Changing back from Hypoallegenic Formula-Which formula?

[ray7694]

My dd has been on Similac Alimentum after issues with Soy Formula. At first we thought it was reflux but the formula ended up being the trick. Then when I began Gerber cereal that has soy in it I saw issues so switched cereal.

My ped. said we could try to switch formulas at 6 months. I really would like to try it since it is so expensive. What formula should I try?

[Spectra]

Just a question, you couldn't get a prescription for the Alimentum?  I thought people could do that if it was an obvious fix?

[We Three]

My dd was on Alimentum from 11 weeks old til 13 months...not a drop of it was covered by insurance...they wouldn't do it. 
 When we tried to re-introduce regular formula, we were advised by the specialist to go with Carnation Good-Start, as the protiens in that are already broken down a bit (more than regular formulas,but not as much as the hypo-allergenic formulas).  It didn't work for us, as my dd had reflux, and it flared like crazy right away and we went back to the Alimentum for another few months.  Good Start has a good track record, though!!
  Best of luck.....HTH!

[momtoandrewandthomas]

I have a friend whose son also did quite well on Good Start after being on Neutramigen (similar to Alimentum) for a few months.  Once his reflux resolved, Good Start was fine.  She told me is was cheap too.  My Thomas was on Neutramigen for 7 months and did not do well on it either.  He did not drink the Neocate or Elecare so we were stuck with nothing.  It is scary when I consider what he needs, but so far things seem OK and no one appears concerned for his health.  He consistently gains weight and eats well on the TED.

[Mydreamcametrue]

If you are in the US, you can't get a prescription for a hypoallergenic formula since you can buy it over the counter.

Yeah it is SO expensive.

We never had good results at 6 months with switching, but you could try and see.

Remember it may take up to 2 weeks for any damage to come back, if it was.

A good formula you can start with is Enfamil Gentlease.  It has 1/4 of the lactose as regular milk based formulas and the proteins are partially broken down.

Just remember though to do a slow switch, her body is going to need some time getting used to lactose again.  She may be gassy at first.

If you decide to stay on Alimentum, then you can always check E-bay or get samples every time you go to the doctor.

With my first son, I talked to the doctor and explained to them how expensive it was.  They called an Enfamil Rep and got an entire case of it sent to my house, free!  So you could try that. 

Hugs to you and I hope it goes well.

Wendy

[We Three]

Hmmmm....my friend's lo is on alimentum and although she doesn't have a prescription for it, her insurance company reimburses her.  I told her how lucky she was...our insurance company wouldn't hear of it!  We were spending about $400 per month!!!! Whew...glad that's behind us for MANY reasons!!!
Also, wanted to add this too, like mydreamcametrue said.....our Doc told us that it wasn't neccesary to do the switch gradually, since we were going from milk-based to milk-based.  I thought that was carzy, honestly. So when we tried the switch, we began adding 1/2 ounce of the Good Start to her bottles, waiting a week, then adding another 1/2 ounce. By the time we got to 50/50 Alimentum and Good Start, she was refluxing like crazy, so I went back to the Alimentum exclusively.  When we tried again at 13 months (the 1st try was at 8 months) we did the same thing, except with cow's milk, but still made the transition in 1/2 ounce incrememnts and the whole process took about a month. I feel strongly that switching all at once could be such a shock to their little system.....after all, you're not even supposed to switch your pet's food all at once!!!!!  JMHO...
Anyway....best of luck......