Baby Formula: Store Brand vs Name Brand?

When I had my last son, Colin, I anticipated breastfeeding him exclusively. That was my plan. I didn't want to worry about the expense of formula. Plus I thought I was "doing the best" for my baby.

But I didn't anticipate him being born prematurely. I didn't anticipate him needing machines to help him breathe. I didn't get to nurse him in those first few precious moments like I envisioned. He started out being tube fed. I would pump breastmilk and take it to the NICU for him. Even after I was discharged. Finally the day came when he came off of the machines and I would be able to nurse him. Ok, breastfeeding is natural, but it's not automatic. It just didn't work out that first time. I think because he was so hungry. So I ended up giving him breastmilk in a bottle.

When he got home it was the same. He preferred the bottle. Every so often he would latch on and it hurt like you wouldn't believe. I would still pump and I was so sore that I would bleed. I didn't want to give him bloody milk so I had to toss it. Yes, I know it's a problem with anatomy and we tried everything.

During his 6 week checkup we found out that I would need to supplement his feedings with formula. Just to give him a boost and so he'd gain weight. Being born prematurely it was very important. Ok, well if I have to...

Eventually I dried up a few months later. I still added my milk to the formula until then and that made me feel better. He wasn't able to tolerate milk based formula so I went to soy.

But what I wasn't thrilled about was the price! OMG! Formula is INSANE! And if money is tight, especially like it is these days, you have to find ways to save money. Well, you can't go without feeding your baby. But MY lifesaver came in the form of formula that wasn't "name brand". I was paying almost $20 for the powdered formula of Prosobee. Are you kidding me?! When your kid ends up going through 2 or 3 a week it gets expensive. And at one point we were faced with "If he can't tolerate Prosobee he will need to go to Nutramigen". That was almost $25! This baby was costing more than us to eat.

Then I checked with his pediatrician about going with a "generic" brand of formula. He did not see any problem with it, provided it was soy. So I gave it a shot, fully expecting upset stomachs, diarrhea, or even needing to feed more to keep him healthy. The cost was great! And considering I could buy it at Walmart was so convenient. When I say the cost was great, I'm telling you it was nearly a 50% savings!!! And believe me, with money being so tight, every little bit counted.

There is actually a site where you can go to do a cost comparison. You select what formula you would normally feed your baby and it gives you a retail price and a Parent's Choice retail price. You can even go as far as putting data in like when you start feeding your baby Parent's Choice and how much of their feedings are by formula (like how I would add breastmilk, if you do that, you can put in the ratio).

Heck, even if you put that money into a savings account that you save, that offers up great money for when they're older!

I also did a little research on why name brand formula is more expensive. It's kinda like generic drugs. They don't pay for advertising, free samples to the doctors and hospitals, etc. When I worked in the labor & delivery department for my senior practicum you wouldn't BELIEVE how many expensive sample bags were stored away in storage rooms! I still remember when Cody was born, his cousin worked at the hospital and they were tossing TONNNNNNNNNS of these expensive sample packs paid for by formula companies, simply because coupons were expiring. WHAT?!?! Fortunately he was able to get some for us. That was great :-) But guess who had to pay for ALLLLLLLL those expensive bags? The company? No. The hospital? No. Every one of us who buy a canister of formula! So frustrating.

Here is some more information that I obtained through another website:
"Mother’s milk is the best source of nutrition for babies. Moms should try breastfeeding because it is considered best for babies by leading experts. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recognizes it as the gold standard in infant nutrition.

If parents choose to supplement mother’s milk with baby formula, they should not have to overpay for formula. Store-brand formulas are now available at leading retailers such as Walmart, Sam’s Club, Target, Kroger, CVS, and Walgreens. Although all infant formulas sold in the United States must adhere to the same stringent FDA guidelines, they are not priced the same, as many leading store-brand formulas cost up to 50% less than national brands. In fact, parents can save up to $600 a year by choosing a retailer’s store brand infant formula.

Parents can use online baby formula savings calculators to see how much they can save versus Enfamil LIPIL and Similac Advance infant formulas:

http://www.parentschoiceformula.com/baby-formula-savings-calculator.aspx (Walmart brand Parent’s Choice Infant Formula)

The reason why store-brand infant formulas are less expensive is because store brands are not given out free formula to hospitals. Only mothers and health-care professionals should make infant-feeding decisions, which is why we do not want to influence that decision-making process at the time of birth."

So do yourself a favor and check out this site: Parent's Choice Infant Formula

See what buying generic can do for you, ESPECIALLY in these hard economic times.