Thanks for coming back to us regarding the best way for milk preparation.
Yes you can most certainly use a thermometer to ensure the water is above 70 degrees, and as long as it is not directly from boiling and cooled to at least 80 degrees then this should be fine.
Water that has been kept in an urn would not be freshly boiled and has been standing for possibly some hours so we wouldn't advise to use this to make up a bottle, instead freshly boiled water should be used or water from a thermos flask as Trudy has described below as this is absolutely fine when out and about or for at home. Alternatively do remember the ready to feed liquid milk we have which is ideal for out door situations when making a feed fresh may not be possible.
I hope this helps, do come back again if you would like to double check any points or have other questions. We are more than happy to help 24/7 on 0800 996 1000.
Thank you for contacting Aptaclub with your questions about formula preparation. I can certainly help you with these today.
Firstly, I can appreciate your comments about wasting water when boiling 1 litre of water in the kettle, especially as you are using small amounts of formula at the moment. The guidelines for this amount are so that the water does not cool below 70 degrees Centigrade when left for the 30 minutes. It is important that the water is at least this temperature to kill off any bacteria if present and you are quite right that if the water was too hot, it could scald the powder and destroy some of the nutrients, so preparing the feed exactly as the preparation instructions is the safest way. Quantities need to be prepared in the ratio of 1 fl oz (or 30ml) of water per level scoop of formula powder. It would be trickly to measure half a scoop accurately, so we do not advise half ounces.
As a parent myself, I can remember how quickly my children wanted feeding, especially at night time. If you feel that waiting 30 minutes for the kettle to cool is not always practical, the next safest alternative is to use a ready made milk, which can be decanted into a sterilised feeding bottle and any unused milk left in the packaging bottle can be stored in the fridge for up to 24 hours. If you do not have ready made formula, or feel that it would not get used up in the 24 hour period, you may want to consider the Department of Health's next safest way which is the 'flask method'. With this method you would boil your kettle, let the water cool for 10 minutes and then carefully pour it into a flask that you only ever use for your baby's water. Check the flask manufacturer's instructions to see how long the water will stay hot for. Most will be somewhere between 4 and 6 hours. You can then have your empty, sealed sterilised bottles ready, along with your powder pre-measured out into a sterile container/dispenser. When baby is ready for milk in the night, you can measure water from the flask into a feeding bottle and add your powder. Shake and then test the temperature of the feed. If too hot, hold the bottle under a cold, running tap for a minute or two and ensure it is of a correct feeding temperature before feeding your little one. The flask method is considered safer than pre-preparing feeds and storing them in the fridge.
Formula can stick to the scoops if held too close to hot water. If you choose to use a dispenser, this should be washed and sterilised every day. If they are single pots, sterilise after each use. If they are sectioned you will be able to twist the dispenser to the next lot of powder, so you may use a few of these during the night, so wash and sterilise the next morning.
I hope this information helps you and makes the preparation a little easier. You may have other questions, so please feel free to give our team of friendly advisors a call on freephon20printing or copying of this email and its associated attachments is strictly prohibited.
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