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Mia31
03-17-2004, 12:34 PM
Hi there,
I'm exclusively BFing, but once in a while if I'm out and didnt bring EBM and cant "whip it out" I'll give DD a little formula. (I carry the singles for emergency)
Will this make any long term differences with the BFing? She'll get it maybe once a week, and she'll drink about 2 ounces, then when we get home I'll finish BFing her.
Thanks!

stillplayswithbarbies
03-17-2004, 01:32 PM
It depends on the age of your baby. If baby is less than 4 months old, every ounce of formula is a signal to your body to make that much less milk, and to a newborn those two ounces are significant. So it could affect your supply now or down the road when the hormones from the birth are gone (~4 months) and your body is making milk based on the memory of how much baby drank the first 4 months.

If your baby is older, say 6 months or so, then it shouldn't affect your milk supply. But at that age will baby be satisfied with 2 ounces? Also at that age babies can be more patient and wait a little bit for a feeding sometimes.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

Mia31
03-17-2004, 02:24 PM
Hi Karen,
She's almost 15 weeks old...I will usually also pump too after I feed her to make some extra storage, I wasnt concerned with supply, i was more concerned with her and the formula. I didnt want the formula to effect what the breastmilk is doing for her body.
thanks!!

stillplayswithbarbies
03-17-2004, 02:30 PM
here is an article about that

http://breastfeed.com/resources/articles/virgingut.htm

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

Jen in Chicago
03-17-2004, 02:37 PM
I did this 1-5 times a week. Daily we tried a bottle of EMB or formula, and it never hurt the breastfeeding.

Mia31
03-17-2004, 02:39 PM
wow, great article, thank you!! Looks like i'll be pumping away before going out!! (:

mharling
03-17-2004, 02:52 PM
Ditto. :)

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

Mia31
03-17-2004, 03:01 PM
How often would you give the formula? was it just when you were out and about?

BethS
03-17-2004, 03:44 PM
Same here and we've had no problems. Jack usually will have a bottle of formula twice a week sometimes more sometimes less. I get very little when I pump so this has worked well for us.

Mia31
03-17-2004, 04:15 PM
Same here...If i try to pump in between feedings it's only a few ounces.
Do you feel giving formula a couple of times will interfere with the Breastmilk and everything it does? It seems like it wouldnt.

mharling
03-17-2004, 06:49 PM
2-3 times/week. I didn't mind NIP, but I didn't nurse around my FIL. Ds got formula at those times and sometimes at night if dh wanted to give him a bottle. I pumped some, but not enough.

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

C99
03-17-2004, 10:13 PM
OK, if you give a baby formula, you are not "exclusively breastfeeding." That said, I don't think it harms babies to give them formula every once and awhile. As Karen said, it can harm your supply to give a baby under 4-m/o to give formula, but ultimately, I don't think an occasional bottle of formula is going to counteract the good of breastfeeding or scar your baby for life. ;-)

Momof3Labs
03-17-2004, 10:56 PM
I don't feel that an occasional bottle (once a week, a couple of ounces) of formula will interfere with the benefits of breastmilk OR your supply. If you gave formula almost every day, then yes your supply would decrease. But IMO, baby's nursing intake fluctuates a bit from day to day and your body responds just fine, so I can't see how 2oz of formula per week will ruin (or even permanently decrease) your milk supply.

So if that is what works for you and your baby, don't feel guilty about it or worry about it!

LoveMyBug
03-17-2004, 11:06 PM
http://www.drjaygordon.com/bf/supplement.htm

Just one bottle WILL hurt, it can interfere with their sterile gastrointestinal (GI) tract and CAN cause problems, though most people never note these problems and just say their baby has "colic".

C99
03-18-2004, 10:46 AM
>http://www.drjaygordon.com/bf/supplement.htm
>
>Just one bottle WILL hurt, it can interfere with their
>sterile gastrointestinal (GI) tract and CAN cause problems,
>though most people never note these problems and just say
>their baby has "colic".

Honestly? This kind of post is NOT helpful and is, in fact, harmful. I realize that breast is best and I am a huge breastfeeding advocate myself. However, if you tell a woman that even one bottle of formula can hurt, I think it's more likely that someone will just give up BFing altogether.

My baby was born 5 weeks early and was given formula in the hospital. This is not what I wanted and I fought tooth and nail to get him to the breast. But I didn't have a choice, and reading crap like this makes me feel bad about something that was beyond my control.

Mia31
03-18-2004, 11:56 AM
I totally agree with you...one bottle does not hurt the child...the only thing to worry about is allergies from what I've learned...and if your baby is fine with a couple bottle a week (especially in order to pump for stockpile) it appears to be fine.
Don't feel bad, they (and you) did what they needed to do to get your baby as healthy as possible!

mharling
03-18-2004, 12:03 PM
Thank you Caroline. I couldn't have said it better.

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

Momof3Labs
03-18-2004, 12:19 PM
Thank you, Caroline. You said it much better - and nicer - than I could have.

I am also a huge bf'ing advocate, but Colin got some formula in his first few days when he wouldn't latch on. Was it ideal? No, but starving him wasn't an option either.

Scare tactics like this are what give bf'ing supporters and advocates a bad name!

Mia31
03-18-2004, 12:36 PM
Well said, it scared ME!

papal
03-18-2004, 12:46 PM
Thankyou Caroline. You said what I was thinking. I too feel that sometimes bf advocates are very strict with all the rules. It really gets overwhelming to the point of feeling guilty. Going OT here.. but there was a post in the Bitching Forum about a baby getting formula without the mothers consent in the hospital. While i think that is TOTALLY incorrect and uncalled for, i also don't think one bottle will do that much harm. But after reading all the responses, i started feeling really guilty because we did not have the baby room-in with us while we were there.... i was too tired and the meds were making me sleepy and i was so overwhelmed that i just needed the baby to be safe in more experienced hands. they never told me they gave the baby formula but i have been beating myself up over it the last couple of days.. what if they did and did not tell me? i don't know where i am going with this but hearing over and over again that formula is evil and will permanently screw up supply is just terrifying to me.
sorry, did not mean to jump in on your post.. this issue has just been weighing on my shoulders the last couple of days... i told dh about it and he thinks i am crazy for worrying about something that may or may not have happened 5 months ago!!!

mommd
03-18-2004, 02:38 PM
I have tried to stay out of every single post regarding formula feeding vs breastfeeding because of how strongly people feel on both sides, but I feel the need to say something about these articles mentioned in this post. To say ALL formula fed babies will develop allergies and NO breastfed babies will is really stretching the truth, IMO. Telling someone that ONE bottle of formula is going to seriously damage their child is just the kind of scare tactics that make people who are unable to breastfeed feel like bad parents (which they are NOT).

Giving solid foods also introduces different gut bacteria, so according to this article solid food also damages your baby, but I don't think we are going to feel guilty about giving that to our babies, are we? Breastfeeding IS best, I agree, but PLEASE stop telling parents who formula feed that they are ruining their children!!!

Stepping off my soapbox now.

Chelsey333
03-18-2004, 03:05 PM
Try not to feel guilty about having the baby in the nursery. I think the baby is safer in the nursery than in your room. After having a baby, you are very tired and groggy and there is no lock on your door. I feel safer knowing that nobody can come in my room while I am sleeping and take my baby. If the baby did get formula, it is not a big deal. As long as your baby is healthy and enjoys nursing you are all set.

christic
03-18-2004, 03:51 PM
You SO shouldn't feel guilty about not having your baby room-in with you. It seems very strange to me that people fought so hard against drive-through deliveries only to now insist that instead of trying to get some rest during your hospital stay your supposed to not only start caring for that new baby on your own 24/7 but also run all over the hospital in order to keep bottles away from them. Yes, we need to be able to trust hospital staff and having them do anything without your consent is wrong, but taking some time to look after your own recovery is the reason you're supposed to be there.

My daughter spent her first couple days in the NICU and did get some formula but was exclusively bf once we got home. Judging from her diapers, her gut was fine ;-).

Marissa
03-18-2004, 05:37 PM
For heaven's sake, it will not have any long term effect on the baby. It will help you feel more at ease which will help as well. When I went back to work 4 months ago, I was simply not able to pump often enough to keep up with my son (I'm a lawyer, and in court every day). After much agonizing, we decided to supplement with formula when we didn't have enough milk for the day care center. He takes about 1 bottle every 2 days, and more when my husband takes care of him (he's lazy and hates to defrost the milk). There is NOTHING WRONG with using formula - using it as a supplement to breastfeeding is what it is ideally for. Just know that you are doing what is best for your daughter, and good for you!!

~marissa

sntm
03-18-2004, 10:22 PM
In reference to some of the posts above, let's not overreact to someone;s post, okay?

Yes, any formula does change the intestinal flora of your baby and can have longterm effects as discussed in the articles mentioned. No formula is the preferred way to go. On the whole, though, the more breastmilk your baby gets the better. So, if you have to give formula every now and then, it's not the end of the world. It won't undo all the good that BFing gives your baby, but may have some potential negative effects. You decide what that means for you and your family. If you can have EBM with you or can either nurse in public or find someplace private enough for you to feel comfortable nursing, all the better.

And, as mentioned before, in the first 4-6 months, you should pump everytime you give any supplemental formula or "complemental" EBM. It's never a bad idea to pump even after the 6 month mark, particularly if you do this with any frequency.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

JenCA
03-19-2004, 02:27 AM
FWIW, my daughter was "diagnosed" as having colic while she was still being exclusively breastfed--and she got over the colic before she was ever given formula.

JenCA
03-19-2004, 02:31 AM
My best friend both BFs and FFs her daughter. She nurses first thing in the morning and at night, and her daughter gets formula during the day at daycare. My friend is not comfortable with NIP and does not own a pump, and since she works full time, she does not have any other option. Her daughter switches easily from breast to bottle, and they appear to be very happy with this arrangement. :)

Mia31
03-19-2004, 11:44 AM
That's nice to have the best of both worlds. Sorry to be off topic, but do you know what kind of bottles/nipples she uses that work well switching back and forth?
TIA!

JenCA
03-19-2004, 01:04 PM
I'm pretty sure she uses Playtex vent air bottles and nipples---the last time she visited, that's the type of bottle she was using. Also, FWIW, I don't believe in nipple confusion. My DD switched back and forth between breast and bottle (EBM) with no problems, all the time while using a pacifier. Every child is different, though. HTH!

C99
03-19-2004, 02:08 PM
>In reference to some of the posts above, let's not overreact
>to someone;s post, okay?

I don't think this is particularly helpful either. In addition to feeling crappy because my kid had formula once or twice, I feel like my attempt to express myself has been judged too. Just what I needed; thanks!

kijip
03-19-2004, 02:14 PM
I know a lot of parents and the colicky babies are found in families with just breastfeeding, a combination of breast milk and formula or just formula. Hell, the worst case of colic I have ever seen was a breastfed baby- Do I say, oh it must have been the breastmilk? No. It had nothing to do with the feeding method. I think that the one bottle will hurt post, and the attached article (which I read with a fine tooth comb) are inflammatory. Parents need to do what works for them and their babies without fear tactics....

kijip
03-19-2004, 02:22 PM
I don't think 1 bottle or 1000 will not scar your baby for life. On the whole formula fed babies will turn out to be ok....I did and so did most of the formula generations of the 1940s 50s, 60s and 70s....BF is great there are a lot of adults running around who never got a drop of breastmilk and still managed to live happy and healthy.

sntm
03-19-2004, 04:14 PM
sigh. i was only trying to say that we should give the poster the benefit of the doubt that she was trying to be helpful and respond to the OP's question. i don't think she meant to be, or in fact was, inflammatory. you may disagree about the validity or the significance of the article she cited, and that's fine, but that doesn't mean that she was wrong in posting it.

i was not criticizing your opinion or your right to express it. or, for that matter, for giving your child formula once or twice. my son also had formula twice. but i appreciated knowing the facts when i made my decision to give him the formula, and that was, after all, what the OP was asking. she can interpret the responses how she wants.

peace, okay?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03

sirensrise
03-19-2004, 07:58 PM
hi, i think your baby might have something to say about that.dd is exclusively breast fed, not even EMB. she did not take a bottle or a paci. when we tried the bottle when she was a few weeks old but one day she just decided that she would not do it anymore. she drank maybe 10 times out of the bottle altogether!