Formula reviews/recommendations

[2have4kids]

Hi ladies, I'd like to have a little formula on hand as a back up to bf-ing when baby arrives and just wondering what a good formula is? I've heard of a colleague making his own so to avoid a bunch of preservatives and extra chemicals, another colleague said she gave her baby hypo-allergenic formula when her milk didn't come in enough and baby wound up with the runs as the hypo-allergenic stuff went right through her.

Have you got any good reviews on hand or any favourites that you'd say are good? Thanks in advance!

 

[NerdyMama]

When I had to do half bf and half formula for awhile I really loved similac. It seemed to give my baby less gas. My friend uses a Costco store brand and says its great and half the price! But I'm on my phone and don't know where you are located, so I don't know if you have a Costco.

 

[2have4kids]

When I had to do half bf and half formula for awhile I really loved similac. It seemed to give my baby less gas. My friend uses a Costco store brand and says its great and half the price! But I'm on my phone and don't know where you are located, so I don't know if you have a Costco.

Oh thank you! Yes we have Costco in Canada. I'll take a look at differences between the two. Don't want a gassy baby!

 

[Ahughes]

I'm doing straight formula and will be using Enfamil, as long as baby's stomach agrees with it. Enfamil also sells a Gentle Ease formula that is softer on baby's stomach, helps with gas, and colicky babies. I've had several people tell me that store brand formulas (like Target, Costco, etc) have the exact same ingredients as the name brand ones and are much cheaper.

 

[amelia26]

I don't know about elsewhere but in the UK the is no "better" brand (although some babies get on better with certain brands).
Apparently once an ingredient is proved to offer a benefit then all formula companies are obliged to include it. Nutritionally they are all equal.

I've heard the advice that when choosing a brand just go with the cheapest that's stocked in your local shop.

 

[Twag]

The one I used as back up for my son and then when we weened was Hipp Organic I will be getting this as back up this time also

 

[upsy daisy1]

I think every baby is different.when I put my lo on formula at 4 weeks due to feeding issues I went and got aptimil as it's what the health visitor recommended
Lo didn't agree with it at all and ended up very gassy and had silent reflux.we tried a few types but ended up on cow and gate comfort which was great for her.

 

[TTC First]

I am in Canada and can tell you that amelia26 is right. The formulas in Canada are generally the same (unless you are getting one that is high in iron or something) so there is not much difference and they are all safe. Personally I like PC Brand, I feel it fills them more than other brands. I just tried Costco brand and I believe that is identical to the PC brand.

I have also fed hypo-allergenic formulas and I believe that those are really broken down do it doesn't keep lo full for long.

 

[jlw617]

Every baby is different, when I couldn't bf my first I had to give her a hypoallergenic formula that was crazy expensive but it was the only thing her tummy could partially keep down.

 

[Mississippi03]

Hi im in canada too..
Fyi you can sign up for baby clubs with similac, enfamil, nestle, and heinz and they will send you free samples (like full jars) of formula.. Most send to you within 8 weeks of your edd in order to make sure you get good dates
Having some to sample free is nice because it lets you have an alternative if one isnt working out! They also send you tons of coupons to the help with purchase.
You can only get one per address from each company.. But i signed my mom and dh up with alternate mailing addresses so that i can get a couple of freebies from each.. And whichever ones i dont use ill be donating to mothers in need!

And im going with similac as it was revommended by sooo many people... But i have the nestle in a soy just incase babe is lactose intolerant id have something lse on hand to switch too

 

[2have4kids]

Mississippi thanks so much for the tip, I will do that! Similar, after reading lots of stuff and all of the recommendations was going to be my first pick - and Costco had nothing online to view for formula! I can't believe they don't have any so I was going to go in and see.

I won't be using anything soy as all baby food soy products have been banned in European countries and New Zealand as it has been questions about long term outcomes linked to infertility.
"Furthermore, exposure of neonatal animals to the isoflavones present in soy-based formula can cause subtle alterations in sex organ development (24–26), brain maturation (27) and immune system function (28), and can also stimulate cancer development (29). "
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2661347/
Soy mimicks estrogen - that's a well known fact, and it's not a healthy food to eat (contrary to what the soy industry tells us). 99% of soy is GMO and RoundUp sprayed. The lobby groups in North America are huge so our gov't's are slow to move (bought & paid for by industry). Until there's evidence to say it's healthy, I'll keep avoiding soy within my family.

 

[highhopes19]

Here in the UK (not sure if the same elsewhere) but as a PP said all our formula is pretty much th same in quality as it has to be really... But we do have different brands at various pricing.

We are going for cow and gate which our local shop always stocks so if we ever get caught short we know they stock that all the time x

 

[Mississippi03]

I think nestle gives the option of choosing mill or soy based. Check them all out.
But def get the similac sample then.. they sent me two cannisters.. one of the omega formula (blue lid) and one of the easier to digest.. plus 8 or 10 premades.. plus quite a few coupons

 

[Blu10]

I will use cow & gate as i used it with DS. Apparently aptamil is also made by cow & gate but is more expensive? Dont know how true that is though x

 

[BrownEyeGirl]

I used aptamil with my daughter (the hospital had to top her feeds up when she was in special care) and when I stopped breastfeeding.. I did research online and apparently it contains an ingredient thats in breast milk that other formulas dont.. I don't know how true that is tho! I want to breastfeed this time, but plan on buying some aptamil cartons as back up x