Opinions - which brand of milk?

[CLN1986]

Hi. Am after people’s opinions on what brand of milk to start baby on. I’m hoping to combine breast and bottle. So will take a starter pack into hospital with me, but do I go for aptamil? C&G? SMA? Hipp Organic? After a while I think we will switch to either Sainsbury’s or Aldi’s own brand formula (heard good reviews on both) so want to try and start on a formula that’s similar so switching doesn’t upset baby’s tummy as much. Which might be niaeve of me to say...?

Thanks in advance for any advice xx

[Hidden]

We started on aptamil and eventually switched to Aldi no problem. Kinda wish we had started with aldi. They all have to follow guideline so all very similar xx

[CLN1986 in reply to Hidden]

Yeah, I see a programme about the formulas all sticking to the same guidelines. If only Aldi did the pre-made for hospital convenience. Did you make a straight switch or did you mix the formulas? Thanks x

[Hidden in reply to CLN1986]

Yeah that’s the only down fall but we still used pre made aptamil and aldi powder. We just did a straight switch xx

[CLN1986 in reply to Hidden]

Ahh that’s good to know. Thank you for replying ☺️

[E_05 in reply to Hidden]

Sorry to jump on this post just wondered what age you switched to aldi? We’re using aptamil atm xx

[Hidden in reply to E_05]

I think it was around 10 months. I was worried about the fact aptamil had changed some of their ingredients while we were using it xx

[CLN1986 in reply to E_05]

I am thinking of changing over to Aldi as soon as the first tin of aptamil is finished. Too soon?

[Kempton]

There was a dispatches documentary that showed that all formula is generally the same as manufacturers have to follow strict guidelines. Go with the aldi and save yourself a few quid!

[Annh17]

I combi fed and we used Aptamil. But we found for our LG is was very milky and she was struggling with biwel movement. We switched too cow and gate and seems much better, doesn’t have that milky smell and she’s more regular with her bowels now. But every baby is different, its trial and error x

[CLN1986 in reply to Annh17]

Exactly that. Every baby is diff so you just can’t know until bubs is here and start on formula feeding. x

[Goose100]

My sister is a midwife & they are now told that if they are asked what formula to recommend they are to tell women to use Lidl or Aldi, as these are the cheapest & all formulas contain the same ingredients (this is a legal requirement) there is also reason to use a step 2,3 or 4 formula as they get older. These only exist as manufacturers aren’t allowed to advertise formula for babies under 6 months!

We have used Aldi (I’ve not been able to feed myself this time) from 4 days old, no problems at all. Xx

[CLN1986 in reply to Goose100]

Thank you for the reply. I guess as they follow strict guidelines to make formula, there is no diff. So Aldi, Aptamil, SMA, should all be pretty much the same. Did you use a ready made formula for in hospital? I’m thinking to take aptamil ready made and then start on Aldi as soon as we are home. x

[Goose100 in reply to CLN1986]

I breast fed at first (had a home birth) but by day 3/4 had such severe nipple trauma (I have inverted nipples & my LO had a posterior tongue tie!) so he had Aptamil ready made first as I sent my other half out in the middle of the night on a Sunday in search & that was all the garage had! We have used some ready made side by side with Aldi & found no problems at all! I always carry an Aptamil just incase! Xx

[GM99]

We are planning to combine feeding- we’ve just bought Aldi/ Sainsbury’s formula as they were so much cheaper and after watching that dispatches program seemed no different so want to see which one our baby will prefer out of those 2! We have bought some of the ready made Aptamil bottles though- it’s a shame Aldi don’t make them yet as feel like they would be so much easier when you’re out and about! xx

[CLN1986]

Sorry to sound stupid, will you try one tin at a time and then decide? Or will you try one formula one day and then the other brand the next day? Any tips/info on combine feeding? Thank you x

[Lizzielizzielizzie]

May I ask why you want to combi feed? If you want breastfeeding to be successful then the usual advice is not to introduce a bottle until breast feeding is well established or baby might get bottle preference and start refusing the breast.

[Lilmossy]

I combine feed with Aptami my baby’s only a week she is windy so we are having to switch to Aptamil Comfort to help her belly l, I don’t really know much about other brands as my hospital saw me a just a breastfeeding mum I was only there 7 hours 😂 u can get Aptamil at Aldi for £10 which saves u a few quid but as everyone says go for the cheapest option as they all have to follow guidelines

[Thebabyroom]

I think all mums panic about not having milk for their baby and as the hospital no longer provides milk you all go in with formula in your bags. At birth your baby’s tummy holds 5ml = 1 teaspoon. If you have any desire to breastfeed then give him colostrum which he can get from feeding for a short amount of time. Giving colostrum for the first 3-4 days is the best possible start you can give to your baby & by then you are usually home and can introduce a bottle if you need to. All formulas share strict guidelines but each brand will have different ingredients. It is not a good idea to switch formulas as it can make the baby unsettled. Choose your formula for the right reasons, financial, environmental etc. sMA & Cow & Gate are tried & trusted formulas , not too expensive. Just remember not to stretch your baby’s stomach with formula. 5 mls per feed day 1& 2 15ml day 3

[lou121087]

My LG was on SMA pro 1 ready made milk at the hospital but we found that bunged her up at a bit so we switched to cow and gate first milk ready made when we took her home, she was 2wks old and she's been fine on that. She's 4+3wks old now and we're looking into going onto C&G first powder but don't know when to change as it's only been 2wks since we changed brands and powder is more watery than ready made. Its all just a guessing game and what works for your baby I think.

[Major2116]

Started on Aptamil but it just wasn't agreeing with him. He then had colic so we switched to colic and constipation milk by Cow and Gate. Once his colic settled we just the normal Cow and Gate until he turned 1 and went onto full fat milk.

Cow and Gate was definitely the best x