How to make formula more enticing for

[Anonymous]

I will not be able to pump next week for my (slow gaining) EBF 10 month old. My stash is almost gone. I asked the ped about giving her whole milk instead (apparently she tried some with the nanny about a month ago and she was fine), and the the nurse said they definitely do NOT recommend giving her milk as a substitute for breastmilk/formula. The ped recommended gerber good start. I tried giving her a straw cup of it yesterday - no dice. She just kept spitting it up and making faces like it was gross (and I smelled it and it WAS gross).

Any recommendations?

[Anonymous]

Mix breastmilk with formula. Start with a lot of breastmilk to formula and gradually change the ratios.

[Anonymous]

Make a smoothie with it
Blend with honey

[Anonymous]

Try different formulas as they all taste different. You can try a toddler formula. We liked walmart brand toddler the best.

[Anonymous]

Order samples of different brands and see what she likes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make a smoothie with it
Blend with honey

Smoothie sounds fine but no honey under a year, right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make a smoothie with it
Blend with honey

No honey!!! I am super liberal about "food rules" and honey is the one single thing I would never consider giving to a child less than one year old. With my kids I waited until at least 18 mo. It's not an allergen, it has to do with botulism, and the danger can't be mitigated by heating or processing the honey.

[Anonymous]

No honey under 12 months!

[Anonymous]

Honestly, me and my three siblings all started on cow's milk at 9 months. I am not sure what the "magic" of suddenly turning 1 is.

That said, I've heard the Earth's Best formula is better tasting than most. You could try that.

[Anonymous]

Jefferson 10 yr Reserve Bourbon works wonders.

[Anonymous]

An EBF baby doesn't always transition to formula well because, honestly, formula tastes terrible. Breastmilk is sweet and formula tastes like some sort of dairy like substance with an undertone of kimchi. You can try goats milk first since it closely matches human milk and cow milk can be rough on the kidneys of those under 12 months. If she turns down all options then I'd make a rice pudding, mashed potatoes, and smoothies with formula or the milk of your choosing. Cheese and yogurt are also good and since processed the lactose isn't as harsh as it is in milk form so it's easier on the system.

FWIW my breastfed babies completely rejected any milk that wasn't mine. Total PITA so we did cheese, yogurt, and the rice, potatoes and smoothies I suggested. However we started them with table food once they had the pintcher grip and didn't really do much jarred or pureed. I don't know if your DD's eating the types of foods yet that I've mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An EBF baby doesn't always transition to formula well because, honestly, formula tastes terrible. Breastmilk is sweet and formula tastes like some sort of dairy like substance with an undertone of kimchi. You can try goats milk first since it closely matches human milk and cow milk can be rough on the kidneys of those under 12 months. If she turns down all options then I'd make a rice pudding, mashed potatoes, and smoothies with formula or the milk of your choosing. Cheese and yogurt are also good and since processed the lactose isn't as harsh as it is in milk form so it's easier on the system.

FWIW my breastfed babies completely rejected any milk that wasn't mine. Total PITA so we did cheese, yogurt, and the rice, potatoes and smoothies I suggested. However we started them with table food once they had the pintcher grip and didn't really do much jarred or pureed. I don't know if your DD's eating the types of foods yet that I've mentioned.

Agree that goat milk is a better option than cow's milk. You can get it at Trader Joe's and WF (WF has it for like $7.50/half gallon, which is about the cheapest I've seen it around here).

DD is allergic to cow's milk but can drink goat milk just fine. The proteins are different, and as PP mentioned, it's not as hard on the kidneys.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Just wanted to say thanks for all the suggestions. We'll definitely try them out.

DC is very very good at eating solids (not sure why she's not gaining a ton - she's just very active), but she loves her some zucchini, pasta, cheese, yogurt. I've even seen her down a ton Indian food, a whole sweet potato, and just today, tacos (without the shell). So I do feel she gets a variety of nutrition.

I really appreciate the suggestions and we'll be trying them out soon.

[Anonymous]

I vaguely remember that there are some flavorings that you can add to formula, but I don't remember what they are. Maybe you can call your ped and see if they know/have other suggestions. I remember this being an option because we were having a hard time getting our DD1 to take hypoallergenic formula for little while (it tastes even worse than normal formula) and one of the doctors suggested some sort of flavoring but DD1 eventually took the formula without us needing to investigate further.

[Anonymous]

Add Nesquick.