My breast-fed daughter won't drink formula milk.?

Question

My daughter is 6 weeks old and hasn't put on much weight recently. My wife and I decided (with advice from doctor etc) to supplement her breast feeding with one or two bottles of formula per day.
The problem is she absolutely hates the stuff. I've fed her from the exact same bottle with expressed milk and she took that a few times with no problem, but if either of us try to give her formula she screams her lungs out until she gets breast milk.
We're making it properly (SMA gold) and even tried adding a pinch of sugar to the water to sweeten it (yes we tasted breast milk and it's much sweeter).
I tasted the formula milk too and it's awful, how can i get her to take the formula milk?

Do different brand formulas actually taste different?

It was only a tiny pinch of sugar (half a gram or so) completely dissolved but made absolutely no difference.

Answer 1

We have the same issue with our daughter. She is about 9 months now and just not putting on any weight right now.

She will not eat anything and hates formula milk. Recently we've found that she will drink it if she thinks she is getting breast milk. i.e. if she is a bit sleepy - dim the lights and put her under the breast and give her the bottle instead. She may struggle a little but it seems to be working for us.

Additionally you need to keep trying even if she hates the stuff. You'll find that surely but slowly she will get into the habit of it!!

Hope this helps..

Answer 2

What exactly does "hasn't put on much weight" mean? What are all her weights since birth and at what age was each weight taken? Were they all on the same scale in only a diaper? Was it a digital scale?

You need to see a Lactation Consultant or a La Leche League Leader to work on breastfeeding management and fix the problem. They can help you figure out what's up. The LLL Leader will help for FREE and might even come to your home.

Poor breastfeeding management is the most common cause of low weight gain. If baby isn't gaining enough, maybe she isn't nursing often enough/long enough. Maybe she isn't transfering the milk effectively...her latch might need to be checked. Maybe mom's supply is low? There are ways to fix all of that.

How often is she nursing? (About every 2-3 hours around the clock? No more than one longer stretch per day/) How long? One breast or both? (Does baby let you know when to switch sides or is mom timing her and switching after "X" minutes? Better to let baby stay on one side as long as possible so she gets more hindmilk.) Is she having wet and dirty diapers? Since she is 6 weeks old, she should wet at least 4-5 disposable diapers (5-6 cloth diapers) every 24 hours and the diapers should be really soaked.

Can mom hear baby swallowing when nursing? Can mom tell the difference between the vigorous nursing pattern when baby is eating and a "flutter sucking" when baby is comfort nursing?

One simple breastfeeding technique that could help to boost her weight gain is mom doing breast compressions while nursing. (See link below.)

Mom can also pump for 5-10 minutes after nursing (don't interrupt or shorten the nursing session to do this), and then offer this higher-fat hindmilk to baby as needed instead of formula.

Also, talk to the LLL Leader or IBCLC about the possibility of using a Supplemental Nursing System (SNS) so that she can receive supplemental formula or expressed breastmilk while nursing at the breast.

Answer 3

It is very common for breast fed babies to fluctuate on how much they nurse and how much weight they gain during those first few weeks of life. It is probably not at all a problem that she hasn't gained weight recently. It isn't actually necessary to weigh a baby constantly so if you have been weighing her at home, you may want to stop doing that. I would stop the formula feedings especially if she does not care for the taste. She knows what's best for her. Be supportive of your wife and encourage her to nurse your baby as often as she wants to. She will begin to gain weight again. As your baby grows and her nutritional needs change, your wife's breast milk will also change to meet those needs. Sometimes this can take a couple days and you will notice your baby wanting to nurse more than normal which helps your wife's milk production. Don't add any sugar to your baby's formula, this isn't necessary or good for her. The one problem to consider with adding formula to your baby's feeding schedule is that this will reduce the amount of milk your wife is producing since the milk production is directly related to the needs of the baby. Try giving up the formula feedings for a week, let your baby nurse when she wants, and I am sure she will gain weight again. For professional advice, contact your local La Leche League or the Lactation Consultant at the hospital where your baby was born.

Answer 4

I cannot see why your daughter would need formula if she is having enough breast milk. Your wife may have to breast feed longer and more often than what she is doing now.
If she is drinking until she is full, and not putting on weight then maybe she is just genetically meant to be like that. Babies don't have the capacity to starve themselves unless they have a more serious illness.
Stay away from the formula, the doctor would be likely to suggest this as a quick fix. There is nothing more nutritious for a 6 week old then breast milk and I think your babies preference confirms this. Keep in there and try not to worry so much.

Answer 5

Instead of a bottle, get a supplemental nursing system. It attaches to the nipple and the baby sucks and gets breastmilk and formula at the same time. She might like that better. Then while doing so she stimulates the mother to make more milk. If you feed formula from a bottle your wife's supply will actually go down.

Answer 6

My niece refused to have breast, formula or fresh cows mild. The only stuff my sister could get her to drink was goats milk. I've no idea why, none of us like the stuff and to be honest, I can't remember ever tasting it until she started drinking it. It's very rich and sweet. I've no idea where you can find it in the shops. She also wouldn't take the liquid from the bottle, she used a training cup with a very tiny slit in the lid (not the usual, ' tip it up and it pours out' lip).

Answer 7

I would keep her on the same formula for at least two weeks, whether you stay with sma or change to another one. All the babies I have looked after have had Aptimil and my son had Cow and Gate. Warm it up so that it is quite warm but not hot. Babies take warm bottles better, once she is used to it, you can warm it up less. If you don't get her to drink formula now, you will have more problems when she is older, so better to persevere now.

Answer 8

If your baby is gaining weight you should be going to a lactation consultant to talk about the latch, the frequency of nursing and what you can do to increase her supply. Drs are not always a good place to get advice about breastfeeding, in fact often they are the worst.

Such as:
Oatmeal
Fenugreek
Mother's milk Tea

and certain prescription drugs.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/index.html
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/growth/weight-gain_increase.html
(How might I increase my baby's weight gain)


You should really read this article ( http://www.health-e-learning.com/articles/JustOneBottle.pdf )and some of the above website before you decide to give your baby formula. Breastmilk is the perfect food and your wife can probably make more than enough (98% of women who haven't had breast surgery can)

All formula tastes awful, it is awful. Your baby is smart.

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And the other commenter is very right, supplimenting is just going to hurt your wife's supply even more.

And another though, she could try pumping in between feeds to increase her supply.

Answer 9

Babies have their own mind about things. You may want to try another brand of formula, as some of them are better than others for some reason. Also, don't have mom around when you are trying to give formula. Babies have very sensitive smell and can smell mom from very far. Let her go to another room while baby tries the formula.

Answer 10

try adding expressed breast milk to the formula mix instead of sugar. certainly get the taste of breast milk on the teet. also, there is the thing about mummy... if mummy is not around she may be more inclined to take the bottle.... mummy = breast = yummy warm cosy lovey feeling. bottle = not as good