Difference between Alimentum and Nutramigen?

[MNmomtobe]

Is Alimentum just Similac's version of Enfamil Nutramigen? DD is on Similac Advance and along with her reflux I am thinking that she may have a milk protein allergy. Or maybe her problem is a milk protein allergy and she doesn't have reflux after all? Anyway, is there a preference between the Alimentum and the Nutramigen? Would it be easier (with ped's okay of course) to switch her to the Alimentum since DD has been on Similac and not Enfamil? How did others know that their DC had a milk protein allergy? Is it basically by trial and error? TIA!

ETA: Also, for those moms whose DC has protein milk allergies, did your child have pain/fussiness with EACH feeding when on regular formula? DD has pain/discomfort about half the time.

[proggoddess]

We used both types with no problems. I think there is a difference between these "hypoallergenic" formulas and the Nestle Good Start, which has only partially-digested proteins instead of fully hydrolyzed proteins. They might taste different, but my DD never cared.

We found out DD had a milk protein intolerance because she would projectile vomit on occasion, had contact dermatitis with the spit-up, had a stuffy nose, and bloody diarrhea. (Yes, it took all those signs to get us to notice, particularly the last sign.) She was cranky and colicky all the time, not just after feedings.

As soon as I cut out the dairy from my diet, we had a new baby. She slept through the night for the first time a couple weeks after I stopped eating dairy.

[MNmomtobe]

So is Nestle Good start better than the other two? or not as good?

[Tondi G]

I have a neighbor who had to quit breastfeeding cause her daughter just couldn't tollerate her breastmilk dispite an ellimination diet etc. Her ped put her on Alimentium at first... then she tried Enfamil Gentle ease and Carnation Good Start... both caused her daughter to start projectile vomiting again so she went back to Alimentium!

[proggoddess]

For a true dairy intolerance, I'd go with the hypoallergenic formulas, Alimentum and Nutramigen. For a baby who is just a little fussy, or for your own peace of mind with a baby who has no problems at all, the Good Start would be fine. Check with your ped, as we only used the hypoallergenic formulas and I don't have firsthand experience with the Good Start.

[daisymommy]

"Is Alimentum just Similac's version of Enfamil Nutramigen?"

YES--exactly.

Many babies who have a milk protein allergy also have reflux...and vice-versa. My son did. He was on Zanatc for a year, as well as Alimentum. We chose Alimentum only because he was already on Similac, and the GI specialist said to stick with the brand we were already using, as it would be less change for his system to go thru.

Between the Zantac and the formula change, he was like a different baby with 2 weeks. We saw a definetly difference within the first week, but by two weeks, things were very different. He went from a colicky baby who cried for 12 housr out of the day--No kidding!--to a happy go lucky baby who was all smiles :) He still spit up (as Zantac only decreases stomach acid so that when they do spit up it doesn't burn anymore)--but he didn't scream bloody murder whenever he did.

We tried Carnation Good Start before making the switch to the high priced Alimentum, but it didn't agree with him any more than regular formula did.

Good luck!

[saschalicks]

My Ped explained that yes they are the same thing. However, when we gave DS#1 Nutramigen he did not like it, so we switched to Alimentem and Voila it worked. With DS#2 the ped said to start out on the Alimentum b/c the likelihood of him having the same problems as DS#1 were pretty strong. We were glad we did b/c he had reflux even on Alimentum.

However, in the hospital they were giving DS#2 Nutramigen. The 2nd morning there, the nurse asked me if I noticed that it seemed DS#2 didn't "like" the food (he was in the nursery at night). I said to her can you find Alimentum? She came back the next morning and said that she couldn't believe the difference. He inhaled the Alimentum. I laughed b/c I had said the same thing to my mom when they brought me the Alimentum after the discussion with the nurse. They actually found it in the NICU. Once he loved it they asked the NICU to bring me more. DS#2 is still on it now.

I think essentially they are the same, but different companies make things differently and my DS's both noticably preferred Alimentum.

BTW, if you are looking for a less expensive way to buy it, once you figure out which one you actually want, buy it on e-bay. It's $10/can cheaper if you buy 12 at a time.

[MNmomtobe]

Thank you so much for your reply! That helps a lot. DD has her 2 month check tomorrow (she is getting her vaccines- yikes!) so I will ask the pediatrician about switching her formula.
BTW, do babies usually outgrow these allergies or intolerances or does this mean that DD will have to avoid milk products forever?
I haven't been very good about giving DD her Zantac because she does SO well sometimes it fools me into thinking she doesn't really have the reflux. I will have to ask the ped about that too tomorrow.

[MNmomtobe]

Wow. That is good to know. Whenever I have asked the ped about types of formulas (at previous appts- DD was checked frequently when we brought her home because of high bili levels) she always says when I asked her about types of formula "any of the formulas are good" which kinda bothered me since I am a brand new mom and had no clue. However this was before DD had her issues with feeding. We'll see tomorrow what she says about the possibility of milk protein allergy and types of formula.
Thanks for the ebay tip. I will definitely have to look into that. Does Costco or Sam's club have these for a better price also?

[chicagojo]

Although they are supposedly pretty much the same, my DS did MUCH better on Nutramigen for some reason, so that's what we stuck with. I also found it less stinky than the Alimentum, although both were pretty bad. Although he could never use the RTF Nutramigen for some reason - only the powdered. After a couple of months, with my pediatrician's blessing, I took a gamble and tried him on the Enfamil soy formula. Although supposedly about half of babies with milk protein allergies also have soy allergy, we got lucky and he is doing fine with the soy.

BTW, his symptoms were extreme fussiness round-the-clock, HORRIBLE gas, projectile poops (they would literally shoot across the room there was so much force of gas behind them), a bad skin rash, and blood in his stool. This was all going on for about a month before the bloody stool finally caught my attention - before that I thought he was just super-colicky and swallowing too much air b/c he was always crying. He was also on Zantac for a while but either he outgrew his reflux or he never really had it because when we went on vacation and accidentally left it at home, he was absolutely fine.