Has Anyone Tried Changing/mixing Different Brands Of Milk Powder?

[rebtang 0]

my toddler has always been drinking dumex milk powder (plain). i decided to change it to enfagrow tis morn but he doesn't like the taste and puked! may i knw what is the right way to introduce a different brand of milk powder to him?

i happened to have an unopened can of chocolate dumex milk powder. shld i mix it with the enfagrow milk powder to make it more tastier (hopefully...cos he likes chocolate)? is there any problem with mixing 2 different brands of milk powder? might it lead to diarrhea etc?

hope someone can advise me! thks

[dizzy 1]

my toddler has always been drinking dumex milk powder (plain). i decided to change it to enfagrow tis morn but he doesn't like the taste and puked! may i knw what is the right way to introduce a different brand of milk powder to him?

i happened to have an unopened can of chocolate dumex milk powder. shld i mix it with the enfagrow milk powder to make it more tastier (hopefully...cos he likes chocolate)? is there any problem with mixing 2 different brands of milk powder? might it lead to diarrhea etc?

hope someone can advise me! thks

Hi rebtang,

should always introduce new milk powder gradually to babies and toddlers. This is for us to easily identify any allergies and help the children to slowly get used to the new taste. What you can do is to mix the 2 milk powders, with the new milk powder in small quantity, then slowly increase it. Here's what I do:

Day 1: 1 scoop new, 5 scoops old (1 scoop for 1 oz or abt 30ml)

Day 2: 2 scoops new, 4 scoops old

.

.

(increase 1 scoop new for each day)

.

.

Day 5: 5 sccops new

Although milk is basically the same, the composition of each brand is still different and each child's reaction to the same brand of milk is different. Therefore need to observe whether the child is suitable for the milk, like whether he constipates or have very loose stools after drinking the milk.

Hope it helps.

[ARCHer 0]

How old is your toddler? If he is too young, I would not advise introducing flavoured milk (e.g. chocolate, strawberry etc.). That's because if he gets used to flavouring, he will probably become very picky about the food he eats.

Just curious: why do you want to change the brand? I would think that one would change only when one has some allergy to the formula, or that one doesn't like the taste.

[rebtang 0]

Hi rebtang,

should always introduce new milk powder gradually to babies and toddlers. This is for us to easily identify any allergies and help the children to slowly get used to the new taste. What you can do is to mix the 2 milk powders, with the new milk powder in small quantity, then slowly increase it. Here's what I do:

Day 1: 1 scoop new, 5 scoops old (1 scoop for 1 oz or abt 30ml)

Day 2: 2 scoops new, 4 scoops old

.

.

(increase 1 scoop new for each day)

.

.

Day 5: 5 sccops new

Although milk is basically the same, the composition of each brand is still different and each child's reaction to the same brand of milk is different. Therefore need to observe whether the child is suitable for the milk, like whether he constipates or have very loose stools after drinking the milk.

Hope it helps.

Hi dizzy,

Thks for your advice! I'll try it out.

The poor child...he got milk phobia and went on milk strike over the weekend. Din drink any milk at all yesterday despite i give him back dumex.

[ARCHer 0]

The poor child...he got milk phobia and went on milk strike over the weekend. Din drink any milk at all yesterday despite i give him back dumex.

How old is he? At one stage, my daughter (who was about 7 months old then) was also not taking her milk. My wife and I got very upset because she was still on breast milk. However, checking around with friends and colleagues, we were told that it is not uncommon for them to reduce their milk intake for a while. Lo and behold, after 2 weeks or so, she was back to full appetite.

[rebtang 0]

How old is your toddler? If he is too young, I would not advise introducing flavoured milk (e.g. chocolate, strawberry etc.). That's because if he gets used to flavouring, he will probably become very picky about the food he eats.

Just curious: why do you want to change the brand? I would think that one would change only when one has some allergy to the formula, or that one doesn't like the taste.

Hi!

He is 2 yrs 5 mths old.

Actually at first we didn't give him any chocolate milk. Then my sister-in-law suggested to give him cos he is already a very picky eater, so that maybe he'll like the taste and drink more milk. We really don't know what to do with him...he drinks very little milk...about 150ml milk each time, around 2-4 times a day depending on his mood. Amazingly when he is half asleep...he can actually finish 200-230ml milk.

He doesn't eat much either...biscuits (he loves this, but i don't give him too much cos he doesn't like to drink water), sometimes when he is in good eating mood - he eats porridge bought from food court (doesn't eat the porridge that we cook...in fact he kinda choked and puked), spaghetti, carrot soup, bread, tofu. He doesn't eat meat, vege other than carrot, not even fruits except banana.

He is very small size and skinny for his age, weighs abt 10kg only. But he is very active. He hardly sits around, always running and standing.

Previously his nanny feeds him porridge every day (when he choke, she put the porridge in the blender and fed him). Recently we decided to put him into childcare centre to hopefully expose him to different types of food and mix with other children, hopefully he eat more. But according to the teacher, he just loves to keep the food in his mouth and has to be reminded to chew and swallow the food. Wonder what's wrong with him? He doesn't even eat watermelon and other soft fruits.

So anyway that's why we try to give him more milk cos he doesn't eat well. Seen a few doctors as well, gave him vitamin...doc told us as long as the child is healthy and active its ok...but we keep telling the doc that he hasn't put on much weight...doc replied yeah, he is small for his age, but as long as he drinks milk...its supposed to be fine. Children's eating habits will get adjusted after a few years??

Recently he had a bout of diarrhea for a week (really nightmare!), i went looking for pediasure cos i heard that its lactose-free. Met the sales lady who introduced me to enfagrow. said enfagrow supposed to help with immunity as well. Thought tis would be good, cos when he has cough it seems ages, almost 3-4 wks before he gets well. So i got interested and wanted to give it a try lor. That's why thought wana change brand...but didn't expect it to be sooo difficult

How old is he? At one stage, my daughter (who was about 7 months old then) was also not taking her milk. My wife and I got very upset because she was still on breast milk. However, checking around with friends and colleagues, we were told that it is not uncommon for them to reduce their milk intake for a while. Lo and behold, after 2 weeks or so, she was back to full appetite.

Sighhh...my son is terrible. He is 2 yrs 5 mths old. Doesn't drink much milk. There was a few days when he's younger that he suddenly wanted more milk...we were sooo happy...but then it lasted only a few days and he was back to 150ml...stuck at this level even now when he is 2+.

[Homeowner 1]

Have you tried cheese cubes? The laughing cow cheese cubes are not bad.

Active children tend to burn up their energy quickly. I used to be particular about my kids' food - brown rice, no fat/ skin...then I realised that they are very active and don't get fat, so now anything goes (except, sweets...still think they're bad for the teeth). Think the "fatter" children are the ones who can sit still and sleep more.

My niece also has a small capacity...my SIL got the maid to feed the child 2 hourly. Fruits, spaggetti, bread, yogurt, biscuits, milk. Little bit all the time.

BTW, I attended a talk once, and the nutritionist recommended Pedisure and Promil/Progress because they have higher calorie per ml. You can also get samples from the following companies to try...in case if the child doesn't like, you don't feel so much heartache.

Dumex (Mamil series) Milk www.dumex.com.sg

NutriLine at 1800 265 3188

Friso Milk http://www.friso.com.sg

Friso hotline at 64198484

contactus@friso.com.sg

Abbott (Similac / Gain / Grow / Pediasure / Isomil) Milk http://www.abbott.com.sg/family/free_sample.asp

Wyeth (Promil Gold / Progress Gold / Promise Gold) Milk http://www.wyethnutrition.com.sg

1800-6886886

Nestle Milk 800-6011633

Mead Johnson (Enfa series) Milk http://www.meadjohnsonasia.com/

Edited July 9, 2007 by Homeowner

[rebtang 0]

Have you tried cheese cubes? The laughing cow cheese cubes are not bad.

Active children tend to burn up their energy quickly. I used to be particular about my kids' food - brown rice, no fat/ skin...then I realised that they are very active and don't get fat, so now anything goes (except, sweets...still think they're bad for the teeth). Think the "fatter" children are the ones who can sit still and sleep more.

My niece also has a small capacity...my SIL got the maid to feed the child 2 hourly. Fruits, spaggetti, bread, yogurt, biscuits, milk. Little bit all the time.

BTW, I attended a talk once, and the nutritionist recommended Pedisure and Promil/Progress because they have higher calorie per ml. You can also get samples from the following companies to try...in case if the child doesn't like, you don't feel so much heartache.

Dumex (Mamil series) Milk www.dumex.com.sg

NutriLine at 1800 265 3188

Friso Milk http://www.friso.com.sg

Friso hotline at 64198484

contactus@friso.com.sg

Abbott (Similac / Gain / Grow / Pediasure / Isomil) Milk http://www.abbott.com.sg/family/free_sample.asp

Wyeth (Promil Gold / Progress Gold / Promise Gold) Milk http://www.wyethnutrition.com.sg

1800-6886886

Nestle Milk 800-6011633

Mead Johnson (Enfa series) Milk http://www.meadjohnsonasia.com/

No leh, never heard of the cheese cube. Sounds good oso...got calcium. I wanted to try out some (supposedly) healthy snacks like those Pigeon fish crackers and Gerber sweet potato/banana crackers or something like that, but it was so lightweight and expensive, so didn't try

Hahah yah nowonder he doesn't put on weight...not eating much + active some more. Oh yah...my son oso doesn't sleep much...I see most children here very chubby and big sized...i been wondering what is their secret formula.

Sighhh...my son's 150ml can last him up to 3 hrs or so. Yaho i should try feed him more frequently and give him more stuff to eat every now and then. He eats really very slow...he can hold the biscuit for half hour and still hvnt finish! Until the biscuit oso soft liao. His bite size...gosh...probably the size of a 5 cent coin. Recently for a few days he loved to eat the raisin bread. But of late, he only eat the raisin and didn't want the bread at all. I noticed their preference for food can change very drastically, one day they like it, the next day they totally dun want it

Oh...didn't know can get samples. Thks for yr list! U cant believe it...we were sooo ambitious...bought 2 packs of 700g enfagrow some more. Now my hubby say he's the one gona 'grow' instead of the boy (hahaha he resorted to using the milk for his coffee)...he says their milk taste horrible...lucky i cant take milk

[dizzy 1]

Hi dizzy,

Thks for your advice! I'll try it out.

The poor child...he got milk phobia and went on milk strike over the weekend. Din drink any milk at all yesterday despite i give him back dumex.

Hi rebtang,

No problem ! I think your son prefers food easily to swallow...doesn't like to chew. My son was like that too! I think it's because he is used to the food texture that my mom gave him...porridge, pureed apple, banana etc. Like you, we decided to put him in childcare to let him learn how to socialise and also hopefully to change his eating habit. Now, 7 months later, I can see that he is slowly opening up to more variety of food, and chewing his food more. We also do not puree his food now, and introduce rice and noodles to him. He is coming to 3 years now.

I also heard pediasure is good, especially for picky eaters. But because my son is taking his current milk well, I didn't change for him. You can also try cheese, yoghurt, milk bread, soya milk etc. to replace the calcium in the milk. You can also try fresh milk, UHT milk too.

It's true children's taste changes. My son refused milk from 2.5 months old till 1 year old. Really no milk unless he was sleeping. We were so desperate that we started solids for him when he was 3 mths old.

On this topic of milk refusal, I suddenly recalled a conversation that I overheard recently. This father bought 8 tins of 2 kg milk for his 3-year-old to beat the GST hike. But 1 fine day, his 3 yo just decided not to drink milk! Not even a single drop! So no choice, the parents bought UHT milk and his 3 yo loved it. But more expensive lah

Oh...didn't know can get samples. Thks for yr list! U cant believe it...we were sooo ambitious...bought 2 packs of 700g enfagrow some more. Now my hubby say he's the one gona 'grow' instead of the boy (hahaha he resorted to using the milk for his coffee)...he says their milk taste horrible...lucky i cant take milk

haha...so cute...he is right !

none of the brands of the babies'/children's milk taste nice !

[Homeowner 1]

Yah, my second child didn't like powdered milk either. So, we got him fresh milk after 1 year of age. Then, we switched to UHT milk after he grew tired of it. Now, we have a mix at home - different UHT flavours and fresh milk. The only time he wanted powdered milk was when he saw my niece drinking hers.

But, one thing about Pedisure: it doesn't have lactose. I read that most babies (except the lactose intolerant ones) naturally can take lactose, but if they stop drinking milk, they may become lactose intolerant when they are older. So, I only used Pedisure for my older child when he was sick and had diarrhoea. But, I have since found out that if his diarrhoea is due to anti-biotics, then yogurt is the solution.

I agree that the children's milk powder taste horrible. The poor father...how's he going to finish the 8 tins of milk??? If he really cannot take it, he can sell it at a discount at some forums, e.g. Motherhood forum.

Edited July 9, 2007 by Homeowner

[rebtang 0]

Hi rebtang,

No problem ! I think your son prefers food easily to swallow...doesn't like to chew. My son was like that too! I think it's because he is used to the food texture that my mom gave him...porridge, pureed apple, banana etc. Like you, we decided to put him in childcare to let him learn how to socialise and also hopefully to change his eating habit. Now, 7 months later, I can see that he is slowly opening up to more variety of food, and chewing his food more. We also do not puree his food now, and introduce rice and noodles to him. He is coming to 3 years now.

I also heard pediasure is good, especially for picky eaters. But because my son is taking his current milk well, I didn't change for him. You can also try cheese, yoghurt, milk bread, soya milk etc. to replace the calcium in the milk. You can also try fresh milk, UHT milk too.

It's true children's taste changes. My son refused milk from 2.5 months old till 1 year old. Really no milk unless he was sleeping. We were so desperate that we started solids for him when he was 3 mths old.

On this topic of milk refusal, I suddenly recalled a conversation that I overheard recently. This father bought 8 tins of 2 kg milk for his 3-year-old to beat the GST hike. But 1 fine day, his 3 yo just decided not to drink milk! Not even a single drop! So no choice, the parents bought UHT milk and his 3 yo loved it. But more expensive lah

haha...so cute...he is right !

none of the brands of the babies'/children's milk taste nice !

Hi dizzy,

Yah u r right! He is too lazy to chew. Just wan the food to melt in the mouth and swallow, so he sieve out all those food that cant be swallowed. Oh dear, your son oso like that? So it was a good decision putting him in childcare. Glad to hear this...at least got some hope for my son. This is the 3rd month there, with the teacher's prodding, he got eat some food, but doesn't seem to have much progress at home though. Seems like really have to be patient...

Ohhh I did think of trying fresh milk...but then thought duno what age to introduce it. Hmmm so can give it a try then. I tried giving him vitagen...but he drank only half of it, din really like the taste. As for soya milk...when he sees it, he run away! He thought it was milk

OMG! Your son sooo young that time din drink milk?? I really duno how u can manage it man. Wah lucky my son still got drink milk even though less than normal. If not, i pengsan liao...cos he totally reject solid food. The first time fed him cereal...he cry like its so torturing and puked out everything.

Yah i oso noticed that its easier to feed them while they r sleeping. A few months ago, he had fever and was drinking very little. I resorted to waking up during the nite and feed him...gradually he managed to down around 200ml milk during midnite feedings. I hv been practising this till now...but im getting v tired liao...too much disrupted sleep on a daily basis until nowadays i get sick quite frequent oso. If not becos he underweight, i wont bother to wake up in the night to feed him.

O o my hubby bought 2 packs of milk oso heart pain pain...if he bought 8 tins and our son reject milk

Hmmm looks like we should stock up moderately and not go overboard. Haha lucky u mentioned this...cos we oso used to stock up around 4-5 tins everytime we cross over to jb

Heee

[rebtang 0]

Yah, my second child didn't like powdered milk either. So, we got him fresh milk after 1 year of age. Then, we switched to UHT milk after he grew tired of it. Now, we have a mix at home - different UHT flavours and fresh milk. The only time he wanted powdered milk was when he saw my niece drinking hers.

But, one thing about Pedisure: it doesn't have lactose. I read that most babies (except the lactose intolerant ones) naturally can take lactose, but if they stop drinking milk, they may become lactose intolerant when they are older. So, I only used Pedisure for my older child when he was sick and had diarrhoea. But, I have since found out that if his diarrhoea is due to anti-biotics, then yogurt is the solution.

I agree that the children's milk powder taste horrible. The poor father...how's he going to finish the 8 tins of milk??? If he really cannot take it, he can sell it at a discount at some forums, e.g. Motherhood forum.

Hahah yah my inlaws oso say children will eat/drink more when there is competition. My niece used to drink milk and hardly eat oso...then the younger brother came along and she has been eating soo much she is actually plump now. But the moment she is alone without him around, she is back to her old self

Ohhh there was a time my son had very bad diarrhoea...the nurse recommended Isomil soy formula, milk-free and lactose-free. Its much cheaper than Pediasure...but i think must hv tasted v bad...cos my son puked...as usual. My hubby...he can stand the milk powder...but he cant stand the soy formula either

[ARCHer 0]

My daughter was on total breast milk until she was about 6 months old, at which we started introducing powdered milk. Initially, we bought a big tin of Friso, but she does not like the taste of Friso. My daughter has eczema, which would suggest that she has increased sensitivity to allergens. Upon the advice of my sister (she is my wife's gynae), we switched to Enfa as this is suppose to be HA (hypo-allergenic). Since then, she has been on Enfa milk. As for the Friso, I'm having that with my morning coffee....

My daughter is 1 year old now and she weighs 9 kg. The good thing about her is that she isn't very picky about food. Her cousin (my wife's sister's daughter) on the other hand is very picky about food and takes over an hour just to finish a meal (if she finishes). She is over 2 years old, but is weighing only 9+ kg. Fortunately, though underweight, she appears to be generally healthy and active.

[Homeowner 1]

Yah, agreed. Both my kids are on the light side...but as long as they are eating and growing, and their mental and physical development on track, it's okay. Just have to make an effort to feed them more.

BTW, cheers to all the nice Daddys who finish all yucky milk. Thought my hubby was the only long-suffering "bin".

Edited July 10, 2007 by Homeowner

[dizzy 1]

Hi dizzy,

Yah u r right! He is too lazy to chew. Just wan the food to melt in the mouth and swallow, so he sieve out all those food that cant be swallowed. Oh dear, your son oso like that? So it was a good decision putting him in childcare. Glad to hear this...at least got some hope for my son. This is the 3rd month there, with the teacher's prodding, he got eat some food, but doesn't seem to have much progress at home though. Seems like really have to be patient...

Ohhh I did think of trying fresh milk...but then thought duno what age to introduce it. Hmmm so can give it a try then. I tried giving him vitagen...but he drank only half of it, din really like the taste. As for soya milk...when he sees it, he run away! He thought it was milk

OMG! Your son sooo young that time din drink milk?? I really duno how u can manage it man. Wah lucky my son still got drink milk even though less than normal. If not, i pengsan liao...cos he totally reject solid food. The first time fed him cereal...he cry like its so torturing and puked out everything.

Yah i oso noticed that its easier to feed them while they r sleeping. A few months ago, he had fever and was drinking very little. I resorted to waking up during the nite and feed him...gradually he managed to down around 200ml milk during midnite feedings. I hv been practising this till now...but im getting v tired liao...too much disrupted sleep on a daily basis until nowadays i get sick quite frequent oso. If not becos he underweight, i wont bother to wake up in the night to feed him.

Hi rebtang,

Yes, the childcare environment is good, because children learn by copying...so monkey see monkey do...when they see their friends eating, they'll follow suit. Don't worry, your son will improve over time! At home, does your son eat together with the rest of the family at the dining table or do you feed him alone? I realise that my son eat better when we sit together and eat at the dining table. Similar to childcare setting.

For fresh milk, you may like to warm it before giving to him, if the coldness is a concern

Like you, I also wake up during nights to feed him when he was refusing milk. Even up till now, when he has nightmares (which occurs pretty frequently), he'll request for milk, and I'll make for him. But I'm trying to reduce it now...cos I think it's timely for a 3yo boy to stop night feeding.

sigh...all the things we are willing to do for our children

Edited July 11, 2007 by dizzy