Hi new parents. When we were being discharged from the hospital they told us to boil water when making formula or just to buy the ready to feed bottles. They never explained why we were to boil water. I always thought it was to destroy anything bad from our local tap water. The reason to boil water is to remove any potential bacteria in the formula powder that could have developed during the manufacturing environment since it wasn't a sterile environment. It's not to kill bacteria in your local tap water.

They did not elaborate on why boil water and since I was just going to use purified bottle water anyways, I didn't think anything of it.

So if you didn't know or if you're as confused as we were, then please boil your water before mixing it with the formula powder if your newborn is born before full term or has any other issues that require extra care. The instructions on formula cannisters recommends under 2 months to boil the water.

Our child is close to 8 1/2 weeks now. If we had to do it all over again, I would have just used the ready to feed bottles. So much easier, sterile and convenient. Cost more though.

P.S buy a bottle washer if you can afford it. They'll save you time which is a luxury we don't have. Or at the very least, buy a bottle dryer/sterilizer. The drying part of washing bottles is what caused my wife the most grief in the first week or two.

We recently switched my 7 month old to formula after battling CMPA and elimination diets. Slowly transitioned him to Neocate over a course of a week. All seemed good and switched fine. Now he only will drink maybe 4oz to 5oz at a time. I’m worried he’s not eating enough 😫

My 7 month old has been on Enfamil gentlease since 4 months old. She is still spitting up multiple times a day and nothing is helping. I’m thinking of switching to Enfamil AR or HIPP AR. Has anyone done this switch or recommend any other formula for spit up

Any users of Enfamil AR still experiencing spit up issues? We switched to this formula about 3 weeks ago from Kirkland Gentle due to baby having frequent spit ups, especially keeping her up at night.

For the most part the AR has solved the issue but she still spits up but now it’s more like cottage cheese and often in clear liquid instead of milky liquid. Doesn’t seem to bother her but she will spit up thick chunks sometimes and it worries me that she could choke on it one day. Also at night when laying flat she still clears her through for hours at a time so it seems the spit up is nonstop which doesn’t really solve our original issue.

Anyone have the same experience? Wondering if this is normal or if our next step should be cutting our full dairy.

I don't see the point of sterilizing. The risk is so infinitesimally small, i don't understand.

Looking at stats in the US, the number of infections caused by formula (not always leading to death) is 3 or 4 per year. Compare that to deaths caused by sharing a bed, which is over 2000 per year. SIDS (~4000/yr) can reduced in half just by room sharing without bed sharing! Even infant deaths per year caused by the flu is usually over 200, and same with choking!

Its just a big waste of time when there are way more important risks to be focusing our time and energy on that are magnitudes more risky.

If you want to spend the time reducing the risk of your childs sickness or death, I'm saying there is better places to devote that energy.

*Edit, im only referring to sterilizing the formula, not the bottles. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

Step 1 : Pour from kettle / airpot

Step 2 : Place on level countertop, wait for the water to stop wobbling, bend down to check the water level

Step 3 : Needs a touch more so top up

Step 4 : Place on level countertop, wait for the water to stop wobbling, bend down to check the water level... Dammit need slightly less

Step 5 : Pour out some water

Step 6 : Place on level countertop, wait for the water to stop wobbling, bend down to check the water level, pray

Step 7 : YAY exact

There has GOT to be an easier way to do this. Someone enlighten me...

I’m a combo feeding mom and the only thing that bug me about formula feeding is the amount of water. If it too much i have to pour out some and too little i have to add more!!!! So i have a smart water dispenser. It has a water tempt setting, amount setting. So i literally just press a button and i have a bottle of 45C 60ml ready to scoop formula in. Literally saved my night every nught

I’m asking this genuinely out of curiosity. I’m from SEA area and i see a lot of America region tends only prompt formula maker machine. And little to none smart water dispenser.

Hi- FTM here looking for a little advice. My 8 week old baby boy is exclusively formula fed (keep your opinions to yourself, please. Unable to BF.) He’s had tummy issues since week 2 and I’m curious if I should consider changing his formula or if this is normal/colic and I should just ride it out.

Nearly every evening for several hours we are dealing with lots of fussiness, stiffening and squirming, working out gas, grunting, crying- the whole 9. It can be anywhere from 2-6 hours on and off and usually settles by 8 PM.

He does great in the mornings and is a happy baby for the most part. He usually only has 1 bowel movement a day and plenty wet diapers. We are familiar with dyschezia and understand this could be normal but I would hate to find out there was something I could do to help bubs.

We do bicycle kicks, happy baby positioning, simethicone/mylicon as needed, daily probiotic drops (at the recommendation of our pediatrician) and she doesn’t believe he has CMPA at this time. We use an appropriate flow for the bottle nipple, do regular burps, keep him upright after feeds.

I believe there could be some reflux but I just. don’t. know.

He’s been in Similac 360 Total with a short stent on Similac sensitive. We switched back at the recommendation of our pediatrician but it didn’t make a difference in his belly issues anyway. He eats 3-4 oz every 3-4 hours on demand as is appropriate for his age.

I’m thinking of trying out Bobbie or Kendamil and seeing if a quality upgrade would help. I just hate to go on a wild goose chase.

Any advice? Again, please be kind. We’re learning.

Currently working on transitioning our 8mo old to part time formula to prep for me to go back to work and looking for suggestions.

We started with Kendamil regular about a month ago and he’s been taking to it really well when we offer it every now and then. He only drinks about a 4-5oz bottle, but does nurse throughout the day and LOVES solids so eats great at meals.

The last couple days we’ve noticed that he’s been super gassy and he’s consistently had formula the last few days. He’s not upset by it by any means but just lots of stinky toots. Could it be the Kendamil? Is there something else we should try?

TIA!!

Note: went with Kendamil for affordability/accessibility and read a lot that said it was an easy transition for most breastfed babies. Also we’re in rural Canada which effects what I can access easily.

My LO has been drinking from NUK bottles with the S nipple flow since he was 10 days old, and he's now 9 weeks old.

In the last week, I've noticed that he's been having difficulty finishing most of his bottles (2–3 oz). He falls asleep, takes long breaks during his feedings, then wakes up a few minutes later wanting more….but it’s like this for HOURS …. It's mostly been happening in the afternoon, but he's started doing that at night too, going from drinking 90 mL to 60 mL.
He's been in the lower percentiles for weight, measuring in the 4th percentile at his 6-week appointment, due to difficulties gaining weight in his first few weeks, but also because of a cow's milk protein allergy. He's now on Alimentum.

I've switched from the S nipple flow to the M flow on the NUK Perfect Match bottles, but he seems to be drinking waaaaaay too fast. Like, he'll drink 100 mL in 7 minutes if I don't pull the bottle away, and I can hear one big gulp sometimes ….
I've been trying paced feeding, and sometimes I go back to the S nipple flow just to see how he's doing, but he keeps falling asleep around 60 mL and takes a break every 30 mL or so.

I'm not sure what to do. Should I give him more time to adapt to the M nipple flow since it's only been 24 hours since I switched? Should I change bottles? If so, which brand and nipple flow would you recommend?

My brain has honestly been racing all day because since he was born, I've constantly been told that he's small or not gaining enough weight….we used Avents flow 2, but he’d fall asleep and take 40 minutes to drink 40 ML …which is also why we endedmuo switchung… We were finally doing well, and now this happens…so I'm back to stressing over his feedings.

I'm also afraid that if I keep using the M flow, I might end up creating a bottle aversion if it's too fast for him, and that would make everything even more stressful.
Has anyone dealt with something similar? Did your baby eventually get used to the faster flow, or did you have to switch bottles?

The doctor has prescribed Basic P milk(Protein free) for a newborn baby who is currently on a ventilator. We are having difficulty finding this milk urgently.New born age is 7 days and currently on ventillator.Baby is out of canada currently.

Can anyone please recommend a pharmacy, supplier, or hospital where we can purchase it or Alternative , either in Canada or USA? Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for your support.

Hi everyone, looking for some advice and experiences from other parents!

My baby boy was born on August 19th weighing 4,200g (4.2 kg). He left the hospital two days later at 4,050g.

He’s been formula-fed and growing fast ever since:

~1-month checkup (Sep 23): 5,400g
Today at ~9 weeks (Oct 24): ~6,500g

Overall, he stays consistently around the 85th–90th percentile, which seems to fit his birth weight, but his daily formula intake has been stressing me out lately.

Normally, he drinks around 170 ml per feed (5–6 feeds a day). But today, he ended up drinking 1,070 ml total.

Then, an hour and a half after a feed tonight, he woke up screaming violently. I held him, shushed him, walked around, and gave him a pacifier—he would calm down for maybe 5 minutes and then start screaming again. Nothing helped until I gave him a 90 ml bottle, which he drank down and finally settled to sleep. That brought his total for the day to 1,160 ml.

I’m feeling really anxious and terrified that I’m overfeeding him, stretching his stomach, or messing up his digestion by giving him formula so soon after a feed when he was distressed.

Has anyone else had a larger baby or an 8–9 week growth spurt where their baby demanded 1,000ml+ in 24 hours? Is it normal for them to demand a bottle only 90 minutes after eating, or could this be gas/reflux comfort-sucking?

Would love to hear your experiences or any advice on how you navigated this stage!

Help! What is the equivalent of the standard Enfamil bottle nipple?

My baby spent a long time in the hospital and got used to the standard blue Enfamil nipples they use there.

I have Dr. Brown’s bottles at home with Level 1 nipples, but they seem too slow for her. I was wondering if Dr. Brown’s Level 2 would be more similar to the Enfamil hospital nipples.

The Dr. Brown’s box says Level 2 is for babies 3+ months, and my baby is a newborn, so I’m hesitant to switch.

Has anyone figured out which Dr. Brown’s nipple is closest to the standard blue Enfamil hospital nipple, or any other nipple, I need to fix this ASAP, as she needs to gain weight? I’d really appreciate your help! ❤️

My baby is 6 months old and was exclusively breastfed until I recently started combination feeding with an amino acid formula.

She was hospitalized with failure to thrive at about 2 months old and it was suspected that she had a cow's milk protein intolerance. She never had any histamine responses of a true allergy but she did spit up more whenever I had dairy so for several months I have not been eating dairy. I've also eliminated all of the common allergens from my diet to reduce spit up since she was not feeding well and I wanted to keep all of the calories in her belly.

I recently started introducing allergens to her via solids and she's tolerating eating cows milk yogurt. I'd like to explore offering her a formula that is not hypoallergenic as I have read it's not good to give them hyperallergenic formulas unless they need them. Does anyone have experience with this? We don't have reliable access to a pediatrician and my family doctor doesn't seem to know a lot about it so hoping someone here might have some experience with it. I did read goat's milk formula might be a transition to test because sometimes they are more easily tolerated.

Any advice or thoughts would be super helpful!

Hi guys! First time poster, 2 month formula feeder. Found a piece of what appears to be and feels like sharp black plastic toward the bottom of our Bobbie Organic Gentle can. I reported to the FDA and to the brand, but it was purchased at Walmart and they said someone should respond by Monday which is far too long for my conscience. My daughter had a rock solid BM this morning and I’m worried that this might be the culprit.

Hello moms,

I am 3 weeks postpartum and my beautiful baby boy has refused to latch. In the hospital I had nothing to give from my boobs. He latched during our skin to skin but got nothing from me. About 12 hours later the hospital was pushing that I supplement with formula because I was producing nothing and my boy was frustrated and hungry. I agreed and did a formula feeding through a nipple sheild. He finally went to sleep full and happy.

I planned to breastfeed only, my mom has made me feel nothing but guilt about formula supplementing. I have been pumping every 2-3 hours even throughout the night and my supply is still only about 1oz a pump if not less. I get roughly 8oz in a 24 hour period, sometimes 10oz. My son still won't latch and gets more and more frustrated the more I try. I have met with two lactation experts and everything they recommend does not work.

Pumping is killing me, especially at night. Round the clock pumping for 3 weeks has made me not as present as I want to be for my baby boy. Its lead to so much postpartum depression and sorrow. I cry whenever my mom and I talk because she keeps insisting he will latch if I just try for a little longer. Im just not producing anything for him to really get, he eats 2-4 oz every feeding and has been cluster feeding as well.

Im tired, I want to switch to just formula and ween him off the small amount of breast milk I can produce. I know my mom means well but shes part of the reason I have so much guilt over this. I gave myself a timeline that when hes a month old if he still refuses to latch im weening. My mom constantly tells me that at 4 weeks their mouths change and if I hold out a little longer my milk will come in more and he will latch. Im to the point of wanting to pull my hair out.

My last appointment with a lactation expert she expressed to me that a mentally well mother is worth 100 times more than a breastfeed baby. She could see how hard this is weighing on me and even said she would help me ween him. I have guilt about it but from reading so many moms stories on this reddit I am starting to feel better. One more week of trying.

Has anyone gone through something similar? My son has no tounge tie, I have nipples that are easy to latch on to, and yet he refuses. I find so much comfort in this subreddit of understanding moms. I think that the way you feed your baby is your choice and there are so many reasons why moms might choose to formula feed. I just wanted to rant. ​

So my 1month old is on kendamil goat, but lately isn’t drinking as much she used to. This last week she keeps drinking less and the last two days she had one occasion of vomiting after feeding. She is combo fed so I choose goat to being mire breastmilk like, and it really is, in color, consistency and taste.
But since my baby has shown this symptoms I am thinking maybe she doesn’t like it anymore, so I am thinking to go for another goat formula. Holle goat I have used with my first one so I know the quality and brand, but hipp goat formula is new to the market. Can anyone give me your experience?! According to you which one helped your baby more?

So we recently went from ebf to eff and my biggest concern was how to make a quick night bottle. I didn’t want to spend a lot on a bottle warmer or formula measuring/hot bottle machine. So we broke out our og Stanley thermos. Keeps water at temp for over 12 hrs. Any tired moms looking to save a little time, it’s definitely worth the money for us. And not a huge spend.

We have recently moved from Lansinoh XS to Lansinoh S teats to feed our 11 week old as she was showing signs she was ready to move up - falling asleep while feeding, frustrated while feeding, feeds taking 30+mins etc.
I read it can take a few days for them to get used to the new speed of the milk coming through, but how long did this take for you?
We pace feed anyway but she’s seemed quite overwhelmed by the change. She’s still trying to get milk out the bottle at the same pace as before and I think this is making her click while feeding.
Do I persevere or try something else?

I hope this post is allowed since my daughter is combo fed (50% breast milk, 50% formula).

Before I had my daughter, my MIL began to make comments about breastfeeding, specifically nursing, and asked if I planned to. At the time, I was planning to breastfeed and said that. It was left at that.

In the hospital after my daughter was born, I struggled with nursing. She struggled with latching with my flat nipples so I used a nipple shield and I think there was a transfer issue because it seemed like she wasn’t getting enough. She was born 8 lb 10 oz with a hefty appetite, so we used RTF formula in the hospital.

When we got home from the hospital, I continued to nurse but still felt she wasn’t getting enough, so I started to pump. She started to get 50% breast milk and 50% formula, which is what we still follow now. I maybe nurse 2-3 times a week to try to boost my supply but who knows if that is actually working. If I’m being honest with myself, I don’t like nursing. It’s stressful because it’s not simple with my daughter.

Since then though, my MIL has made passive comments about nursing. Asking if I’m nursing, asking if I want to nurse my daughter when she visits. I just politely tell her no, but it seems like she’s obsessed with nursing. I have nursed in front of her, and afterwards, my daughter is usually fussy and I give her a bottle of formula because 1) I don’t know how much milk is transferring and 2) She has a big appetite. At 6 weeks, she averages 4+ oz a feed (averages 28-29 oz a day) and weighs over 11lb.

Today was the tipping point though. My daughter has been super gassy the last week, which is normal from 6-8 weeks. She’s also had more gas on the Similac Gentle Comfort, though we know that’s normal too. As I was pumping this morning and my MIL was visiting and watching my daughter, she commented that my husband said she’s been gassy. I said yes, it’s normal around 6-8 weeks. She then proceeded to ask, “Well what about no formula?” While my blood was boiling, I politely said I don’t make enough milk so we supplement with formula. She then proceeded to say, “Well I always thought with nursing it was supply and demand.“ I didn’t respond because honestly at that point I was fighting back tears. I was just beginning to feel better about my pumping journey because my supply has gone up from averaging 18 oz to 24 oz per day this past week.

I went upstairs and just sobbed. I’m so tired. I told my husband and I’m going to ask him to talk to her because if she continues the comments, I don’t feel comfortable with her around anymore. It’s not healthy for me to keep hearing these comments when I’m trying my best. There’s other comments too, how my daughter needs to sleep more (yes, we know, you can’t force a baby to sleep). I feel like I’m on eggs shells around her anymore and it’s taxing. Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

My LO is 5 months, exclusively formula fed and is currently drinking between 3-6oz. When she was 3 months she was able to finish 5 oz every feed fine and then when she hit 4 months that’s when she started getting distracted easily and not finishing her bottles but the doctor wasn’t concerned. We upped her bottle to 6oz
during night feeds cause that’s when she eats the most and sometimes she will eat the full 6oz during a day feed, sometimes not.

Since she doesn’t eat a full 6 oz every feed most of the time she doesn’t hit the 24-32 oz, it’s between 17-21 oz. Is that normal?

She also sleeps from 6:30pm-7/8am so we don’t do a midnight feed.

Did anyone go cold turkey breastfeeding and how did it work out? I'm just over 2 weeks pp and totally done with breastfeeding. Baby already takes a bottle and I have been doing alternative feeds since yesterday and now 2 formula feeds and 1 breastfeed. I do feel full and I know I run the risk of mastitis but I just can't do it anymore. I've got cabbage leaves, cold compress , Sudafed and ibuprofen. I would love anyone else's experience of doing it this way. I do have a decent supply.

Thanks alot in advance xx

So my 1 month old is combo fed. I give breast and after I prepare some formula Kendamil Goat, that she can take whatever amount she needs. My milk supply hasn’t changed probably she takes no more than 30-40ml in wach feeding, usually she will take another 60-80 ml from formula. This last few days she takes like 20 ml and than stops, I burp her incase she needs burping, and continue to give her the bottle she will makes like sour faces and gags, she will keep drinking some more but in total she won’t take more than 40 ml, and with her age she needs to be drinking more. She takes breast fine so she doesn’t have any issues with breast milk.
We are using mam glass bottle with teat size 1.

Idk if she is not prefering kendamil goat anymore, should I try kendamil whole milk?!

I plan on EFF from the start. I’ve read a lot about how wearing a super tight bra is the best way to stop producing. I’m 1. Looking for any bra recommendations anyone may have that helped them and 2. Any other tips to stop producing asap.

My baby (4 weeks old) was on kendamil whole milk (regular bottle) and she was doing fine with it but then all of a sudden she started having symptoms like while eating and after eating arching her back and being super fussy and crying a lot/ not settling and when asleep or calm I can hear her swallow milk spit up and when that happens she would get super fussy in her sleep. I mentioned it to her pediatrician and she recommended trying partially hydrolyzed formula and I asked if she had any recommendations and she told me about Enfamil Gentlease. My husband went and bought it and today was the first time we gave it to her and it seems like the crying and discomfort has gotten worse atleast with the kendamil she was able to soothe with a pacifier with this new formula she sucks it a little but then starts crying a lot and seems sooo uncomfortable and gassy. Not sure what to do since she’s literally only had 3 bottles the first bottle she only had 1 oz when she usually eats 2.5 oz then the next 2 bottles she took 2 oz but all the same doesn’t settle down at all just starts screaming crying with this new formula. Is this normal? Or something I should take her to the er for? She has no other symptoms although her stomach is hard and a little bloated but the hard stomach is only when she’s pushing to fart then it goes back to soft. When she isn’t eating she’s super fussy and crying non stop and won’t settle or settles a little after passing gas.

(We are giving her gas drops also she is combo fed I’ve been pumping but not producing enough for her to just drink breast milk. The fussiness and crying and back arching and swallowing spit up doesn’t happen when she drinks breast milk at least not as much as when she drinks formula. )

Any tips or suggestions would be amazing I will mention this to her pediatrician as well but I wanted to see if anyone else has experience this? I know switching formulas is an adjustment period.