Bottlefeeding

Hi...new here *waving*

Expecting my first and only yesterday came to the realization that I don't want to breastfeed. I had been saying all along that I would try it and see how it works out. But yesterday it just hit me like a ton of bricks, that I was only really agreeing to try it because I felt pressure to AT LEAST try, but in reality I knew I would supplement and I knew it wouldnt be for very long, because I am not going to pump when I go back to work. Anyway...I don't want to, and I'll be honest, its mostly for selfish reasons, but again, I'm still weirdly ok with that and so is hubby...

So that is my loongg lead in to my real question which is. . . How do you know what to give them? Do you just pick a brand that you seem to like? Do you wait and let your ped give you instructions? Are there different types for different ages? Should I start looking and deciding now so I have a little stash at home for the first couple weeks?

Assuming a perfectly healthy baby without any complicated dietary restrictions or requirements...where do you start?

Welcome.  frist you should investigate if your hosptial if pro formula feeding.. because if they are for bf they will try to push it on you... so make sure they understand you do not want to bf at all.  then they will actually start you off with formula.  if your lo does not agree with  it you may need to change it.. unfortunelty there is no way in advance to know what formula you will need first.  but in my option the easiest on new born babies i found from personal experiance is nestely good start , similac  an heize .   

 I would stay a way from enfimel as it is very hard on little tummies and tends to make them gasy and consipated.. just my option..  what you can do in advance is sign up to all the formula companies.. they will send you starting kit  with formula and baby bag to your home with coupons..  at least you will have a free sample to try if you need to switch.. I did this  and it was very helpfull.   Heize actually sends you a whole 24 can case of formula and one powder can as well with coupons and a bag. 

here are the links for the us.. they also have one for canada as well

https://www.nestle-baby.ca/Templates/Form.aspx?NRMODE=Published&NRNODEGUID={AB7678C3-1BAC-4F78-A30E-8A0FBA42F77E}&NRORIGINALURL=/en/register/index.htm&NRCACHEHINT=Guest

http://similac.com/formula-coupons-free-samples?wt=benefitsflash

http://www.heinzbaby.com/english/newsletter/

Hope this helps some

 

Jayden Born January, 14, 2009

Chelsey

Hi, welcome to the board and congrats on your pregnancy! :)

In my experience since I FF from the start the hospital actually chose what to give DD, and had there been any problems they would have changed her to a different formula. She started out on ready to feed similac advanced, and we continued that at home for a few weeks since it was very easy (just open and pour) and sterile. After that we switched to concentrate because I find it easier to mix than powder and it's sterile as well. If you plan on BF'ing in the hospital I would ask your ped what he/she recommends. What *I* would recommend is starting out with ready to feed because it IS so easy and when you've just had a baby the easier things can be the better, also it's sterile. Then I would switch to concentrate. It IS more expensive but the benefits outweigh the cost, if you can afford it of course.

Anyways keep us posted! :)

Jen, CL, Bottlefeeding board

IMO, it's completely your decision how you want to feed your baby. it really irks me that people impose their opinion on you - you already have enough on your mind taking care of a baby other than people harping at you to do what is best for YOUR baby. as you can see, this was a touchy subject for me bc i chose to FF my baby early on as i didn't enjoy BFing at all and i got all kinds of flack from everyone.

anyhow, as pp said, you can't really tell in advance which formula is best for baby - it's really trial and error. that said, it's best to stick to one formula because switching formulas quickly will upset baby's tummy. you will know that a formula isn't working if baby cries during/after feeds, won't eat, throws up, is gassy (crying and pulling legs up into chest etc) then that means baby's tummy isn't comfortable. a lot of spit up is also something that can tell you the formula isn't suitable. baby doesn't have to exhibit all of these symptoms to show you the formula isn't suitable - but trust me, you'll know by your baby's reaction.

ready to eat or concentrate is easier on tummies than powdered form but then again, it all depends on the baby. i heard that similac didn't work for many of my friends' babies (made them super gassy) and a lot of them used either nestle good start or enfamil a+.

i tried good start and it made DD spit up a LOT so after DD spitting up for 3-4 days straight, i switched to enfamil a+ gentlease (bc i was scared that the formula would make her gassy even tho she never showed any signs of it) and stuck with that because it seemed to work for her.

sign up at nestle, enfamil, heinz for a starter kit which includes a can of formula (plus, they'll send you coupons every month or so) but i wouldn't start buying formula now because they're expensive and you don't know how baby will react until you try. pick a formula labeled "birth-12mos".

GL and HTH!

Hi! *waves back* :)

I BF for 2 months because of pressure and believe me, I hated every minute of it and dreaded feedings. PP's have given great advice. See how the hospital you will deliver at is. If you can pre-register, let them know you will be FF this baby and then they won't be pushing BFing on you. I didn't know that at first and wondered why they got upset with me when I gave my baby a bottle in the hospital to give my sore nipples a break. Then I said I was supplementing because I figured they'd be happier with that than they would if I said I hated BFing lol!

There's alot to consider when choosing a formula. I personally prefer Good Start with Omega 3&6. It has partially broken down whey proteins and is so gentle on their tummies. Also, you can add the PIN numbers from each can online and collect points. For every 2 cans I bought, I could cash in my points for a $5 coupon. I also noticed that Walmart often had deals where you could get a bonus sized can for cheaper than a regular large can of powdered formula and they also had a deal once where each regular can came with 2 ready to feed cans. I stock piled about 4 months worth of formula!

I will be switching my DD onto Parent's Choice in about 2 weeks (we have 2 cans of Good Start left before the transition) only because Good Start is pricier and we can't afford the $150 a month when Parent's Choice often comes in a 2 pack for $30 of 1020gram cans. (Keep in mind that I'm Canadian so the prices may be a little different).

You could go to the formula websites and sign up for free samples and coupon offers and then see which formula your little one tolerates best: Enfamil, Similac, Good Start, Parents Choice, Heinz Nurture etc. Do you know which brand your hospital uses and if they supply it to FF moms? My hospital used Enfamil but it was only for Special Care Nursery babies or to aid in BFing by putting it on your nipples to teach baby how to latch and stuff. Moms were expected to supply their own formula.

Nursettes come in handy in the hospital when they want to know how much your baby has eaten. That was my biggest pet peeve! My bottles didn't have accurate enough measurements to tell me and I hated washing it. Nursettes can just be tossed out or recycled.

Congratulations and GL making your decision!

  Thank you claireashby for the siggy!!!