Question About Soy Formula

Hi B., I'm not a big fan of cows milk, so I gave my son soy formula at 8 months old then switched to soy milk at a year. He did fine and loves it.

I would stick with the soy until you can discuss it further with your pediatrician. If he didn't tolerate regular formula I would expect he won't tolerate whole milk either. Maybe in time you could mix the 2 together in increasing amounts until his body adjusted to the whole milk, if it does! Good luck !

Hi B. -- well have you thought of maybe mixing the soy formula with the milk? You could also try soy milk. Have you talked to your pediatrician? The transition from formula to milk is never always easy. It can take time, try mixing it a little at a time over the course of a month, putting more & more milk every week until he's drinking just milk. He should be fine unless he's lactose intolerant.

My son was on soy formula due to reflux. What we did was added an ounce of milk each couple of days to transition him.We also did that with soy milk too as well as the formula. He did very well and now loves milk.We give him whole milk for growth and vitamins because that is what the doctor told us. Good luck and I hope it works for you.

HI B., my daughter was on Lactose Free Formula, and when she was 1, we used Lactaid Whole Milk. We watched her when she ate cheese and yogurt and she seemed fine, so we started doing half Lactaid and half Regular. Within a week she was on Regular whole milk, with no problems. If you'd rather use the Soy, Silk is supposed to be really good, you could do half Silk and half regular whole. Good luck.

All you can do is try. Try the whole milk, what's the worst thing he could spit it up. Then I'd stick with the soy milk. Silk Milk really is better tasting. My 6 yr old has slight reactions to milk as do I. I find that if I have more than 12 oz of milk my eyes get all red and puffy. So I limit myself with the milk. Although icecream and stuff seems okay. My son was really bad with the milk when he was about a year old, when we first switched him from soy formula to whole milk. After a while of drinking Silk Milk (the soy stuff) we tried whole milk again. And I guess it's an age thing, by the time he was two he could handle the milk. Too much and we find the red puffy eyes. Oh well. All you can do is try. Each kid is different and sometimes the older you get you can handle different foods. Good luck :)!

My son had a problem with milk at first. I nursed until 10 weeks and than put him on Enfamil Lipil and he wasn't doing good with it. His doctor had me put him on Enfamil Nutramigen ($25 for a small bottle which lasted a couple of days) and he was put on medicine for acid reflux. When he turned 6 months old we took him off of the medicine and he did okay, and than a few weeks later we switched him back to Enfamil Lipil and he did fine. He is now almost 13 months old and has been on whole milk for over a month and has done fine. Sometime their little bellies just need some time to develop more. I would try whole milk and look for some reactions.

My daughter got a rash from milk, so we switched her to soy. Our pediatrcian says it is just as healthy as cows milk! We were happy to hear that.

Hi! I just wanted to let you know that all three of my kids drank soy formula, and all of them have switched right to whole milk at a year(we're not there with the third one yet). I just went for it, and none of them had any trouble. Maybe by a year their little digestive systems are mature enough to handle it, I'm not sure, but my kids did fine. You could try it and see what happens, and always switch to soy milk if you have to. Good luck to you.

My son did better with a soy based formula as well, and he had no problem when I switched him to whole milk. I would say try it. If it seems to upset his stomach, just switch to soy milk. There may be one out there that is enriched with calcium and vitamins. If you are really concerned though, I would suggest giving his pediatrician a call.

Hi B., my daughter has milk allergies so I have always given her soy- soy milk now comes fortified with vitamines and calcium so it is fine to give them. It also comes organic now too!
God Bless- D.

Both my sons had soy formula and they are both now on soy milk. My doctor has no problems with that. I buy the Silk that is fortefied for kids. They both love it. And it's organic, so you know it super healthy for them.

Hi B.,

I have two girls, now almost 4 and 2, but they both had the milk sensitivity when they were infants and were on soy formula. We switched them both over to regular whole milk right around 1 with out a problem. We did check with our peditrician and he said they usually grow out of it so we gave it a try.

Hope this helps :)

Hello. My situation is a bit different but may be useful: I have a 14 month old girl that nursed up to about 8 mos. Thereafter I started on Similac Advance, with success. At one year I asked the DR. about whole milk and he said "if she takes it let her have it". I tried that approach and the baby drank the milk with gusto but had such trouble digesting it: Within two hours of 9 oz. she was screaming with gas pain. To alleviate the pain I finally learned about Mylecon drops which worked rather swiftly. But, now, rather than using drugs I dilute the whole milk with water. I started with a 4 oz to 5 oz (milk/water) ratio. Then upped the milk to 5 oz and decreased the water to 4 oz. I plan to gradually increase the milk portion. This helped but turned out to not be filling her up enough. To help fill her I added some cooked cereal (oatmeal) to the milk/water mix (with an "X" cut into the bottle nipple to aid in the flow) and it seems to help. Transitioning Adam from soy to milk, if he had trouble with digesting milk based formula may be troublesome for him so tread lightly. Since he's older perhaps trying my approach may work for him. All the best to you!

My son was on soy formula and now he drinks soy milk. He's 6yo.
When he was a year I tried reg milk mixed with his soy formula to see how his tummy handled it. In his case he got constipated. You could try mixing the two with a higher concentration of the formula to begin with and slowly decrease the soy and increase the milk ratios and see how he responds. Then you will have your answer! :) Good luck!

HI B.. My daughter had the same situation. The best thing that worked for us was using soy milk and slowly introducing whole milk. Only one bottle a day of whole milk at first. It took a few monthes, but babies typically grow out of that allery with a little bit of help! She is now 19mths and has no problem with whole milk or any other dairy product.

you could call his ped and ask to have him tested for lactose allergies or just try soy milk.. some kids who have trouble with cows milk can tolerate goats milk.. my son had huge issues with regular formula for a while, we bounced back and forth until we found stuff that worked - no problems with cows milk. it's all trial and error

My son had allergies to both soy and milk protiens. He was on a specialized formula made from amino acids. when it came time to make the switch I was very nervous. My doc that he sees from Children's Hospital reccomended intorducing him to milk through yogurt and mac and cheese, etc. first and to keep the formula the same. Once we found he could handle that we slowly mixed some whole milk in with his formula. He wasn't off formula until he was about 14 months or so, but he is now 18 months and has no signs of is milk or soy allergies. The doc said many kids outgrow them between 1 and 2 years of age. Good luck with the transition!

B. - I have three children - I nursed all of them until ten months and then switched to soy formula for the same reason you did - they did not tolerate the milk. They all drink soy vs whole milk and they are perfectly healthy. The soy has all the nutrients your son needs and my boys love the way it tastes.