Panicky mum-to-be with some silly questions!

Hi everyone,

I am 36 weeks pregnant at the moment, but with the possibility of being induced early (going week to week until the doctors decide), I felt I should start asking some questions about formula feeding.

I intend to breastfeed Josie for a couple of weeks at least, as I think the first few weeks are definitely the most important. After that it is my intention to put her on bottle, because when I go back to work she will be spending time in day care, not to mention that it means my DH will be able to get up and help feed in the middle of the night.

Only problem is that I have no idea what to be looking for in terms of bottles or formula!

My friends use Avent bottles but they seem to have issues with them leaking? I was going to try the Nuk ones but wanted some opinions first. What sizes do I get? Do I need to get the colic ones or should I wait until I know if they have reflux? Argh!! Oh and how many bottles do I need!!

And formula - Do babies take easily to formula if they have been on the boob to start with? And any recommendations in terms of which one I should be using? I hear so many different stories and I have no idea what's going to work!! It's driving me nuts!

Any advice would be welcomed and appreciated, because at the moment I'm just driving myself batty worrying!

I won't offer you advice on formula to choose because my DD#1 is on a soy formula for specific medical reasons, and its not something I would recommend if you don't need to go there. S26 and Karicare Gold seem to be popular names I've seen through various threads, but hopefully others with more knowledge can help.

My DD had no problems taking to formula. I breastfed for 13 weeks but started feeding EBM at about 7 weeks and it did take a little while for her to take to the bottle after 7 weeks of nothing but breastfeeding. She did get used to it though (and there will be lots of helpful advice for you if you find your little girl doesn't switch easily), and went easily from breast to bottle so I don't think you should have a problem.

Bottles - I use both Avent and Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature. I got the Avent ones first (just goes to show how effective advertising can work - didn't think of any other brand!) then when DD had problems switching to a bottle tried the TT ones and they would definitely be my recommendation. My Avent ones don't leak particularly though. The teats come in different sizes, so start with the newborn/smallest size.

Good luck. And don't worry about this sort of stuff. You'll find it will all fall into place really easily when your daughter is born.

I swear by Avent bottles, never had issues with leaking....(only if they are done up to tight or to loose they leak from what i have heard).

I BF DD2 for the first 2 weeks then was FF/BF for another week. She took to formula perfectly. I used S26 Gold for DD1 but made her constipated BADLY so switched to Karicare Gold Plus (not sure if the 'Plus' is available in WA...i know NSW dont have it). DD2 is also on this and both have never had any problems what so ever.

Cool, thanks heaps ladies. I know I shouldn't stress too much on it but I want to do the best by my bub! Not to mention that there are so many brands of everything out there that it just gets a bit confusing! haha...
Thanks again :D

I cant offer much advice on the forumla part as each baby is different. Mine bubbs had colic so i had to put him on a colic formula. As for bottles doesnt matter much but the teats anti colic ones are always good .

We use Avent bottles here too and never have any trouble with them. I use Bellamy's Organic formula (used S26 Gold to start with with DS and it made him horribly constipated) and both my bubs have taken the bottle with no trouble at all. I have a friend who uses the new Tommee Tippee bottles and she loves them so I would suggest just buy a couple to start with and see how you go.

Hey
Just want to post about the Avent bottles leaking. Its not the actual bottle/teat/seal that leaks, its when the baby is drinking from it, it leaks from their mouth because the way the teat is shaped a little baby cant get their little lips around it properly and kinda 'grip' on to create a seal, so the seal breaks everytime they suck and therefore the milk comes out.. We stopped using them purely for the fact that they were leaking and feeding was so messy we were changing her clothes after every feed. I know of plenty of women who had this problem with the avent bottles because the teats are wide necked. Id reccomend something with a smaller thinner teat.

I bf DS for 5 weeks then swapped him to formula. To start with i just used the el cheapo bottles and Heinz Nurtue Gold. My CYH nurse told me to just use the normal Heinz Nurture not the Gold cause it is just a waste of money. DS had absolutely no probs switching to formula he loved it just as much as breast milk it was like he didn't even notice the swap. He ended up with severe reflux though and i felt that the cheap bottles were not helping with his wind. I tried lots of bottles and teats, and in the end found the best bottles sto be the skinny Nuk ones. For the next bub i will be using Heinz Nurture formula and skinny Nuk bottles, may not work for a different bub, but I'll start off with what i know worked best last time.

goodluck with your bub, don't feel silly for asking questions, we all feel the same with our first bub and often subsequent bubs too!

i agree with kimbaz! i love love love avent... sometimes the anti colic ones leak if you do them up to tight.. i know that sounds a bit weird but yeah and i use S26 Gold I swear by that too! best of luck.. (i used heinz nuture gold first but it didnt agree with dd)

yeah i swear by avent i have never had a problem i also have pur bottles too i find they are equally as good but i use avent teats in them....
as for formula i dont want to recomend (sp?) anything as all babies are different, but i started on NAN and then changed to heinz nurture

I used Avent bottles with DS and they were great. No leaking etc except for a couple of occasions where I had not seated the teat correctly (sleep deprivation is a wonderful thing. Once I forgot to put the teat in LOL!).

We used S26 Gold (after 4 months of research by DH, yes he is that type of person!). Some children do get very constipated with it. DS started to get constipated with the follow-on formula but that's another story.

Apparently the Nan formula is the closest in taste and texture for breastmilk but haven't tried it personally. Does that sound weird?

I would suggest that you buy one tin of formula of whatever type you choose just in case bubs doesn't take to it. Try not to swap and change formulas too much so it may upset bubs tummy.

A quick update (and thank you for your responses by the way!) - I have been using some Tomy Tippee bottles and I also have some Avent ones which I got with my breast pump. I find that the Avent ones have a better shaped teat for bub's mouth.
After going to the shops just before I had my baby to get some formula, and staring at the different tins for what seemed like hours, I got the Heinz Nuture formula.

Thankfully bub drinks the formula without much of a fuss although you can tell that she knows the difference. I'm going to start increasing the number of formula bottles that she has over the next couple of weeks and I'm hoping that by the time I go back to work I'll be able to just breast feed her in the morning and then when I get home from work.

Hi, I know what you're feeling, we've all been there! Just don't worry too much as when you get to know your bub, you would know what to do... anyway,

I BF my DS for 6 weeks but that doesn't him to settle him so I put him on the bottle, we bought the NUK ones and have been using them eversince, they said it's anti-colic but DS had colic anyway until about 5 months and after we changed his formula (S26) to step 2 for his 6th month...

One thing I can say as well is that if your bub do have colic I can suggest Brauer colic relief, it worked wonders with my DS. HTH!