Powder vs Liquid Soy Similac - Any Difference?

Updated on July 01, 2009
J.A. asks from Chicago, IL
9 answers

Hi Moms, our doctor recommended soy for our son as he was not digesting the rgular similac. He spit up quite a bit and had a bm during/after each bottle. Although he is gaining weight (he's 4 mos and people always guess 6mos!) we were concerned that he was not absorbing the nutrients from his formula. Now he is on soy, and still spits up regularly, but bms have reduced. I wondered if any moms have noticed a difference between the powdered similac soy and liquid, other than cost. The next step is nutramigen if soy doesn't work, but I think we're on the right track. I just wondered if your gassy babies digested the pre-mixed formula any easier than powder? Thanks!

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So What Happened?

Thanks for all of your great advice, Moms! We stuck with the powder Similac Isomil powder and we are noticing quite an improvement.

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A.S.

answers from Decatur on

We were told that shaking the powdered formula was part of the problem. It creates more bubbles which equals more gas. You can buy a fairly inexpensive formula stirring wand. Just be careful because until you get the hang of using it, it can create quite a mess! Those little things are pretty powerful! Hope this helps.

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M.A.

answers from Chicago on

I tried both, with both of my girls. Oh how I remember it like it was yesterday! The powder worked way better than the pre-mixed. The powder is thinner and more easily passes thru their system. The pre-mix is way to thick, and I found that both spit up more often on that.
I think both my girls had their "issues" (same as yours) resolved after I stuck to the powder-about 5 months old. Tried the Nutramigen too, and was no different than the soy, so we went back. You can also try Colic Calm-found on the internet. Helped the gas TREMENDOUSLY!!
Good luck!!

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D.B.

answers from Chicago on

I think that there is. My fist daughter had trouble with spitting up all of the time. Before I switched her, I tried the pre-made reg formula and it worked like a charm. I really think there is something to the already made formula for kids that have trouble digesting. My second never had a problem with the powder so didn't need to spend the extra money on the pre-made. Oh, and by the time my first was cruising (eight months) I switched back to the powder again and she was fine. Once they are active and moving that helps with digestion.

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A.A.

answers from Chicago on

Sometimes the powder can be more gassy than the liquid regardless if its soy or regular. The important thing to remember is to never shake the bottle to mix it with the water when using formula. That creates more bubbles. Its a little more of a pain, but try to stir the formula gently with a spoon to not get it so shaken up. I would use the powder if possible because 1.)its cheaper and 2.) much easier in the summer then you don't have to keep the bottles cold. Just have some room temp water set in a bottle, buy one of those dispensers for the powder and its a cinch! Good luck!

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M.R.

answers from Chicago on

My daughter is severly allergic to milk, so I have used Similac since she was 3 months old. She had a severe reaction to her very first bottle of milk formula. The powdered formula always worked fine for us, but she spit up a lot too. At four months a lot of spit up is pretty normal.We even used the Go and Grow toddler until she was about 2 since she wouldn't drink regular soy milk for a while. Good luck.

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N.S.

answers from Chicago on

My son (3 months) is a spitter-upper. We go through about 8 bibs and 2-3 outfits a day. However he is gaining weight well and is a "happy" spitter. He also has a milk allergy. We are on Similac Isomil Advance, and thought that buying the premade would decrease the spit-up. It didn't. Although I'm not happy about the constant messes, our ped. says that he will outgrow the spitting up soon and that it's better to wait it out than to keep switching formulas every few days- by the time you find a formula that you think "works", he may have just physically outgrown the spitting up. They usually outgrow it by 7 months....I hope he's right! Good luck!

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J.C.

answers from Chicago on

When our son was on soy we bought the liquid. It seemed a little thicker and kept him more satisfied.

At the time (he is now 9 yrs old) the cheapest place I found the formula is at Toys R Us.

Best wishes.
J.

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C.P.

answers from Chicago on

We had better luck with the liquid similac soy... but our baby was almost exclusively breast fed, so the formula was really only in small amounts while I was at work...

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L.K.

answers from Chicago on

My son had reflux so spitup/ gas were very big parts of our lives. We used powder to try and save money over the liquid. We found that if we premade powder and refrigerated one days worth, he was able to digest it the same as liquid since the bubbles were not there from shaking.

Good Luck

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