daughter was breastfed and wouldn't touch formula. I wouldn't either have you tasted that stuff! (no offence to those that have to use it). Anyway our daughter loved it. It should be right near the soymilk and such at the grocery store. If you try this option you must get pasturized or there is risk of bacteria. Most of the rest of the world uses this because it is the closest in composition to mother's milk and doesn't have the same ingredient that cow's milk has causing many people to be intolerant. It has been very helpful to use, good luck!

It really is best to breastfeed your baby for the first year... after that it can be negotiated. My son refused formula as well and it DOES taste horrible! Plus it's loaded with artificial... and lots of them have high fructose corn syrup as one of the first 5 ingredients.