If you choose to supplement your breast milk with an infant formula, talk with my office staff or me first. Infant formulas provide a safe and nutritionally complete alternative to breast milk, but do not offer the same benefits as your breast milk. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends an iron-fortified infant formula as the only acceptable alternative to breast milk for the first 12 months of life. Whole cow’s milk and low-iron infant formulas should not be fed during a baby’s first year. Even if you choose to use infant formula for some feedings, you can still continue to breastfeed. Many mothers find that a combination of breastfeeding and formula feeding works best for themselves and their baby.
If your situation requires that you be away from your baby at feeding time, on a regular basis, and you will be unable to express your milk while away, you may want to start the conversion to formula a few weeks ahead of time. This will allow your breasts to reduce the amount of milk that is made for less frequent breastfeeding and for your baby to adjust to the bottle of formula. For example, if you will be missing two breastfeedings every day, start to introduce bottle feedings about 2 weeks before being away. During the first week, give your baby one bottle feeding each day at the time you expect to be away. Express only enough milk from your breasts at this missed feeding to relieve any discomfort. The next week, give him two supplemental feedings each day. Again, express only enough milk for relief. The law of supply and demand is at work here; the need to express your milk when you are away will decrease over time.
