Regular mixed feeding with formula can make breastfeeding more challenging as it can interfere with your milk supply. Some babies may start to prefer drinking from a bottle. The way you feed your baby is a personal choice. You may choose to feed your baby just expressed breastmilk as you prefer to feed using a bottle.
Giving your baby formula in addition to breastfeeding is called supplementing. It's completely fine and perfectly safe to do. Many families choose this type of combination feeding method, whether out of necessity (e.g. low breast milk supply), convenience, or simply personal choice.
Introducing formula feeds can affect the amount of breast milk you produce. There is also a small amount of evidence to show babies may not breastfeed as well because they learn to use a different kind of sucking action at the bottle than at the breast.
Can you breastfeed and formula-feed a baby? The short answer is YES. It's called combination feeding, or more commonly, combo feeding. If you're looking to supplement and extend your breastfeeding journey or if you want to make feedings possible by other parents or care-takers, combo feeding can be a great solution.
Changing from breastmilk to formula side effects like gas, upset stomach, and even constipation is possible if you make the change quickly.
Feeding your baby can happen many different ways. That can mean formula during the day or at night or breast milk during the day or at night. How you feed your baby is up to you! If combo feeding is what makes feeding easier all around, then try it as a method to help in your baby's first year.
Mixed feeding may be a good option if you want to share the feeding responsibility with your partner or family members. It may also be suitable if you're: mainly breastfeeding but also want to offer expressed milk or infant formula. bottle feeding but want to start breastfeeding.
Infants who are formula fed are 50 percent more likely to have ear infections than babies who receive only breastmilk. Formula feeding is linked to higher rates of eczema, allergies to food, inherited allergies and allergies which affect breathing such as hay fever.
Over nutrition
Feeding your baby solids before six months of age also increases the likelihood that they will develop problems with overeating, including nutritional disorders like obesity.
Additionally, as part of a review of published research conducted on preterm babies, Schanler (2007) suggests that mixing formula milk and breastmilk can affect protein intake, and retentions of calcium, phosphorus, and zinc: the researcher suggests alternating formula and breastmilk feeds separately, instead of mixing ...
NUTRITION EXPERTS SPEAK
“Any drink or food you introduce to that child before the liver and the kidney matures is a potential pathogen that can disturb the child. “Most women give their children water or herbal drinks within the first six month, which affects the system of the child.
Generally, moderate alcohol consumption by a breastfeeding mother (up to 1 standard drink per day) is not known to be harmful to the infant, especially if the mother waits at least 2 hours after a single drink before nursing.
Introducing other feeds and fluid before 6 months puts the child at risk of developing infections like diarrhoea and respiratory infections. HIV positive mothers should be advised by health workers on all options available to reduce HIV transmission to the baby.
It has been shown that partial or combination feeding (breast milk and formula) and exclusive breastfeeding have been associated with lower SIDS rates. Thankfully SIDS is now very rare. If you bottle feed your baby and follow all the other pieces of safer sleep advice then the chance of SIDS is extremely low.
Why combine breast and bottle? There are many reasons parents may decide to start combination feeding, including: Initial difficulties in getting breastfeeding established – parents may want to supplement the breast feeds with formula feeds until breastfeeding is fully established.
A small number of mothers are not able to breastfeed. This can be hard to accept, but it does not make you a bad mom. Infant formula is still a healthy choice, and your baby will get all the necessary nutrients.
There is no definitive, known cause for colic in babies. It is thought that it may be because young babies find it harder to digest milk leading to discomfort in their tummy. Babies who are breastfeeding, formula feeding, or combination feeding may get colic and it is most common in the first 6 months8.
Thus experts generally advise introducing formula slowly, gradually replacing breastfeeding sessions with formula feeding. One method is to replace one nursing session per week with a formula feeding session. Start by giving your baby one bottle of formula at around the same time each day.
A study conducted by researchers from Cambridge, London and Paris found that formula fed babies seemed to smile more and cry less than breast fed and combination fed babies. The study also showed that formula fed babies settled to sleep more easily.
Water that hasn't been boiled can also contain bacteria. Formula therefore needs to be made up with water hot enough to kill the bacteria, which is at least 70 degrees C. This means boiling the kettle and leaving it to cool for no longer than 30 minutes, so that it remains at a temperature of at least 70 degrees C.
Diarrhea in babies
However, poop that is watery, especially if it has blood in it, can be a sign of a milk protein intolerance. Other signs of milk protein intolerance include vomiting or spitting up, or increasing fussiness. If your baby has any of these symptoms, you should call their healthcare provider.