Switching Formula Brands - Camden Wyoming,DE

Updated on November 06, 2009
S.S. asks from Camden Wyoming, DE
27 answers

we are currently using SImilac, which is so expensive for a single container, and many friends have said Target brand is just as good, same ingredients, and cheaper. Has anyone switched their babies formula after using one brand for awhile?? I was thinking about switching to help save money (which I hope doesn;t sound horrible, I wouldn't sacrifice her well-being just for the sake of money but it would help us out)AND If you did switch, were there any adjustment problems?

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M.G.

answers from Washington DC on

i personally the more nervous you act around her when feeding it to her the more she will pick up on that and that is what will cause the fussing.

Me I switch it up between enfamil and similac. which ever company has sent me the most coupons.

try going on to their websights and sign up with them

i have recieved coupons totaling at any one time more than $12.

just a thought

and no it dosent sound bad, also if you are struggling go to family services and get signed up with wic they if you meet thier criteria will issue formula and other coupons for specific foods that they deem suitable for a healthy diet.

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K.S.

answers from Washington DC on

When my son was first born we used the wal-mart brand (Parent's Choice)but then applied for WIC and started using Similac. So it's reversed, but as far as switching he was fine. And I used wal-mart brand with my daughter also. I see nothing wrong with switching! Especially if it saves you money, right?

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S.D.

answers from Washington DC on

S.,
I had 2 children first on Similac for the first few weeks then switched to Target brand. They are almost identical in ingredients and I asked my ped. if it was ok and she approved. I did "wean" them both off the similac and onto the other brand (adding more target to less similac gradually) just in case it upset their stomaches. Neither child has ever had an ear infection and rarely get sick (they are 3.5 and 10 months old).

The only difference I see is that the Target brand tends to seperate again after mixing. I make enough for one day in a container so I use hot water and shake it several times before refridgerating it - then shake it again before putting it in the bottle.

Overall, I've been happy with it and even happier at saving more than half!

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K.L.

answers from Washington DC on

The formula ingredients are regulated by the FDA regardless of the brand. If your baby can tolerate it, go for it! I would gradually do the transition, replacing 2 oz at a time with the new formula because their systems are delicate and take time to adjust.

It definitely doesn't sound bad! Formula is expensive. Enfamil costs like $.15 per ounce, but it only costs them $.15 to make an entire can of it! That's one heck of a profit for them!!!

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A.R.

answers from Springfield on

We used Enfamil Lipil for about 8 months then switched to the Sams Club brand, got sooo much more for half the price. No problems at all.

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L.P.

answers from Washington DC on

I find that store brand products are often just as good as the expensive brands. You will even sometimes find that a "store brand" product was actually produced by a name brand manufacturer. (of course they like to keep that quiet!)
I would say give it a try at least.
I used store brand diapers, wipes, formula etc and it all worked fine for my three.
L. P
www.YouCanWorkFromYourHome.com

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A.G.

answers from Washington DC on

We started on Similac. At the 4 or 5 month point we switched to the BJ's brand which is just about identical to Enfamil. We had no adjustment problems with either of our children. We switched by doing 75% old/ 25% new for two days, 50% old/ 50% new for two days, 25% old/75% new for two days, and then straight on to the other formula.

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R.A.

answers from Norfolk on

My grandson was on Good Start from the hospital, and for 7 months was a very "spit-uppy" baby. We switched him to Enfamil and he never spit up again. We did it cold turkey, and never had the first problem.

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H.M.

answers from Norfolk on

I switched my son to generic for cost reasons also. I researched all the labels and found them to be the same. I used the Walmart and Sams Club brands and saved about 50% per can. There weren't any adjustment issues for him but one thing I noticed was less gas. When you mix the formula (I was using Enfamil) it created a lot of bubbles but the generic did not. He had less gas and we were all a lot happier. Don't feel bad about changing for price reasons. If you are stressed out about money that's no good for your baby. Do what is best for your family's health and happiness.

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S.T.

answers from Washington DC on

We used Enfamil and the Costco generic of Enfamil. We would mix it half and half to save money. You could also do this for a while and gradually make it with more generic powder than the brand. I think gradual transitions always go smoother for us than cold turkey. Good luck!

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D.B.

answers from Washington DC on

I know this is a little late, but we decided to try an off brand (the Safeway brand of formula) for our son to save a few $$. We thought that the Enfamil was okay, just expensive. What we didn't expect, though, was a total 180 with our baby! In the best way possible! We had always thought that he just cried a lot. When we switched formula, he totally changed into a happy baby. It was also half the price! As for the taste and getting him to switch... He didn't know the difference. P.S. The Entertainment book has Safeway coupons, too: $5.00 off of $50, which we always used for formula.

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A.H.

answers from Norfolk on

My son was a 28 weeker - he was on special preemie formula for the first year and then, with the doctor's ok, we switched him and went with the BJ'S brand. It was only $19 for a HUGE can. I'd say it's double the size of the other big cans I've seen! But to switch him we were mixing half and half and then just made the switch. He did fine. I'm sure yours will do fine too.

A.
www.BabysitEase.com

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K.H.

answers from Washington DC on

We had to swap formula brands aswell for various reasons and there were no issues , the regular formuals are basically all the same so don't worry about that , and no you don't sound bad for wanting to try a cheaper brand , formula is very expensive and you need to do all you can to help with the finances.

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A.G.

answers from Richmond on

I would compare the ingredients. We were using Enfamil Gentle ease - 25 a large can and switched to the walmart brand of it Parents Choice Gentle for 14 a can because they were exactly a like in ingredients. Maybe get a small can and wean your daughter off of Similac onto the formula you are trying to start using just like you would wean from formulat to milk. HTH

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H.H.

answers from Atlanta on

Our little guy went through SEVEN different types of formula in the first three months of his life. He had so many issues with Similac. He'd throw up all the time, be SOOOOOOOOOOOOoo gassy, and one of them gave him more than 12 dirty diapers in 24 hours......very sore bottom!!!!
We ended up switching to the Target Soy Formula with NO problems at all. He's now a very healthy nine month old. In fact, he's never had a cold or anything yet.
All the best with it. I would certainly recommend the Target brand.

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C.M.

answers from Chicago on

i just recently switched my daughter to the Target brand a couple months ago after being on Similas NeoSure (she was a preemie) for a long time and then Enfamil. i had no issues and i got 2 containers for about the same price as one of the similac! wish i had done it sooner!

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C.W.

answers from Washington DC on

I think this depends on the baby. I tried to switch my daughter at 8 weeks and found she had a very strong sense of taste. She spit the Enfamil right out and refused to touch it. We had to stick with Similac (we could switch to the different formulas within the brand). For my son, we switched back and forth between Similac, Enfamil, Nestle and a couple of others for a while without problems. At about 3 months he developed the taste preference too, so when switching we would mix 1/2 and 1/2 of the different formulas. He had reflux so we ended up on Similac in the end. Good luck. if you make the change, do it soon before your girl becomes stubborn.

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J.C.

answers from Lynchburg on

We had to switch with my son. What we did was get an 8 oz bottle ready by using 7 parts of the starting formula and 1 part of the new formula. I changed it every 2 days, so the third day was the first day with 6 parts starting and 2 parts new. If I knew he'd be having a 4 or 6 oz bottle, I'd mix it to get it to the ratio I wanted, then pour out the excess into another bottle and save it for the next feeding. He didn't have any problems switching this way.

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D.H.

answers from Washington DC on

I did it with my daughter with the Walmart brand. We just slowly mixed it in. Maybe a scoop and ahalf of what we were already using and half a scoop of the new stuff so that it wouldn't shock her body. There were no problems in the transition and my daughter had refulx while we were switching. Just make sure they are the same, don't take her from senstive stomach formula to a non-sensitive formula if you know what I mean.

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T.H.

answers from Norfolk on

some babies have troubles switching others couldn't care less. we used parents choice at walmart which is very cheap. forthe most part all formuas have the same vitamines and such baby needs so you arent giving her less by paying less in this case.

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K.S.

answers from Washington DC on

If she doesnt have any digestive issues then it shouldnt be an issue to switch. Just keep in mind that she may not like the new formula, even tho its the "same" ingredients. Just buy a small bit to start with, and try it for a good couple of weeks. Good Start is pretty affordable as well. Just dont formula hop, that could really mess her up and you will have one little unhappy baby on your hands.
Also, you might want to see if you qualify for WIC and you can get your formula for free.

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L.C.

answers from Norfolk on

Shouldn't be a problem to switch. Just do it gradually. Like if you make an 8 oz bottle, mix 2 oz of the new one for a few days, then up to 4, then 6 until you are on the new one. Take about a week to do it. This isn't required, just recomended to minimize any tummy troubles. Good luck! By the way, have you looked into WIC (women infants and children)? I was VERY suprised that we qualified. Only base income is counted, any non taxable income, such as housing allowences, do not count. And It saves me over $100 a month in formula, and I get the similac. Just a thought.

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C.P.

answers from Detroit on

Hi C.
We tried a couple different too. Never had a problem Didn't use Target, but didn't see any problems when we switched

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S.H.

answers from Washington DC on

S.-

We switched my daughter over to Wegman's brand when she was a baby. She was happy with the change as long as we slowly introduced the new formula. I added about 1 oz of the new formula per bottle for the first day or two and gradually increased it each day. She stayed on that formula until she was one year old.

I researched the formula carefully to be sure it contained the appropriate RDA's of each ingredient, and I looked up Wegman's and the manufacturer. She is now almost 3 years old and is above average in height, completely average in weight and very healthy. Clearly saving a bit of money did NOT harm her development in any way :)

I hope this all works well for you. Good luck!

S.

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R.D.

answers from Washington DC on

My son was breastfed until he was 9 months old and then we had to do formula because it was too soon for milk, he stopped nursing on his own. We used Similac for a while and then switched to the BJ's brand and he was TOTALLY FINE. There was no difference in his taking hte bottle or anything. No health problems. It saved us a LOT of money. Formula is unnecessarily expensive, don't feel bad for wanting to save to provide better for her overall. Most formulas are the same. Just look at the ingredients and if it is all the same, make the switch :). Good Luck!

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S.M.

answers from Washington DC on

I used similac when my son was first born and it was so expensive. I switched when he was about 4 months old to target brand which I loved and was so much less expensive. My son had already tried rice cereal and he was breastfed and bottle fed and so he was used to different flavors and didn't care at all that we switched his formula.

I did have to try a couple different formulas when my son was less than a month old because enfamil would give him more gas than similac did but that wasn't an issue anymore by the time we switched to target brand. So gas would probably be the only thing to watch for. I would be surprised if your child really noticed a change in taste.

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C.A.

answers from Washington DC on

I switched my daughter from Enfamil to the babies r us brand at about 8 months...at first I tried to switch her to a different enfamil type and she didn't tolerate it. Both times I mixed it in slowly over the course of a week or two...but had no issues with the BabiesRus brand.

WE were so glad we found the babies r us brand- and it mixed easily, as well as gave my daughter no problems. It was less expensive and I loved it. Next time I will start with the generic. All the other formula gave her gas or upset her tummy. You have to see what brand works for you and your baby. THe babiesRus brand is half the price of enfamil. good luck

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