What's the Best Way to Go About Switching from BF to FF (Formula)?

I would mix the formula w/ BM in a bottle to get her to adjust to the taste. 75% BM first then you can add more formula. Mix the formula first then add the BM. This will help with her system being able to digest too. Pumping when you can will also help maintain yoru supply. I always keps the night time feeding until the end - it was my favorite : ). Enjoy the little one!

I'm totally with Bug and her answer. I was also going to suggest pumping for a few minutes after each nursing to get your milk supply back up. I also am also drinking Mother's Milk tea and eating a lot of oatmeal; those are supposed to be helpful in your milk supply. They are helpful to me, I have a pretty good milk supply and my daughter is 7 weeks old.

I wouldn't be concerned about her wieght too much... my 4th baby at her 6 month check up and 9 month had LOST a few ounces. The Dr just said that bf'd babies tend to pick a weight at some point and stick there for a while. She was healthy (skinny compared to my other super chunky babies!) so they weren't worried!
If you want to supplement though she'll probably switch to fomula just fine! Mine would drink formula just the same as breast milk and they were all exclusively bf'd until at least 6 months. They never had a problem when I switched them. (and please no one gripe at me for switching them to formula.... I lost my milk each time.)
I would think the best way to do it would be to nurse then offer a bottle/sippy cup of formula and if she wants it she'll take it but if she doesn't take it I bet she's getting enough from nursing! Make sure she likes it first :o) then you'll know that for sure!
Good luck and don't listen to the breast feeding nazis who will answer this rudely!

Hi A.
Generally breastfed babies are lighter in weight than FF babies.
I would advise to introdue formula slowly.starting with a bottle a day for a week or two and then adding another if all is working well. You can keep BF as long and how often as you want once you are consistant . example would be to BF twice daily, bottle feed three times daily,whatever works for you.
Make sure you burp your baby well when feeding formula as it can cause more gas. I found Dr Browns bottles great.
Wishing you all the best
B.

I don't see why you think you need to offer formula anyways. Unless you had a major issue with your health - your breastmilk is at the levels it should be. Looks like you should be not giving as much solids - since they have very little nutritional value anyways compared to the high calorie high nutrition of breastmilk. Even if you've been fasting for 3 days - you will still have enough breastmilk for your child. The body pulls from your resources to ensure it gives the right mix to the baby. Just make sure you make good food choices - which you should anyways, and drink as much non carbonated and non-super sugary fluids as possible. I hate water but I will drink propel, crystal light and fruit2O.

You should also keep in mind - childhood obesity is an issue and Dr's have definitely been part of the problem. As long as your daughter is gaining and NOT loosing - she's doing well. Have you considered she may have a small frame? My daughter is 5.5 y/o, 43 inches and FINALLY reached 36lbs. She's petite, very active and healthy and I had to fight 2 years with her Pediatrician about it. They too felt she should be FATTER - not healthier - that was never their issue, but her slow weight gains were.

Your body will never stop producing. Even when your child is 15 y/o, your body will still continue to make the most minute amounts of breastmilk in case it is ever needed again. You may never feel engorged or full... but it's still there.

Please talk to an IBCLC about what your pediatrician said - since most Dr's of any specialty doesn't know anything about breastfeeding, what to expect and how breastfed babies are a bit different metabolically than formula fed ones.

I am not a doctor, but I have to kids. My son was 8.13, my daughter was 9.3. Both were less than 20 lbs at 1 year - neither has eating issues, both are growing just fine. I think that your baby sounds like she is right in the range that she should be. I also nursed exclusively (because it worked for me, not because I think that everyone has to do it) - if you are not ready to switch, I think you are fine waiting....if the weight is the only concern that is. Also, you can try to up her solids a littl.

I haven't read all the responses but wanted to offer some great things I learned nursing my 2 little ones. We nursed for 16 and 20 months respectively.

-Breastfed babies tend to chub up in the first 6 months or so then lean out so it sounds like your little one is doing just what she should. She's at a great weight for 8 months old.

-You def won't feel as full or even full like you did in the earlier months. And that is a good thing. I can't imagine having to walk around feeling like I was ready to pop for the year+. I never felt full after about maybe 4 months I think. And both mine did really, really well being ebf

-I do agree with you that it is hard to pump when they are older because you body is so used to baby and responds very well to that and the pump is so different. But you could try a hospital grade pump (not too expensive to rent) if you want to stick with just bm and see if that helps. If baby is sleeping at night you could try sitting in a quiet, comfy area and pumping before you go to bed.

-I would nurse her anytime you are with her and on demand. So when the doc was telling you to feed her more when/if she is fussy always nurse first. I'd only offer formula if you have to when you aren't with her.

-If it's hard to pump then you can offer formula while you are at school.

-you can try to see if she will take formula right off the bat and if not mix it with your milk. I agree with the advice not to start a bottle now if she hasn't had much of one. Go with a sippy cup. I started giving my daughter a sippy at 6 months old to play with and get used to. Look for a gentle formula if you end up needing to do that as breastmilk is super gentle on the system.

-The *absolute* best advice I can give is to be confident in your ability to grow and nourish your little one! She would tell you very clearly if that wasn't happening and nothing you wrote indicates that! You are doing a great job mom!

When I was drying up (unintentionally, at the time) my son would nurse and then get mad. If she does not get upset or fussy, I would think your milk supply is just fine. It should be, as by nature you produce what your child is asking you to produce. Nevertheless, I am not trying to talk you out of it.

If she has never had a bottle, I would not start using one now. She should be find with a sippy cup or straw cup. Just give her a couple of ounces and see if she's ok with it. Some kids have trouble getting used to the taste (not mine, but kids are different.) If she doesn't seem to like the taste, express some milk and mix the two - maybe 4 oz breast milk with 2 oz formula - and gradually increase the amount of formula.

Since early morning and just before bed generally are the last feedings kids give up and the ones when they seem to want the close comfort of Mommy, I would try to give her formula during the day.

Really, just try a little and see how it goes. So hard to know how she will react until you do so.

Good luck! Remember, as long as she's happy, healthy, fed and loved, you're doing a great job!

try drinking more water and fenugreek to increase supply. if u add formula, always BF first, then offer bottle.
also, dont stress it too much. docs often only see the numbers.

I wouldn't worry about her needing something extra besides breastmilk. My daughter was only 18 pounds at 12 months and still is super thin. I breast fed her until 14 months. Just make sure the foods you eat are highly nutritious and drink lots of water. Some kids are just small. As long as her doctor says she is healthy overall don't rush to formula. If you start giving her formula your milk supply will go down. She needs your breastmilk more than anything else right now.

A.,

I think you are doing the right thing in waiting until you see your daughter's pediatrician. My daughter was long and skinny for a very long time and was just over 17 pounds at 9 months. Her pediatrician was never concerned except for when she actually lost a couple of ounces between her 4 month and 6 month check up and even then he just had a blood test done to make sure there was nothing actually wrong but he never told me to change how or what I was feeding her. I had supply problems - I was working full time and simply could not keep up by pumping. When my built up supply in the freezer started to run low, my daycare provider and I agreed that she would start mixing formula with my breast milk for those feedings. However, we never switched to her getting 100% formula in any bottle. I never gave her a bottle of any sort when I was with her and I nursed until she was right about 1 year old. She turns 6 on Easter and she's doing great! Good luck!

I don't think you should start any formula. I know it's sustained thousands of babies, but it just isn't any good for them when compared to breastmilk. That's why formula fed babies weigh more. They can't process all the ingredients. I am willing to bet your baby was not charted on the Exclusively Breastfed growth chart. It came out years ago from the WHO, but most clinics don't have them. My daughter is 7 months old and she's falling off the top end of the Exclusively breastfed chart, but in the 50th percentile for weight and 65th for length on the standard chart. You can chart your baby here: http://www.suite101.com/content/growth-charts-for-breastf...

Also - I don't let down or feel full anymore either, and I've breastfed 4 kids.
js

I haven't read all of the responses, and I am not a doctor or lactation consultant, but I do have 2 young kids and a baby. If I were you I would try pumping once in the afternoon just to see how much milk you are getting. If it seems like a good amount even though you don't feel as 'full of milk' then keep BFing her as much as she wants, and maybe add a little formula to her cereal to add extra calories.

If you pump and it seems like you aren't producing enough milk, then I would BF her, then offer her a few ounces of formula shortly after that to complete the feeding.

As far as yourself, try to make sure you are getting good nutrition, if you have a hard time making 'meals' then try to grab something like a piece of toast with peanut butter, a piece of fruit, a handful of nuts, here and there. Also keep taking your prenatals or another multi vitamin.

I've also heard that a beer a day (micro brews are better), or sprinkling brewers yeast on your food, can help with milk production.

Whatever you end up doing try not to beat yourself up over it. I always think of feeding my baby breastmilk like eating organic food. You know it is better, but even if it is half of what you feed her then that is half better than not doing it. And if you have to switch to formula 100%, you still got in 8 good months and she will be fine on formula too.

My daughter started having one bottle of formula a day when she started at daycare at 3 mos, then that increased to 2 per day and stayed that way. I continued to BF mornings, evenings, and night. I was able to pump enough in the middle of my work day so that I could completely feed her on weekends, but my job situation did not allow me to save the milk, so using formula was necessary during daycare. She did fine with the change.

I think mixing the formula and breastmilk at first is a fine idea, but I just wasn't a successful pumper, so I didn't do that.

I would keep the BFings that work best for you and your body/schedule and add formula to those other times.

What is FF?
EDIT:
The formula that I use (I think most of them so the same) was one spoon for every 2 ounces of water. I stared giving her 2 spoon in 3 ounces of water and just give her 2 ounces for the first week. She did had a allergy reaction to the formula so we had to change formulas 2 times until we found the right one for us.
From there we just add 1 once every week. But I think it depends on every kid, with my younger was a process of a couple weeks but with my older daughter once she had a bottle she never wanted to breastfeed any more.
I do agree with others, if your only concern is that she is not getting enough, i would follow your doctor advice, not all kids grow at the same speed.
I don't know others but with my first I was also worry I didn't had enough milk, I wanted to add the formula just in case, but she never wanted to breastfeed again.