Switching my newborns formula?

Question

My 2 week old newborn has been on 3 different formulas since she was born.
First in the hospital she was given Enfamil with Iron......they discovered that she had a reflux and had us switch her to Enfamil Prosobee.......a week later she was still spitting up horribly and decided they wanted her to switch to Enfamil A.R. and she has been on that a week now.....
Dr. thinks that she might be mildly colic and have severe gas, plus she is not eating a whole lot and now they want to switch her again to Enfamil Gentlease.....

Does anyone have any opinions on this? As far as, should she be switching formulas this much and whether Gentlease works better than the A.R. formula.

Any help is appreciated.

Answer 1

Did your ped. suggest feeding her in an upright position (sitting) and keeping her upright for a half hour after feedings? If she is having trouble with the sphincter at the top of the stomach not working well yet, this may help. And, if this is the problem, it will self correct over time.
Dr Brown bottles do cut down on the amount of air that the baby gets while feeding.
As for formula switches, we tell our patients that it can take over 48 hours for the old formula effects to decrease and you see any improvement in your daughter.
You have my empathy. I love Emfamil products, but you may also want to try Similac. For some weird reason, some babies don't do well on one brand, and do well on another.
Love her, cuddle her, sing to her as you walk the floors. While it seems like forever now - it will pass in a heartbeat, and you'll be sending her off to her first day of school.
Good luck, and God bless!!

Answer 2

I too went thru the switching of the formula. I was really uncomfortable because they make such a big deal about not switching but I think that only applies once you've found something that works. My sons ped said that you can tell almost right away if a formula is the right one. He said that if you think you see a LITTLE improvement or you think baby is somewhat better it is usually just wishful thinking and chances are it is not the change in formula. You should see a dramatic change. I tried pretty much all of them except for the hypoallergenic ones. My son is now on the Similac Isomil (soy) and he is doing much better with that. My son seems to have some reflux issues although he was never formally tested. The ped told me to give him 1/2 tsp of maalox whenever he seemed uncomfortable. I'm not suggesting you do this without checking with your ped - just sharing my own experience. My son didn't seem to have any kind of relief with gas drops at all but they may be a help to your baby. Good luck to you ! Feel free to email me if you'd like to. Oh I also switched from the Playtex nurser bottles to Dr Browns bottles. Not only did they help but they are more convinient than pushing air out of the bags !

Answer 3

Switiching formulas is fine, you need to figure out which one will work best for your baby. The only downside is that you do need to give a few days on the new formula to see if its actually working. Colic is not preventable, formulas do not cause colic. Doctors have no idea what causes colic. I had a colicky baby, and rest assured that if it is colic, colic resolves itself by 3 months of age. You might want to check into seeing if your baby may have an intolerance to cows milk/protein, if that is the case that can cause vomitting, fussiness, gassiness etc. You may want to try switiching her to a Soy based formula such as Nestle Alsoy. You may also want to try Ovul Drops for the gas, try buying some Alcohol Free Gripe water for upset tummy and colicky episodes. You can also try switching to Nestle Good Start formula, one of my twins is eating that and apparently it is processed differently and easier to digest. You may also want to try mixing a bit of cereal in with the formula if its definitely a reflux problem, the cereal is heavier and stays in the stomach better and could resolve or at least lessen the amount of puking/spitting up, although make sure you check with your doctor first.

Answer 4

My oldest daughter was like that. We ended up changing the brand of formula (twice) and used the soy. We started with enfamil (from the hospital), then changed to Similac (isomil), then to Good Start. She stayed on the Good Start until she was 1 and went to whole milk just fine. All formulas have the same ingredients, but some use more or less of certain ingredients. Look at the labels, or liook online and compare the ingredients and quantities of each.

Answer 5

Ive delt with this also. I have tried a lot of different formulas and have found that Nestle Good Start works better then the Enfimal Gentle Ease. Try getting some Hyland's Colic tablet. Make sure to burp the baby really well. Let the baby sleep in a bouncy seat or swing. Try a different bottle also. Don't bother with the Avent ones. Get the Playtex Nurser or the Dr. Brown bottles. Walmart also has a bottle close to the Dr. Brown's that worked well for me.

Answer 6

Sometimes it's a matter of trial and error to find the right formula. My kids are/were breastfed, but when I did use a supplemental bottle I used Nestle Good Start, and now it even comes in a Supreme w/ comfort protein version that is ideal for my 5 month-old. None of my kids had any trouble with the Good Start. It was recommended by my doctor as one of the mildest formuals available and most like breastmilk.

Your baby might also have a lactose intolerance and require a soy formula. If nothing else works your doctor may switch her to soy.

Answer 7

My 2nd son was like that as well. He never had the Enfamil A.R. by that time I switched him to Similac. Then I had to go with Isomil(it's a soy formula) and after that he was fine. He stoped throwing up his milk and now he's almost a year and is on reg. milk. Try the Similac Isomil, I'm pretty sure it will work

Answer 8

Perhaps u should switch from Enfamil to a Similac formula...When my son was born the hospital gave him enfamil which he kept spitting up they wanted me to switch to another Enfamil formula but instead I tried Similac no trouble since

Answer 9

Enfamil AR is actually a very good solution for colic, based on my own personal experience. If this will not work - and your doctor will agree that this may be a sensitivity to lactose problem - you can try using one of the soy formulae, i.e. Enfamil Prosobee Lipil etc.

http://www.enfamil.com/products/formulas/index.html

Answer 10

My neighbor's daughter had the same problem with acid reflux. They put her on Nutragima Enfamil and it helped a lot. It's pretty expensive though so if you can get on WIC I would advise it. But it almost stopped her spitting up completely and she just spit up some like a normal baby. It's a good one.