A question about formula and breast milk...?

Question

I do breastfeed, but it doesn't produce enough milk. I pump and I only make between 12-16 ounces a day. If I feed my daughter with my breast milk and she still hungry, is that okay to feed her with formula if I don't produce enough breast milk?

I'm not going to give up with breastfeeding though.

My daughter is 7 weeks old.

Answer 1

Yes, its perfectly okay to use formula, i wouldn't be too picky on the one you use, the cost of formula is high for the name brand stuff (enfamil), but parents choice is the same thing but alot cheaper so if your in a tight situation like most people are then i would go for parents choice instead of enfamil. You can still breastfeed her also, there wont be much taste difference.Its more difficult to keep going on breastfeeding. There are things you can do to increase your milk output, like "mother's milk tea". Keep in mind that when you are breastfeeding you do not know how much milk you will produce by breast feeding but when you are pumping you may not get as much as you would nursing as the pumps aren't usually the same as nursing.

Answer 2

yes thats fine. its called comp feeding where u do both. i had to do the same thing, although my milk dried up quicker. goodluck.

Answer 3

Pumping is not an accurate picture of how much milk your baby gets at the breast. Look to the number of wet diapers. If you still aren't sure, have your baby weighed often at a breastfeeding friendly ped. The problem with supplementing is that it decreases your supply. A good prenatal vitamin, plenty of water and protein, and Mothers Milk tea can really boost your supply. You are probably in th amidst of another growth spurt and your supply will catch up soon. Good luck!

Answer 4

oh yeah it is kewl alternate between the two. or if you are feeling froggy you can start her on cereal  

Answer 5

Definately.

I know a lot of women who breastfeed and formula feed also.

Just remember whatever you have to do to make sure your daughter gets enough food. DO IT!!!

I will be doing both as well. Because im going to have to go back to work after my baby is born in March 2009. Unfortunately I won't be able to afford to stay home so Im going to breastfeed when I have the chance and bottle feed also.

Hope this helped  

Answer 6

Yes it is ok to supplement formula with breast milk to keep the baby feed and not hungry.

Answer 7

Are you only expressing milk and feeding her this way? Do you feed straight from the breast at all? If it's the first then most likely she could be genuinely still hungry, but maybe also just wanting to keep suckling so have you tried a pacifier before feeding her formula to see if that does the trick?

If you do feed from the breast sometimes, and then give expressed milk in a bottle other times, it could be she is looking for the soothing factor of suckling at the breast, which is completely different from the bottle no matter how similar that nipple supposedly is. And of course, as a previous poster said, the amount expressed from the pump, is not a guarantee of how much you actually produce. And if none of what I wrote is doing the trick, then I would suggest feeding her breast milk first, and then slowly feeding her formula, maybe one or two ounces at a time to see how she does. For my daughter when I thought the same scenario, I noticed that she was eating a whole bunch of formula and then throwing it up! She was overfeeding which I realized later on was because she was looking to suck, not eat but since she can't control the bottle the way she can the breast, she kept eating though she wasn't hungry and thus made herself sick!  

Answer 8

it is always OK to supplement with formula if your baby is not growing with breast milk.  Like someone else said, you never know how much you are feeding your baby with breast milk but if your baby is growing, it is OK.  If not, supplement.

Enjoy that baby!!!

Answer 9

If so, like you are saying, you should give her formula, don't do like me, when I had my first baby, he did not get enough milk from breastfeeding, so after a week we end up into the hospital, he was dehydrated.

I didn't know before what I must do, he was my first and no one did tell me about these stuff, so now, I always breastfeed my kids and I give formula with.

Congratulation on the baby!

Answer 10

Just remember that when you are breastfeeding you don't know how much milk you produce but when you are pumping you may not get as much as you would nursing as the pumps aren't usually the same as nursing.  Anyways yes it is perfectly fine to have to give formula sometimes, what is important is your baby is getting fed and growing like she should.  

Answer 11

Are you feeding on demand..??

Answer 12

definitely let her get everything from the breast first and then u can supplement with formula ask her pediatrician which one. if she's still hungry then shes still hungry. dont let her not get enough just supplement. it wont take away from the breastfeeding. but make sure shes emptying u completely so it can try to stimulate more milk

Answer 13

Yup! Your fine supplementing. That's what I had to do and it made it easier to transition my baby when my supply couldn't keep up with the demand.

Answer 14

It's PERFECTLY ok to do both. I did both for the first 11 months of my son's life. I had enough milk so I nursed him often and when I went back to work I pumped 3 times a day. Still wasn't enough for him so I supplemented w/soy formula.

If ;you don't think you're producing enough milk, you may want to call your lactation consultant and ask her about some herbs that will help you produce more. Some that worked for me are Fenugreek, Milk Thistle, and sometimes a dark beer (like Guiness) before bedtime was the best remedy (learned that one from a lc on CafeMom). Do it at a time when you can go a few hrs w/o nursing. Something about the wheat and barley, the carbs help you make more milk... Oh, that's another thing; make sure you're eating plenty of calories during the day. YOU CANNOT DIET AND NURSE! I tried and almost dried up. Good luck.  

Answer 15

Of course- the first rule is always to feed your baby.

Keep up the good work on breastfeeding!

Answer 16

It is okay to do that, but it is more difficult to keep going.  There are things you can do to increase your milk output, like "mother's milk tea".  Call your local LaLeche League for some tips.  

Answer 17

I agree with the answers you've received so far. I nursed my son for 14 months and am currently nursing my 8 week old daughter. Always nurse first, then supplement with formula. Talk to your pediatrician about it. I would suggest contacting a lactation consultant...I did with my first and it was a big help!! She was able to weigh my son before feeding him, then weighed him again after eating to determine how much he was taking in. It's a very sensitive scale, so it's not something you can do at home. They can also help you with a schedule for when to pump and ways to help your supply of milk increase. Check your local hospital or contact La Leche League (you can google it) and they can help you out too.

Good luck and I hope you stick with it for as long as you can!! It's so rewarding for both of you in so many ways!!

Answer 18

Your daughter may be going through a growth spurt and you may not have enough milk at the moment, but if you continue to nurse her more frequently than usual your supply will increase in a day or so.

I would try to get lots of rest for the next two days, drink lots, and really focus on nursing the baby as often and as long as possible - your supply will catch up with the baby's needs very quickly.

If you have to feed her formula, then you will find that your milk supply will soon drop.