does DD have to have step 2 formula?

DD is on Nan pro gold, and since changing from step 1 to step 2 at 6 months, although she was always prone to constipation, she has gotten anal tears, a haemmorhoid, bleeding, all this despite having coloxyl drops in her bottles. the GP said not to worry but her poos are rock hard and she screams and is bleeding.

i asked the chemist and they said its advisable for her to stay of the step 2 but is it really necessary? she is in so much pain and is scared of pooping and my GP seems to be useless with babies.

please help, i cant bear to wait til after the new yr to get a doc appt

Oh hun that sucks so bad :/ Poor bubba!! DD2 is on S26 and has been having a bit of the same (not quite as severe, she had a bleeding bum for a couple of days last week and squealed in pain passing a few hard poos, poor baby) trouble herself since switching over and starting on solids. I assumed it was because she's started eating 'dry' solids like biscuits and generally gummy foods (like porridge etc) that need lots of extra water to make up for, kwim? Offering extra water during the day as well as when she's eating solids seems to have helped with the transition, especially in this heat when they're prone to dehydration, too :(
Maybe try offering DD a few extra bottles/sippy cups of water between bottles and solids, to get her into the habit? Does she like water so far? I had heaps of trouble getting DD1 to drink water, she used to just scream and scream until she was offered milk, she was about 10 months old before she would accept it. Hopefully someone who knows a bit more about formula will come along and help you out, sweetie. Give bub a big hug from me and I hope you can get her constipation sorted out soon!

Have a look at the ingredients on the tins. One formula I looked at only had like 20mg diff on ONE ingredient.
I cant see how it would hurt for a short time, its the added iron you want to avoid
Oh, just read you are on gold. sack it and change to just regular - too much iron ;)

Usually babies get constipation from too much iron in the formula. My kids couldn't have the gold stuff cos it gave them horrible constipation - DD1 was the WORST of all the kids though, and she was on goats milk formula - much gentler on their tummies and easier for them to digest. So DD2 is on that now too.

Anyhoo - I'd try the Step 2 - just because apparently it doesn't have as much iron in it as the Step 1 cos they are eating solids after 6 months and getting iron from other sources.

HTH.

Absolutely not.
DS1 was the same we tried nan ha gold 2 for a week, and he got soo constipated, I spoke to the MCHN and paed and both said that there was no need to change to a follow on formula, esp if they are having some solids and iron fortified cereal etc.

My DD1 was on EBM until 11 months when I stopped expressing. When I was unable to express anymore the hospital program she is on (she is fed via naso-gastric tube) provide formula under their program anyway, her dietican put her on Karicare 'from birth' formula, even though there is a follow on formula for older babies, she was on the 'from birth' from 11 months and we swapped her over to a premade 1-6yo child formula at 16 months, now she is back on EBM since DD2 came along :D.

So long story short, my DD was on 'from birth' formula from 11 months to 16 months of age and she had always been in the normal weight range etc.

No absolutely not, she can stay on Step 1 and indeed she should if she is having these kind of problems.

My MCHN always said that if babies are still being satisfied hunger-wise on the Step 1 there was no need to change up at all and to stay on Step 1 until you changed them to cows milk at 12 months. Step 2 is really only needed for hungrier babies, it is more filling because it is casein-based rather than whey-based like Step 1.

Further, she always recommended that you wait until closer to 8 months before moving up to Step 2 because constipation problems were very common at 6 months when changing, especially when you consider that you are starting solids around the same time.

My DS couldn't cope with Step 2 constipation-wise until he was closer to 9 months - but he was only ever supplemented with formula, I was also bfing him. DD was fully FF'd by 3 months of age and I kept her on Step 1 (Nan Pro Gold) all the way through to 13 months when I got her drinking cows milk and she has always thrived (97th percentile for height, weight and head circumference). I actually think it said on the Nan can that babies who are FF'd from an early age should stay on Step 1 until 12 months.

Chuck out the Step 2 and go back to Step 1!

thanks girls, she even got constipated on step one (guessing cause its gold) but i cant go thru the stress of trying tonnes of different formulas, went thru that when she was 1st switched from BF to FF.

Donna: no she flat out refuses water even with a bit of flavoring in it e.g. ribena, will only stop crying when formula is given...

DD is 1 now and she has only just stopped formula and she was on S26 Gold step one from birth to 11 1/2 months - now she is on cows milk. Both my MCHN & Paed said that they can sure stay on step one infact my MCHN recomended staying on step 1 till 12 months as she said step 2 was just a gimick!

HTH
Kate

update: went to chemist and she said not to put DD back onto step one after being on step two, couldnt really work out why but she suggested novolac especially for constipated babies so am trying that, along with her coloxyl drops. her haemmorhoid is really big so im worried she will have to get surgery or something cause the anti imflammatory cream the GP gave me did nothing and it gets bigger every time she poops :(

Awww Emma, its not fun is it? We went through the same thing with DS a week or so ago. I switched him to Step 2 and within days he was screaming the house down he was in so much pain. He was already having constipation issues on the Step 1 anyway but we had it under control by adding lactulose syrup to his morning bottle daily. Its a syrup that helps retain water in the bowel and helps to keep their poo runny. You can buy it from the chemist. Our GP recommended it.

So after that experience and doing my own research, we'll be keeping DS on Step 1 until 12 months then going to cows milk. If it ain't broke as they say. According to the tins the main difference I noted was in the levels of minerals and as far as I'm concerned if he's getting a good diet of solids, that will be taken care of. Plus as Curly said the Step 2 are a casien based formula which is harder for them to process again.

If I were you I would ignore what the chemist said (particularly if they couldn't give you a good reason) and stick to the original Step 1 you've been using to try and help get the haemmoroid under control. If your GP is not much help do you have a MCHN near you that might be of more assistance? Most of the major women's & childrens hossy's in each state usually have a phone line you can ring for anything related to babies too?

Good luck, hope she feels better soon x

lollybaby: cheers for the advice, i havnt been to a CHN since DD was 8 weeks old cause i keep moving house and they struggle to send on my info to the next clinic! but i really should get to one soon, i have alot of questions my GP just shrugs at...
i couldnt understand the chemist ladys accent :doh: but oh well this formula cant possibly be any worse than the step 2 but if theres no diff she will go back to step 1...luckily my DD eats anything and everything so is getting a very varied diet

^ If she's eating heaps of solids she should be right, someone once told me that Step 1 and Step 2 were exactly the same thing, just Step 2 has a bigger scoop to help their growing bellies get fuller (and pack in more nutrients) if they're not eating heaps of solids, kwim?? So really Step 1 should do the trick if she's taken to solids really well (and it sounds like she has ;) ).
Hope it all gets sorted for her soon hun, poor little bubba, it's no fun sitting there watching them in pain and feeling powerless to help, is it? Big hugs for you Em, you're doing such a great job :)

All the chemist is doing is spouting what they've been told by the formula company sales reps when they've gotten the formula into stock. I wouldn't be putting too much faith into what they are saying if it clearly isn't working for you and they cannot come up with alternatives. They are not babycare experts anyway, they are all rounders.

FWIW I've moved a couple of times and I have never had my details transferred between MCHNs, I start from scratch.

If you have no luck with the Novalac I'd go back to Step 1 immediately. Good luck.

TM - my reply is probably way to late to be helpful but I have kept DS on the Step 1 formula and plan to until I introduce cows milk at 12 months, our CYH nurse advised there is really no reason to change