Enfamil Vs. Similac

i don't think it would cause any problems other than constipation. i've used about 3 different brands with my son.

Hi J.,

I have had a lot of experience with nursing and using formulas. My experience with formula has been pretty consistent with all of my six kids. I am a primarily nursing mom but have used supplementing with all of my kids and especially when I had my twins. First thing I learned, not every baby is the same. How your precious little girl reacts to formula may be totally different than how my kids did. For the most part, Similac never really worked for my kids. I always found the same result...and I tried it will all six of them, it gave them too much gas, too many belly aches and they had a hard time moving their bowels. I always found much better success with Enfamil or even Carnation Good Start.

When I had my twins, is when things became very interesting. I had to change pediatricans for insurance purposes...something I will never do again! When my girls were first born, I found that I was trying out all of the free samples I had received of formula. And yes, I would mix them...I would give one brand for a few days, see how they'd react and then try another. I'll never forget when I brought them in for their first wellness check up. One of the doctors of the practice really scolded me for switching back and forth. According to that dr., it was bad for their digestive systems. To me, I would have never thought that it could affect them that way. So for some other reasons, not just that one, I changed back to my previous dr. When I spoke to him about the formula situation his response was totally different. He told me that all the formulas now a days have very similar ingredients and make up. So it doesn't matter what brand I choose and mixing them shouldn't be a problem. I never had another problem with changing out what brand of formula I used. But as I said, my kids would react differently on Similac. Being a new Mom, I know it's difficult to know what to do. For me, it was a lot of trial and error and talking to my pediatrican. I found the whole office was very supportative and definitely very helpful when I had a question or if a problem arose. Hope that helps!

Hi J.,

I use both of these formulas. My pedi. said it was fine. I even mix the two together sometimes.

J.

J.,
Basically you need to go with your instincts. Trust what you feel is right and also talk to your pediatrician. When my twin sons were born we had to keep them on a higher caloric formula until they were about 6 or 9 months (I can't remember now - lovely side effect of having twins lol) and then we were able to switch. We received so many different samples and had so many different brands that people bought us and we just tried them all. Once we found ones that worked really good, we would write it down and when we were out of samples we would only buy the ones that worked really well. I didn't get enough milk to breastfeed, so we always had to supplement and so finally it got to be too much so we gave them all different kinds of formula. If they reacted badly to one, we would throw it out and make a note not to use it again. I know a lot of people like the nestle good start stuff because it's really cheap, but my boys didn't do good on it, they also did great with the enfamil and similac in the beginning, but then for some reason they started spitting it up and we would have to use the Giant brand (New beginnings I think is what it was called) and they did great on that. They spit that up a lot less than anything else (including soy). So really every baby is different. Listen to your gut and talk to your doctor (just in case he would recommend something specific for your baby based off of any health concerns) and go from there. Don't throw away your samples though. If you find that one doesn't work for your child and you have leftover unopened samples, keep them for a friends baby shower or donate them. I'm sure you have a local shelter or something that would love to have those donations. Another thing that is great is to get on similac and enfamils websites and enter in as many addresses as you can (of people you obviously know lol) and have them send you coupons because you really do get a lot of good ones and also you get a lot of free samples. It's great! Good luck and please feel free to email me if you have any questions!

Hi J.,
I had the same exact issue with the breast milk and had to supplement with formula. I started with Enfamil but then went to Similac because my sister was able to get it for free. It is perfectly fine to switch formulas if your daughter reacts well to both formulas (they have the same compositional make-up). My advice though is to finish one of the formulas before switching to the other instead of going back and forth between the two because they have slightly different tastes so your child may prefer one over the other. Even so, it doesn't matter because they both are fine formulas.

Hi,
Both of my daughters are adopted from China. When I traveled to China, each family had to bring all provisions for the baby such as diapers, clothes, food and formula. We were told to bring the low-iron enfamil so I brought a few cans of that and when we arrived in China, we also had some cans of Chinese formula waiting for us in our hotel rooms. I used to mix a little of both to use it up and then other people in our travel group had different types of enfamil and similac. I found that whenever I was getting ready to make another change, I just gradually added the new type of formula to the low-iron enfamil and I never did have a problem with either one of them.
Have a great day!
D.

Hi J.,
Are you pumping with a high -quality Hospital grade rental breastpump? Have you spoken with a lactation consultant about medications that you can take to increase your milk supply? There is a medication called Reglan that raises prolactin levels and helps women with low milk supply increase thier output.
Best wishes and I hope that things work out for you.

I don't really think it would harm your baby, but it may cause some stomach upset, and there's nothing worse than a baby with an upset tummy! I would choose one or the other and stick with it.

I think they are pretty much the same, we swithched formula a few times with my middle daughter. I would think it would be fine as long as she lieks both.

Hey! I use whatever I have a coupon for, whatever is on sale, whatever is the best price!!! My daughter uses Similac, Enfamil, Kirkland Brand (Costco), and sometimes Good Start, and I have given her Target Brand before too. She seems to be fine with everything and I have never seen any issues with either formula, she must have a stomach like a rock. She is 6 months now and I have been doing this to her since 2 months. I like Enfamil the most though because it dissolves well into the water.

you should check with her doctor first.. when i stoped breastfeeding i used the sample cans of enfamil and my son would just puke all ovr the place, so the doctor told me to switch to similac, but the puking didnt stop, and his poop (lol) totally changed.. after 5 days it still hadnt gone back to what it used to look like,and he was still spiting up everywhere. so i called the doctor and he told me to once agn switch, this time to isomil.. he's been one it since he was 4 months old and does fine with it :)

When my son was born the hospital was giving him Similac at first. They then ran out of Similac and were giving him Enfamil. When we left the hospital they had recieved a shipment of Similac and sent that home with me. I asked the nurses in the new life unit the same question that you are asking and they told me it would not make a difference which I gave him that it has basically the same ingrediants and all of the same important nutrients. Hope this helps you out.

i'm glad you posted this because i was wondering the same question myself.

It depends on the baby, my son can only take similiac, enfamil made him sick. Check with your docyor before trying anything new.

I wondered this with my first daughter so let me share a little of what I have found out.

All formulas are regulated by the FDA. They all are pretty much the same. The differences are minor and all have the daily requirements for babies. I don't remember which of the many medical professionals I have been to told me that but I've heard it in more than one place. Also, I have sat in the grocery store, Walmart, Target and Sam's Club and compared the labels on each type of formula. They are pretty much the same.

That being said, different children respond to different formulas in different ways. My daughter and my son both had a little more problems with the Similac formula. It made their stools a little more difficult to get out. The Carnation Good Start made their stools a bit softer than the other formulas. I believe it is because their proteins are already broken down and a little easier to digest. Between my two kids, they have at one time or another tried the Similac, Enfamil, Carnation Good Start, Target Store Brant, Walmart Store Brand and the Sam's Club Store Brand.

Since all of the formulas are going to have what your baby needs, here are some things to keep in mind when switching. Babies can have allergies, too. So when you switch to a new brand, be consistent. Don't switch between several brands at once. If you are on Similac and want to try Good Start for example... Wait until you are almost done with the Similac (have 2-3 bottles worth left), then switch to the new brand. This way if your baby has an allergic reaction to the new brand, you still have a little time to go get the other type of formula, because you have 2-3 bottles left. If there is no reaction to the new formula, then go ahead and use the Similac that is left and continue on with the new formula. Don't try more than one formula in a week's time so that you will have time to gage how your baby is reacting to the new formula. (For instance, the changes in stools).

While we tried all of those different brands listed above, we stuck with the Sam's Club brand. We were able to get a larger can of their brand for about 10-15 less than the Similac or Enfamil. We stuck with the powdered formula as well. Using the powdered was more cost effective as well and the formula lasted longer.

You can use more than one type of formula but before you start to do so, try each for at least a week to gage the baby's reaction. This way if she is having a problem on one of the types you are planning on using, you can discontinue use of that brand.

Good luck. I hope my experiences help you out.

J.,

I know you said you have many samples of both of the commercial formulas, but you can do far better by offering her several different options altogether.

I don't recommend either formula you have right now. Try looking at <http://babysonly.com/index.php&gt; and then just choose the primarily milk based or the all soy based formula. They both contain soy to some degree, but far outweigh commercial formulas by a long shot. They have a customer service number you can call to speak with them. It might help you to decide.

As well, don't be so quick to judge that you won't be able to provide her with expressed milk for a while. I know of many mothers who exclusively expressed for their babies well beyond one year. Is it possible to try and re-latch her and nurse her normally now?

There is also a homemade formula option that again far outweighs anything commercially produced. That could be an option as well. And then there's milk donation. I have lots of info and links if you're interested.

If you're set on using what you have, then no, there should be no difference. Just finish up with the enfamil, since that's what she's used to now, and then gradually switch over to the Similac when you get to the last can of the other.

Wishing you the best.

Blessings,
Rolinda
Wife, Mother, Friend

HI. It totally depends on your babies belly. Give it a try and see how she does. Maybe even start off with a 50/50 mix of each. My son also wasn't able to nurse and we started w/Enfamil - toward the end of the formula stage we actually started using 50% Enfamil 50% Wegmans brand. It saved us a ton of $ and he was still getting all the nutrients and vit's that he needed.

I used Similac, Bright Beginnings, Good Start and Emfamil with my little guy when he was on formula. Basically I used whatever I had a coupon for or was on sale. By the end I was using mostly Bright Beginnings because it came in a larger cannister and there was always a coupon. I would finish one can before switching him to another brand and I never had any problems with doing this. I signed up on all the websites for the free samples and coupons and found I rarely had to pay full price for formula.

When I was supplementing my breast milk and then switching him completely over to formula I tried to stick to one brand but once he made the complete switch I didn't worry about it.

Check with your pediatrician but I've been told they are much like Coke and Pepsi as long as the iron content is the same, etc.

Good luck.

I haven't needed formula with either of mine, but I know what you mean about all the samples. My only thought would be that it might be good to stick with either milk based or soy based as opposed to brand name. I imagine they can't be terribly different. I would guess the biggest differences would be between varieties of formula over the brand. I'd check with your ped to be sure though.

Hi J.,

I would highly recommend checking with the pediatrician. My pediatrician wanted me to keep my daughter on the same formula for 3-4 weeks to get their little stomachs used to it and see if that was the problem. I did switch formulas a few times with my older daughter. My older daughter (who started on similac) had problems with all formula except Enfamil Lactofree. Similac was terrible for her. My younger one now is on enfamil lactofree and she also needs the ready feed. Your pediatrician may have samples to give you. My pediatrician has given me samples of the powder.

S.

Personally, I would stick with the Enfamil. I think it is a better product. They have done studies that show that it is the only baby formula that improves brain and eye development. Maybe you can donate the Similac that you don't use? Just an idea.