Formula questions...

[Lambie]

In the last 3 weeks I have started to wean my 7 1/2 month old DD from BF to FF. As a BF baby she tended to be a snacker and was feeding every 1-2 hours around the clock. On FF I have noticed that she is doing the same thing, only taking between 50-70mls max every 2 hours. How can I get her to take more and push these feeding times out? (Note, she is also on soilds and gets her bottle an hour before they are offered. Generally 3 times a day, 4-6 tbsp's eat meal).

And, is it true that all formula tastes the same?...and that if a baby rejects a bottle, it's more than likely because of the bottle or teat rather than taste?

[the pero clinic]

Dear Lambie,

To tell you the truth, I can’t say that I’ve tasted many to be able to answer you on that one!! I would, however, think that standard infant formulas tasted quite similar to each other, given the fairly similar ingredients in them. The specialty formulas do taste quite different (and aren’t always particularly nice!).

Teats are more likely to be related to bottle feeding issues than bottles – not because some teats are necessarily worse than others – it’s just that not all teats will suit individual babies and their sucks. It is also important to consider any difficulties that the baby is having with feeding, rather than just blaming the teat or playing guessing games with 10 different teat types. For most babies, the only difference the actual bottle will make is that its size determines the teat varieties it will fit.

Changing formulas is not often recommended, unless there is strong evidence to suggest that a baby is allergic or intolerant to a component within the formula. A change of formula is also likely to just cause some temporary changes to a bub’s digestion and nappies – which can just confuse the matter further.

A change of teat may be required for your bub so that she can take more formula faster - it's very hard to say though without seeing her feed. Also try to space out her feeds (solids and bottle) so that she does not have access to snacking so frequently. It's a tricky pattern to break.

the pero clinic