hypoallergenic formula question??..?

Question

My daughter has just started similac hypoallergenic formula. We have tried (WE meaning the doctor,nurse,me and baby..oh and father) every formula and so they finally have put her on the hypoallergenic formula. She was very constipated from the soy and that's ultimately what made them switch but anyways, my question is how long did it take for the constipation to ease up when your baby started this type of formula? Is it normal to have that awful smell?? Also, we have tried everything with the constipation from karo syrup, sitz bath, juice, water, I have had to use suppositories every few days....this is all from doctors orders but now they don't want me doing all that they would prefer to see if the switch to this formula will do the trick. Please, please don't tell or preach to me about how breast is best....trust me I know. I wish I could breastfeed but I have a medical condition and I must take my medicine, it's life threatening if I don't and I can't have the medicine if I am

breastfeeding. I already feel awful about it. I don't need to feel even worse by being preached to. thanks for your comments in advance.

She's been constipated a month and so I have used a suppository 4 or 5 times now. The doctors do know this. Also I was referring to the formula smelling bad because the other formulas smell bad but the hypoallergenic formula is just awful...lol...but I have to agree with you formula poops do smells worse than breastfed..lol....

I have seen many many specialists and doctors and so on, I cannot take this medicine and breastfeed and If I don't take the medicine it could be fatal. It's not aids or chemo but I would not like to say. It is just as serious. I am not willing to seek the consequences of me not tkaing my medicine. I had to risk it throughout the pregnancy. Trust me I did all I could.

plus my daughter is already 2 months, I can't make my breasts produce milk now...so there's no sense is debating it.

Answer 1

WOW I love the people that think everyone can breastfeed if "they REALLY want to." I think that your baby will be fine in a couple of days. The formula should do the trick. As far as the breastfeeding thing goes. Don't feel bad because it is more important that you are alive for your child than to breastfeed and possibly die because of it. Good for you for doing what's best for you and your baby.

Answer 2

Don't feel guilty about the breastfeeding. You are doing what's right for you and your daughter... unfortunatelyit'snot going well for either of you.
How long has it been since her last poop? Formula fed babies tend to be more constipated because of the added iron. I know how concerning it is when they don't go regularly. I have heard of some babies going 9 days without a poop (poor babies).
As for the smell... yeah it's different all right. When I had to stop breastfeeding at 9 days, I put her on Nestle Goodstart, and her poop was what I called "grey sludge". And the weirdest smell. I switched to a different formula at 3 months and things got much better.
Give it time... as her tummy grows she will be able to process the formula better.

Answer 3

My daughter was on that for a while. It took my daughter about 3-4 days before she was finally better, she had the opposite problem (diarriah).

The formula SHOULD do the trick, but if in the mean time she's still very uncomfortable, a little prune juice should help. Good luck, the formula really does work wonders :)

Answer 4

It's sad when moms that formula feed have to defend their decision. All babies are different. My son was a preemie and had severe acid reflux and constant constipation while on regular formula. He did much better with the soy. I hope your little one gets some relief.

Answer 5

I'm not preaching, ok I just would hate for you to find out later that you could have breastfed and regret it. There are very, very few conditions that do not have medications that are safe during breastfeeding.

The only two absolute contraindications that I am aware of are AIDS medications and chemo therapy.

Please call motherisk and/or consult Hale's "Medications and Mother's Milk".

As for the hypoallergenic formula, yes it does smell disgusting. It also usually contains MSG.

http://motherisk.org/women/index.jsp
[phone] - Motherisk Info Line -Ask about the risk or safety of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, herbal products, chemicals, x-rays, chronic disease and infections during pregnancy and while nursing 9-5 EST
(You can call from anywhere in the world)

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/09a-drugs_and_bf.html
Breastfeeding and Maternal Medication

Most drugs appear in the milk, but usually only in tiny amounts. Although a very few drugs may still cause problems for infants even in tiny doses, this is not the case for the vast majority. Nursing mothers who are told they must stop breastfeeding because of a certain drug should ask the physician to make sure of this by checking with reliable sources. Note that the CPS (in Canada) and the PDR (in the USA) are not reliable sources of information about drugs and breastfeeding. Or the mother should ask the physician to prescribe an alternate medication that is acceptable during breastfeeding. In this day and age, it should not be a problem to find a safe alternative. If the prescribing physician is not flexible, the mother should seek another opinion, but not stop breastfeeding.

Why do most drugs appear in the milk in only small amounts? Because what gets into the milk depends on the concentration in the mother’s blood and the concentration in the mother’s blood is often measured in micro- or even nano-grams per millilitre (millionths or billionths of a gram), whereas the mother takes the drug in milligrams (thousandths of grams) or even grams. Furthermore, not all the drug in the mother’s blood can get into the milk. Only the drug that is not attached to protein in the mother’s blood can get into the milk. Many drugs are almost completely attached to protein in the mother’s blood. Thus, the baby is not getting amounts of drug similar to the mother’s intake, but almost always, much less on a weight basis. For example, in one study with the antidepressant paroxetine (Paxil), the mother got over 300 micrograms per kg per day, whereas the baby got about 1 microgram per kg per day).
Most drugs are safe if:

*
They are commonly prescribed for infants. The amount the baby would get through the milk is much less than he would get if given directly.
* They are considered safe in pregnancy. This is not always true, since during the pregnancy, the mother’s body is helping the baby’s get rid of drug. Thus it is theoretically possible that toxic accumulation of the drug might occur during breastfeeding when it wouldn’t during pregnancy (though this is probably rare). However, if the concern is for the baby’s merely getting exposed to a drug, say an antidepressant, then the baby is getting exposed to much more drug at a more sensitive time during pregnancy than during breastfeeding. Recent studies about withdrawal symptoms in newborn babies exposed to SSRI type antidepressants during pregnancy somehow seems to implicate breastfeeding as if this type of problem requires a mother not to breastfeed. (Good example of how breastfeeding is blamed for everything.) In fact, you cannot prevent these withdrawal symptoms in the baby by breastfeeding, because the baby gets so little in the milk..
* They are not absorbed from the stomach or intestines. These include many, but not all, drugs given by injection. Examples are gentamicin (and other drugs in this family of antibiotics), heparin, interferon, local anaesthetics, omperazole.
* They are not excreted into the milk. Some drugs are just too big to get into the milk. Examples are heparin, interferon, insulin, infliximab (Remicade), etanercept (Enbrel).

Answer 6

have you tried the enfamil gentelease? anyways you probbaly have. i had a real hard time getting my son to use enfamil nutramigen. my son wouldnt eat it..like at all. so we ended upo just going back to the regular enfamil lipil. but it says it takes 3 full days of a new formula to make a change in a baby. so i would imagine within a week you should notice an impovement.

Answer 7

I don't know about the formula, but give her gripe water for the consipation if she still has it.