Supplementing with Formula

YOur doctor obviously knows NOTHING about breastfeeding. Breastmilk has way more calories and fat than formula. I don't understand why supplementing has become the answer for everything. If her diapers are wet and poopy and she's happy, then she's gaining/growing appropriate to her. My first doubled in weight by 3 months, my second not until 6 months. Same milk, different baby. You CAN provide for her on your own, otherwise our species would have died out a long time ago. Have confidence in your body. It was made to nourish your daughter. I would contact a La Leche League leader in your area or a lactation consultant. As soon as you start supplementing, that's where the trouble starts with supply issues. The more you nurse, the more you make, simple as that. I have tons of experience nursin (I'm tandem
nursing my 2 kids) so feel free to email me if you have any more questions. If YOU want to supplement that's one thing, but don't do it because an uninformed doctor is telling you you should.

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You may have to give up nursing. If you're under stress or somethings going on in your life you're having trouble dealing with, your milk could be defecient of vitamens. I was a basketcase with my 1st child and she actually lost weight. The dr. made me quit nursing. It hurt me terriably but I did it for the sake of my little girl. I had no problems at all with the next 2 children so it all worked out for the best. Good luck mommy

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When my daughter was first born those first couple weeks I had to do weight checks because she just wanted to sleep and not eat. I nursed for a year. I did have to do supplements also. The doctor gave me a syringe to give formula so she wouldn't get use to the bottle, but my daughter had the bottle a few times and she was ok with nursing still. Try to nurse for a while and then give the formula after nursing and hope that will work. How much just use your judgement. Try 4 ounces first and if she is still hungry a little more or nurse a little more again. If she doesn't finish it try 2 ounces. My doctor said that they should always leave a little in the bottle when they are done cause then they won't get air. Hope this helps and if you have questions email me back. You could also as La Leche League which is a group that answers questions with nursing. The website is www.lllusa.org Go there and search for someone in your area. They are very helpful. Yes do the block on one side for 3-4 feedings and then switch to the other side for the next 3-4 feedings. I did that as well. If you are getting full on the other side when nursing the other you could pump a little and give that through a bottle instead of the formula.

I was a nanny for a short period of time. The woman I worked for had the same problem. Her daughter had great difficulty gaining weight-nothing for the second month or so. She did hire a lactation consultant-and it was expensive though talking to someone at the hospital may help or insurance may cover since this is a health issue. She did supplement with formula 2 times a day but also continued to nurse so that she did not lose her supply. The woman ate a very healthy diet as suggested by another poster so that was not the problem. After a few months she was able to go back to exclusive breastfeeding. You may want to give alternate the formula with breastfeeding, say feed in the morning, bottle in the afternoon and in the evening and nursing all other times.

Hi D.,

Have you considered seeing a nutritionist and supplementing your diet so that there is more nutrition obtainable through nursing? My son (now 8 months) has grown incredibly fast, and for a while it seemed as though he wasn't gaining any more weight, and I was losing it. My nutritionist instructed me to eat more "good fats" - nuts, butter, avocados, etc, and we both started to gain healthy weight again. He now weighs 21 1/2 pounds, is 28 inches long and VERY healthy. This is exclusively breastfeed, absolutely no supplementing at all.

Just a suggestion that worked for me. :)

I do agree with some of the other posters that you may want to consult someone to see if you can increase your milk supply. However, to answer your question, I'd suggesting supplementing at whatever time of day your milk production is lowest. For me, that was always late afternoon and with my second child that seemed to be the time she most wanted to nurse. Start by mixing breast mild with the formula in the bottle just to get her used to it. Then you can switch to just formula. Good luck!

I agree with the other responses. And try contacting your local La Leche League and a LC for more help. That is if you don't WANT to supplement. It's your choice but you don't have to if you don't want to. It's true that formula fed babies typically weigh and gain less than breastfed. If your baby is happy and healthy, she's not starving.

You could try nursing more. But you are back to work so don't know if that's possible for you. Is she eating expressed milk bottles? If she's taking say four ounces, increase it to six. If you nurse/pump more your supply will increase and there's lots of info out there on increasing supply.

Here's a link to yahoo's breastfeeding group:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/breastfeeding/?v=1&a...

You can also search yahoo groups for breastfeeding moms.

LLL's site with all groups in Indiana and IL. Not sure where you are:
http://www.llli.org/Web/Indiana.html
http://www.llli.org/Web/Illinois.html

Now I did breastfeed and supplement with formula because we had latching issues that we couldn't fix, hard as we tried. I would nurse and pump as much as I could. Whatever else she needed I gave in formula. At four months I think we were nursing about three times a day and bottles three or four times a day. And I think she was taking six ounce bottles. I fed her a gentle formula so it was easy on her tummy and gradually introduced her to it.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Hi D.,
I would not supplement with formula until you consult a lactation specialist. I also think your Dr. should have suggested this before telling you to supplement. Breast milk is so much better for your baby & if you supplement your milk production will decrease. I would also talk to some other Ped. Dr.'s.

It's completely normal for breastfed babies to have little weight gain, sometimes even none. Remember that the growth charts at pediatrician's offices are based on formula fed babies which tend to gain extra weight. I would really hold off on supplementing as it will hurt your milk supply unless you do extra pumping to compensate for when she's not breastfeeding.

If you do choose to add formula, you'll want to start by mixing it with pumped breastmilk to help her adjust to the flavor. You would do this kind of like how you introduce a different brand of food to a pet, start by mixing in 1/4 of the bottle with formula, gradually increase to 1/2, 3/4, etc. It will also allow her digestive system to adjust as formula is more difficult to digest.

I have to credit supplementing with why I was able to breastfeed my daughter until 18 months - when she pretty much weaned herself. With my son it was a nightmare and I had only barely gotten my milk in before I gave up in frustration. My son seemed happier on formula when we tested it so I switched him. With my daughter, I was already having trouble getting her to latch on at the hospital and the nurse told me to supplement if I felt she wasn't staying on long enough. That saved it for me, and while supplementing isn't for everyone - anyone who is worried they aren't able to keep up with the demand should consider it.

I generally only gave my daughter 2 oz - 4 oz formula bottles, and only AFTER I'd already let her have whatever I had available for her. I did continue pumping sometimes to try and increase my supply. Babies go through growth spurts where they need more. While the mom's body catches on to this - I think sometimes it can take a little longer than the baby likes to wait! I found that sometimes I DID make enough for her and other times it was lacking until I caught up. I think we may have actually gone through one span of two to three weeks straight where I didn't supplement at all, but that was also after solid food was introduced. Technically, that's like supplementing too - once the baby is old enough, of course - and that will ease the formula woes considerably. She still wanted more after that nighttime feeding though - it tended to settle her in for a good night's sleep to have some snuggle time with mommy's milk first and then follow it up with a couple ounces of daddy's bottle.

We also tried, especially in the beginning, to mostly let her get bottles from daddy or someone else and rarely ever from me. The amount I gave her slowly increased, but I always gave her what I had available on both sides BEFORE letting her have anything else. And the slow-flow nipples on the bottles are important. It takes some work for a baby to get to the breastmilk - bottles are easier. If they get it too fast, they gag/choke from it and if they decide it's easier from a bottle - some babies will begin refusing the breast because the bottle is easier for them to get the milk from. I did not seem to have this problem with my daughter though - I think she knew that I coveted the special snuggling we were doing and enjoyed it too. And I know my husband enjoyed being able to feed her the formula too - he was wonderful about helping me through my own frustrations about not making "enough" for my kids all the time.

Good luck!

Please check out www.kellymom.com they can help you. Search their site for ways to increase supply. Also look there for info on supplementing. You can mess up your milk supply if you suplement too much. Also you can post in their forum. This site can really help you, often drs aren't experts on breastfeeding and don't give good advise.

yeh i kinnda agree with everyone on that. my nephew is 3months old healthy breastfed boy. another ladys baby same age formula only is "big". so my sister thought something had to be wrong with her baby. Nope, he's just as healthy. .is she a healthy weight for her age is all that matters.

Hi D.,
I just left a message for another Mom with breastfeeding supply issues to go to the website of Dr. Jack Newman the neonatologist in Toronto, Canada who is one of the world's leading authorities on breastfeeding. He has essays for many different problems. Now, you do need to give formula temporarily to help your baby's weight go up. If some of Dr Newman's ideas work for you, great, if not and your baby gets breast+formula to grow properly, you are still doing a great job giving what you can for as long as you can!! Good luck,
A. J., RN,MN,APN/CNS,IBCLC,FILCA

D. great job exclusively nursing for 3.5 months! I started bottle feeding by replacing a regular time my kids nursed with a bottle. Pick a feeding that is not as "special" for the two of you like a mid-day one. It will be easier than the one when she first wakes up or goes to sleep at night which might be more "snuggly". Once you get used to it you will see its not that bad. Try it for a weeks them add another one. Good luck! Best wishes returning to work-- it is neaver easy but it does get better.

Have you done a before and after weigh, where you weigh, then nurse, then weigh again? That will tell you how much she is getting per feeding. That will give you an idea if she has a milk transfer problem. If she is taking in several oz, then it could be another problem. Either way, I would contact a lactation consultant. Could be her latch is preventing her from transferring milk properly. In the meantime, I would try block feeding. This is when you feed on the same breast for a blocked amount of time (3 or 4 hours) and then switch to the other side. It's possible she is only taking in the lighter, thinner foremilk and needs the thicker hind milk. If you stick to one side for 3-4 hours, she will empty the breast more completely.

Without knowing the specifics of your daily routine and how often/how long you feed, it's hard to know where to offer any adice. A good LC can help with that.

ETA: here is LLL site to find a group near you: http://www.llli.org/Web/Illinois.html

It sounds like your daughter is not getting enough breastmilk during her feedings.

Some suggestions instead of supplementing...
eat oatmeal or fenugreek tea to increase production.
Pump inbetween feedings
consult a lactation specialist...most doctors know NOTHING about breastfeeding.
The lactation specialist will help you and can do a before and after weight to confirm how much milk your daughter is getting.

I would do all of the above before considering supplementing.