Allergic Reaction to Store Brand Formula?

Updated on March 13, 2018
K.E. asks from Lynchburg, VA
5 answers

My son has started reacting to the formula we have been giving him with red places and hives all of his body. It started this past week. The redness and hives show up after we give him his bottle. We have been using the same store brand name formula the past couple of months and have not switched. We have had issues with Similac before but have not had any issues with Enfamil when he was 2-3 months old. When he was about 4 months old, we started using the store brand formulas of Enfamil and did not have any issues like he has been having the past couple of days.

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So What Happened?

After switching to Enfamil, we have not seen reaction like the hives when we used Members Mark or Parent's Choice. It was new box of Members Mark and a new container of Parent's Choice that we had opened last week. We not changed anything since he was born 8 1/2 months ago. Not sure if something in their batch has changed or not. So for now, our plan is to give him Enfamil. It is weird that he was having a reacting/hives right after eating and some times even when getting a bottle.

More Answers

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G.♣.

answers from Springfield on

If you've been using the same formula for the past couple of months, I would think that something else is causing the hives.

Did you switch stores? Even though the store brands say "compared to Similac" or "compared to Enfamil," they are not identical. Some of the ingredients are slightly different. Maybe you were using the Walmart brand and recently tried the Meijer brand? If that's the case, it could be the formula.

Either way, I would call your doctor. It could be something else like the bath soap you use or laundry detergent. Your pediatrician can ask you more questions and help you narrow it down. It could be something you never thought could even be an issue.

Don't trust me! Call your pediatrician.

4 moms found this helpful

S.T.

answers from Washington DC on

are you sure it's the formula?

when my baby started having an allergic reaction my pediatrician insisted it was the formula and had me switch to soy, which caused spectacular projectile vomiting. i ran back to her and she said i was feeding him wrongly.

switched pediatricians to a sensible one who suggested it was my laundry detergent, which ended up being the case.

khairete
S.

3 moms found this helpful

B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

It's possible to develop an allergy to anything at any time.
Go back to Enfamil for awhile instead of the store brand and see if it makes a difference.
While store brand vs name brand are very similar - they aren't necessarily %100 the same.
There might be an ingredient in one not present in the other and it could be just that ingredient that's causing the problem.

3 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

N.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

How long has he been on this particular formula brand? That's confusing to me.

If he's having hives suddenly after being on this brand and style of formula for months then I'd think it was dishwashing soap or a rinse agent instead of the formula.

2 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.G.

answers from Portland on

I would be more inclined to think it's something else that you have changed - like bottle liners, dish soap, detergent, soap, etc.

If you feed formula pretty regularly, it might seem like it's after you've fed him formula, but it could be the washcloth you wipe his face with, etc.

My kids have sensitive skin, and we have some with hives, etc. They didn't typically get them from things they'd been using without incident. Typically it was something we'd switched up (just our experience).

Other thought - is it a new batch/box of formula? Then I'd be more inclined to think that it could be the formula. Another thing to check is dating - to be sure it's not past best before date.

Hope you can figure it out :)

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