Anyone Tried the Costco Brand Formulas

Updated on January 04, 2010
M.V. asks from Hoffman Estates, IL
12 answers

Hi Moms,

My baby is 12 weeks old and I am switching her over to formula now. I am a Costco member and saw that they have a store brand that is so much cheaper than Similac or Enfamil so I bought some. My baby is eating it fine but when I make it, it gets so foamy. Are all formulas foamy or is it the way I am making it? I have a filter system so I am just usig tap water, put in the powered formula and shake it up. Also wondering, if I make some in the morning, how do I warm up the formula later?

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So What Happened?

Thanks for all of your responses. I truly appreciate it. I actually made a bottle yesterday and stirred it instead of shaking it and there was definitely less foam.

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G.G.

answers from Chicago on

I used them with baby #3 and I liked them. I felt like we saved money and the baby took them the same as enfamil. I would use warm tap water or heat it on the stove.

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H.N.

answers from Chicago on

Hi M.,
I used the target brand gentle ease for the first three months and then switched to the Costco brand. TOTALLY fine! I also checked with my doctor and she had no hesitation and said the Coscto brand is just fine. I did a comparision of ingredients and couldn't find a difference. I did this with both of my boys and they are doing GREAT!

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C.T.

answers from Atlanta on

Costco brand was great for us.
Warm in a glass container, I used a measuring cup. Please do not warm in the bottle or plastic. You can also NOT make the formula ahead of time, make it when you need it with warm tap water. You can try mixing with a spoon and do not shake, if you shake you cause air bubbles throughout the formula which can cause gas in baby. If you do shake let the formula sit until foam is gone.

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M.V.

answers from Chicago on

We used the Costco brand formula a few times...I couldn't stand the way it foamed up. And it still foams up even after stiring it. Needless to say, we switched formula's. Also turned out a little later that my daughter had reflux and those bubbles sure didn't help any! If you are looking to go cheaper, get the Target brand...no bubbles or foam there. And just remember that it isn't good to switch formula's all the time.

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C.G.

answers from Chicago on

they are the same. my pediatrician told us not to waste our money that the costco version was the same as the enfamil. it is a pretty significant savings. my daughter is now three and healthy and smart. i just heated it up by sitting the bottle in a mug of warm tap water.

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D.L.

answers from Phoenix on

I use the Sams Club brand, and my son has no problem with it. I tried a few different formulas before I settled on one, and they all get foamy when you shake it up. Definitely go with the generic, though. You will save so much money!

If you make a big batch in the morning, make sure you use it all within 24 hours, or else it goes bad. When warming it, put water in a bowl and warm it in the microwave for about a minute and a half. Then put your bottle in the warm water and shake the bottle periodically until the formula warms up a bit. It's not recommended that you put the bottle in the microwave. Things heat unevenly in the microwave and you might end up with hot spots in the formula that can burn the baby's mouth.

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S.H.

answers from Huntsville on

We used Similac with my daughter, and yes I think it did get foamy when you shake it. But, try stirring it instead.

For warming, you can either use a bottle warmer, or CAREFULLY in the microwave. If you do it in the microwave, be sure you leave the top off and only do it for a few seconds at a time, stir it, and then check it on your wrist. It doesn't need to get very warm, just take the cold off.

Another idea is to have water in a crock pot and let the bottle sit in it for a bit. My daughter's daycare did this.

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J.S.

answers from Chicago on

if your are transitioning to formula from breast milk i would use gentle ease formula...i supplement for my 12 week old and it works really well...sams club and walmart carry their brand and they work very well

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J.

answers from Chicago on

its fine i use sams club brand very similar to enfamil

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L.M.

answers from Chicago on

I also used the Sam's Club brand with no issues for DS. I usually made 24 ounces at a time and warmed it up by placing it under hot running tap water. I also did not always warm it up. With DD, who at 5 months finally took a bottle, she likes her bottles cold. It is not necessary to warm the bottles.

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H.D.

answers from Chicago on

I have never used the costco brand of formula as my kids were breast feed but I will say anything that we have used that was the costco brand has been wonderful!!!!! I would only buy the costco diapers after trying them.

In my expericance when having to make formulas bottles the formula does seem to get a little foamy from shaking it but the foam should go down, maybe making the bottles ahead of time is a great idea so that it has a little bit of time to get rid of some foam. Do you have a bottle warmer? If not then you can boil water in a pan and then set the bottle in the hot water to heat up the prefilled bottles.

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C.T.

answers from Chicago on

Store brand formulas are just as good as the name brand. It is most likely made by the name brand one that Costco carries in their stores. My doctor said we could give any of the store brand ones and that there was no difference. Unless your baby acts differently to where you think she M. need a different "formula" meaning a soy-based or one of the other "special" formulas out there, I would keep her on the Costco stuff, especially since formula is so expensive!
Don't worry about the foamy - that's just from shaking it up.
To warm it up, have the bottle made then get a big cup and fill it with hot water (from tap) and let it sit there for a few minutes. You can try giving it to your baby without heating it up also. They now say there's no reason for it to be warm. If it is cold from premaking it and having it in the refrigerator though just pop it in a cup of hot water for a few just so it's not super cold.

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