Formula Problem???

Updated on January 17, 2007
J.M. asks from Scottsdale, AZ
11 answers

I have a 3 month old daughter and am having a hard time with finding the right formula for her. She was on Good Start by Nestle for a while and was spitting up all the time and seemed very uncomfortable, gassy and fussy alot. So my ped. said to switch her to soy. She has been on soy for one week and is very constipated. She tries to go so hard and only a little firm pebble will come out. I am not sure if I should switch her back or if it just takes time for her body to adjust and if there is anything I can do to help her go.

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K.S.

answers from Phoenix on

The reason Karo syrup works is because of the sugar... you can also try a little pear juice (2 or 3 oz) a day and its a bit healthier. I had the same problem when we switched my daughter to soy formular. Its so sad to see them try so hard!

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J.H.

answers from Phoenix on

My husband and I switched from one after another in the first months. Then we ended up with soy. The powdered soy was the best but we had to give him a little water to make sure he didnt get all bound up. We also used the bottles with liners by playtex to eliminate the gas issue. Cayro syrup helps constipation. We became formula experts after that ordeal. Their bodies do adjust at some point.

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J.R.

answers from Phoenix on

J.,

I weaned my daughter from Breast to bottle at approx. 3 months and had horrible constipation problems to the point of having to stimulate her with KY Jelly and a Q-tip. We switched her to Enfamil Gentlease which helped for a couple of days but it did not completely solve the problem. We ended up having to add dark karo syrup to each bottle (2 tsp. per 6 oz. of formula). We found that if we cut back on the Karo the problem would return. The Karo worked until about 9 months of age; where our pediatrician recommended that we switch to Phillip's Milk of Magnesia (strawberry flavored). She has had one to two BM p/day since. We were willing to do whatever it took to help her as no baby should have to struggle that hard or have to push out something that an adult is capable of. I hope this information helps and good luck.

p.s. In hindsight I wish that I would not have weaned her so early.
p.s.s Pear and or white grape juice did not do the trick and the Karo Syrup didn't effect her as she has remained in the 25th to 50th percentile in weight and 75th in height.

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S.C.

answers from Phoenix on

I had similar problems when my son was an infant. We tried formula after formula when finally one doctor had suggested to me that we try Similac Advance, he claimed that Similac is more sensitive on a newbie's digestive system. It was only a few days before we noticed a dramatic difference. No more painful gas and our baby could actually poop again! - Never thought I'd be so excited to see a bowel movement;) Hopefully Similac delivers the same luck to you as it did for us. Also, a teaspoon of dark Karo syrup in a bottle can do wonders clearing up constipation...you can find it in in the pancake isle. Good Luck!

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T.

answers from Phoenix on

Hi. My daughter had very similar issues when she was that age. She is now 10 months old. We switched her to Enfamil Gentlease and it was a God-send. All symptoms cleared up in a couple of days. Hope that helps.

T.

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S.H.

answers from Phoenix on

My son had a combination of really bad gas/discomfort/reflux. The only formula I found that help him was Lactose free. He just turned one a few weeks ago and I am starting him on whole milk so we will see if it is truely a lactose problem or if he just couldnt handle the lactose as an infant. Good Luck

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C.B.

answers from Phoenix on

Hi, I had the same problem with my first baby. I tried the lactose free formula and that worked a little better. But the constant spitting up stopped around the time he turned one.

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C.M.

answers from Phoenix on

Hi J.! I haven't experienced that particular problem myself, but my uncle and aunt had similar results with one of the their twins. My uncle's a pediatrician and was very knoweldgable about what to do in these situations, but no matter what they tried, nothing worked. The baby didnt put on very much weight and seemed to be kind of sickly. As it turned out, she was actually allergic to dairy. There is a special formula (its not the soy...its something else that is, unfortunately, more expensive and harder to find) that has no dairy, wheat, or soy in it and that ended up being the saving grace. Maybe you should ask your doctor if there's any chance of your little one having food allergies?

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M.

answers from Phoenix on

hi J.

I am sure you know that the very best thing to do for your baby's good health is to breastfeed her. since you are not mentioning the reason why you are not doing so I am not sure what your reasons are for not breastfeeding your baby but if you can and want you could still nurse her. that would be the best thing healthwise. you could still do it if you want all you need is the help of a good lactation consultant.

anyhow whatever you do make sure to research it first your baby's health depends on it.

good luck and all the best.

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R.C.

answers from Phoenix on

Hi my son had the same problems. He still is off of milk and the soy helped enormously with his digestion. We would give him a small bottle of juice to help with the constipation and on occasion we would use a childrens laxative. I think the apple, pear, or plum juices worked the best.

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D.W.

answers from Phoenix on

Hello! We went through a lot of formulas as well to find the right one, including soy-based, which had the same effect on my daughter as yours. We ended up with Enfamil Gentlease as the best choice for us. It is cows milk-based but has only 1/4 of the regular lactose. She still had gas/colic problems and the pediatrician gave her a perscription that helped as well. Between those two we made it through, and it all became better just a little after the end of the 3rd month. Hope that holds true for you two as well :)

Hope this helps! Good luck!

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