We Switched Her from Similac to Isomil, Now She Has Diahrrea. Is This Normal?

Updated on January 13, 2007
J.T. asks from Altoona, PA
18 answers

My daughter is 5 days old. We switched her from the milk-based similac advance to the soy-based Isomil Advance. Before the switch she was projectile vomiting, extremely gassy, and her poop was like water with little yellow seedy things in it. We had all the same problems with my son and he was switched to the isomil but I can't remember if her had the diarrea too. Now she's not gassy anymore, and she's not throwing up but her poop is like mustard. It's runny and yellow. We just switched her on new years eve.

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So What Happened?

Katelyn had her first doctor's appointment yesterday and I mentioned her poop (which has started to be less runny). The doctor said it's fine that she's on soy since she's doing much better and that the poop she's having is normal for babies her age. Thank you everyone for your advice and suppost. Most of you made me feel a lot better :)

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D.C.

answers from Harrisburg on

You're baby's poop is normal. The color and runnyness is normal for a newborn. Diarriha is diffrent in babys than in adults. IF she had diarriaha her poop would be mostly water with spots of dark in it. It would also have a really awful smell. I wouldn't worry about it.

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B.R.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I would give it 2 weeks to give her body time to change and adjust to the new formula. My daughter was allergic to both so we had to do a perscription formula, Neocate. That is how long the Dr told me to wait for the blood to go away for her.

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F.G.

answers from Philadelphia on

Hi J.,
Hope baby is doing better now..wanted to ask u few things..Did u change the formula gradually or just in a go..whenever u change the formula ,u have to take nearly a week for that..u have to mix a little bit of new formula in the old one everytime u feed the baby..and gradually increasing the qty of the new one..I changed the formula when my baby was 15 days old..i started giving her Nestle Good Start..and i followed the same procedure..(as per the instructions of her doctor.)
Did u talk to your baby's doctor..i think u shud discuss it with the doctor..she is very young and her digestive system is not strong..it will take sometime.
hope she feels better soon ..Good luck with her..
Take care
F.

1 mom found this helpful
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P.C.

answers from Charleston on

Hi J...I know that when switching formulas, it generally takes 3-5 days for the effects of the old formula to completely disappear. Give her a few more days and see your doctor if she's still having diarrhea.

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J.A.

answers from Altoona on

The seedy yellow stools are normal and a good sign that she is digesting properly.

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C.C.

answers from Philadelphia on

the switch probally did that it takes alittle over a week for the change to totally take effect....When they are on the soy the poop tends to be more like mustard...if the dirreaha continues she may need nutramigan it is a hyper-allegentic formula....My son had no problem with the reg formula but my two daughter had major problem expecially my baby now she had to be put on the nutramigan for projectial vomiting it was so bad she finally started to gain weight at 3months...so make sure you keep track of her weight projectial vomiting is a sign of many problems....and congradulations...

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R.L.

answers from Philadelphia on

hello there,
we had a similar situation..my little girl is five months old now..but when she was 3 months and i stopped nursing..she went from getting maybe one bottle a day of similac milk based formula to solely formula...she would get REAL gassy and her bms were like water...i talked to her doctor and he told me to try soy formula...my son had allergies to milk based formula and milk till he was 2 1/2....anyways...we used similac soy and she stopped being gassy,her stool formed a little..but it was just like your daughters and like mustard...we then switched back to milk based but are now using enfamil and things have been better...i think you just have to find what formula works for each child...almost four years ago,when my son was having problems with the formula the doctor told me not to switch formulas or go to soy...these days doctors are more lenient...you can switch much more easily...i would recommend waiting a couple more days at least before trying different ones to see what works best...she is still very young..and thier stools change so much in those first couple weeks anyways..regardless of what they are taking...

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M.C.

answers from Philadelphia on

newborns' poops are very mustardy...sounds normal.

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C.J.

answers from Harrisburg on

Congrats on the baby girl....Would this be the Famous Katelyn Alexis?????Ok....Breastfed babies at 5 days old, this is what there poop should be like.Yellow and mustard seedy like.Formula fed babies, I honestly am not sure, but I think that it should still be the same.It should be a tad runny, but not watery.You just switching, is a sure thing that(Milk based) it is prob still in her system.It takes a few days for there bodies to adjust.Also, being on the Isomil advanced dont be surprised if she has problems pooping for a couple of days after her body gets used to it.It is the iron.If she is content, and not fussy, I wouldnt be concerned.If you are concerned at all, call her ped.

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G.R.

answers from Washington DC on

Hey, the yellow seedy poop is completely normal for her age and for the Isomil. We had to put our son (who is now 9 months) on Soy soon after he was born because he too was projectile vomiting. The diarrea is normal also. For a while it will be a little runny.

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B.J.

answers from Washington DC on

I would definitely call your pediatrician. They will most likely want to see her and her diaper. Dehydration for a new born is very bad. This is a very serious matter.

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J.B.

answers from Washington DC on

As far as I know the yellow slightly runny poop is normal at that age. I have three children and they all were formula fed and that is what their poop looke like for the first couple of weeks. My second actually was on soy that young as well and her poop looked yellow mustard and a little runny.

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H.F.

answers from Pittsburgh on

J.,

In all honesty, this sounds completely normal. Babies at this stage should have stools that are about the consistency of mustard/mayo and they range in color from a mustard color to the a darker brown depending on the child. At this stage, they should not have hard stools at all. Take a deep breath and relax. Then call the pediatrician just to double check and so that you can truly relax. Your daughter's stool may be a little more runny than usual from the switch and the color and consistency may change a little as she adjusts to the new formula but it actually sounds like a pretty normal bowel production to me. =)

Also, given her reaction to the old formula, I would disregard the advice that said you should have switched her formula slowly. She needs to be getting the calories and nutrition in the formula and has to keep it down in order to do so. Her problems with the old formula make it sound as if she is lactose intolerant, allergic to lactose or both. I've heard of some doctors switching a child to the alimentum formula instead of the regular but over the past ten years, I've heard more about them switching them to the soy first to see if they can tolerate it as it is easier to come by, more affordable and supposed to be just as good for your baby.

Good luck with the new formula and congratulations on the new baby. =)

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J.Y.

answers from Pittsburgh on

sounds like a real improvement. Runny yellow poop is normal for a newborn.

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S.J.

answers from Philadelphia on

I've never experienced this, but I have heard that switching formulas can upset the stomach. Give it a few more days and I'm sure it'll get better.

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L.N.

answers from Washington DC on

J.,
it takes a few days for the body to accept the new formula, but i'd still run this by the ped's office to see what they say. was the switch made under doc's recommendation?
i am wondering why soy based formula. i know when one of my girls was having problems as an infant our ped said that he avoids recommending soy based formula, isntead for us he recomemnded we switch from similac advance to alimentum advance with iron ( purple letters). this formula was very good on my baby's tummy. things changed within a few days. she drank that until she turned one. the thing is, this formula is pretty expensive, i think it was around 24.99 and is smaller than regular cans. but it did my girls good so i decided to take ped's recommendation
just something to think about
good luck
vlora

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T.H.

answers from Harrisburg on

Hello there and congratulations on the birth of your baby. I remember when my children were newborns and they also had the same color bowel movements. I'm sure this will subside as the baby gets use to the formula. The digestive system has to get use to the change and remember, she is just a few days old. My daughter's formula was changed 4 different times until we found one that was right for her.
Good luck

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J.L.

answers from Pittsburgh on

It will take a little time for her to adjust to the new formula hunny. If this is still happening in a week from the day you switched her, contact her doctor. They will be able to tell you for sure what's going on.

Love and light,
J. L.

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