I have a son who was born at 29 weeks and spent 5 weeks in the NICU before coming home 2 weeks ago. Thank God he's perfectly healthy and we've had no issues with him. Up until now, he's been exclusively eating breast milk through a bottle. He occasionally has a little reflux and he gets constipated due to the iron supplements I give him. He was born at 2lbs 12 oz and now weighs about 5 1/2 lbs. Unfortunately my milk supply has gone dry and therefore I have stopped pumping. I have enough breast milk stored in my freezer for another couple of weeks. I need to start introducing formula, but I have no clue which one I should start him on! Can anyone recommend a formula based on the information I've given? Thanks!
Nicole O2008-12-23T08:21:15Z
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Definetely a question for your pediatrician. My milk dried up too a couple of weeks ago. I have my daughter on the new Similac Advanced. It contains DHA, ARA, Iron, and special nutrients found in breast milk. Which helps to support your baby's natural immune system. But I asked my pediatrician what to use and that is what she reccommended for my daughter. My daughter was premature too, but born at 36 weeks. Big difference from your situation. Congrats on your little guy! And I tip my hat to you for going through that. It must have been so scary. Thank God he is healthy.
I had a preemie too who was born at 34 weeks. There is a formula made for preemies by Enfamil that I gave to him in the begining it is called EnfaCare. I too pumped and gave it through a bottle but had to supplement formula at nights then I dried up at 3 months. The formula is kind of expensive so I only gave it to him for a few weeks then switched to Enfamil Lipil and then eventually switched to Parents Choice Milk Based Formula by Wal-Mart since it is like half the price. My son is now 7 months 14lbs and is healthy! Good luck to your little one!
Yes speak with your childs doctor. Being that your son is a premie there may be special formula the doctor recommends. It maybe that he needs one of the very specialized formulas, or perhaps the doctor will recommend something more mundane such as soy.
And as someone else suggested you probably should verify with the doctor about discontinuing the iron supplements. Most formula if fortified with iron, and an iron overdose is very very detrimental to an infant.
Isomil is a Similac product. It's just Similac made from soy. So if your baby doesn't need a soy formula then, use regular Similac Advance. But if he needs a soy then use the Similac Isomil.
You may be better off speaking to his pediatrician because of him being born so early he may need formula like neocate or neosure. Better to be safe than sorry by asking the pediatrician first due to him being so small.