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Original poster

Ready made toddler milk once bottle opened

26 replies

milkissue · 19/02/2019 21:45

Ds has toddler milk but only a small osh amount each time as also breastfed
If I were to send him out with a 200 ml ready made bottle plus 2 clean bottles could dh tip 100ml into each bottle when he has his first feed, give one there and then and save the other till later ? I know if there is any left in first bottle once it’s been drunk from it should be discarded but surely the second one would be ok 3-4 hours later ? Or is it once the sterile bottles opened that’s it it has to be used within an hour regardless ?

OP posts:
erja · 19/02/2019 21:46

I'd say it's fine for 2 hours at a push. I wouldn't leave it 3-4 hours, it has to be refrigerated.

LittleBearPad · 19/02/2019 21:47

How old is DS?

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 21:47

Ok I see maybe 3-4 hrs too long I just thought as they are uht and it would be going into a clean bottle it would be ok but perhaps not

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Seahawk80 · 19/02/2019 21:48

Personally I would think that is fine if you mean the ready made cartons. I've done that in the past with DS when he was about 14 months.

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 21:50

He’s 13 months

OP posts:
Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 21:51

Yes the ready made milk. We’ve only just found one recently he will drink after months and months of attempting to combi feed. Don’t want to make him sick or anything so wanted to double check

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 19/02/2019 21:52

Can he not just drink cows milk? You can get mini cartons of that

LittleBearPad · 19/02/2019 21:53

If you’re going to stick to formula then I’d take two cartons of it for two bottles.

He could just have normal milk from a cafe.

dementedpixie · 19/02/2019 21:54

Does he need milk during the day at that age?

LittleBearPad · 19/02/2019 21:54

Or at 13 months water and some food.

MrsJayy · 19/02/2019 21:58

Does he need two bottles of milk im sure you know your own baby but 2 milk feeds for a 13month old seems a bit much however buy an insulated freezer lunch bag doodah and that should keep the milk fresh

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 21:59

He refused everything else we tried and I’m keen on the formula for the iron content too. He is anaemic and often brings back medication so never really know how much of it’s going in and they only check him every 3 months so I feel like at least I know somethings going in.
He eats well but was still being bf a lot and in all honestly I need a break and now that he’s accepting something other than breast milk I’m just happy about that. He has water from sippy cup but wouldn’t drink anything else from it but accepted a bottle of toddler milk so I’m not arguing with that 🤣 been trying for a long time to get to this stage

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BertieBotts · 19/02/2019 22:01

It will be fine for a few hours if you decant into two separate bottles of course. Refridgerate it beforehand and take with a cool pack if you're worried about it but those little ready made bottles can be kept for 24 hours once opened. It's 1 hour if it's been in contact with a child's saliva, that's all. It will be less than 24 hours at room temperature rather than fridge but 3-4 hours like you're saying will be totally fine.

But I agree with the others - this seems a lot of faff for something he doesn't really need. At 13 months even if he tends to breastfeed during the day when you're around (quite normal) he should be absolutely fine with food and water when he's with Dad or somebody else instead. If you are going to use formula, which you don't need to, I'd keep it to morning and/or bedtime only (before teeth brushing). The toddler formula tends to be quite high in sugar, so it's not very good for them.

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:02

He’s been breastfeeding a LOT
630 am
10 am before nap
after nap
2 before nap and again after
Late aft/early eve
Bedtime feed then a lot in the night

The milk has replaced the early evening feed and now I want to replace another. Obviously also trying to increase food intake too but as he’s so keen I think it’s jyst the right time as bf is hard and I’m quite exhausted

OP posts:
MrsJayy · 19/02/2019 22:03

Ah ok fair enough will he not drink the 200 mls when my dds were ontoddler milk you could refidgerate the remaining carton can you not do that anybody

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:06

Most he’s had in 1 go was 5oz so I just thought I’d split the carton. Was going to just get dh to take him out as then it’s easier if I’m not there !

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Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:06

Yes if at home I’d refrigerate

OP posts:
BertieBotts · 19/02/2019 22:08

Oh sorry - xposted - but you know, even toddler milk doesn't have very much iron in it. It has got more than cow's milk but the dairy in the formula impedes it being absorbed very well. Cow and Gate got fined over their misleading ad about this.

I can totally appreciate the factor of it being something other than breastmilk he will drink, but in terms of iron content it isn't especially helpful. Does he have a dietician who can advise on things like that?

Can you express still? (I couldn't at that stage) - if you can - it sometimes is possible to induce this after a few days' pumping - that would be a better source of iron and it keeps longer at room temperature. In a bottle nobody would know it was breastmilk.

Here is some information about iron and sugar in toddler formula: www.which.co.uk/reviews/formula-milk/article/choosing-the-right-formula-milk/toddler-formula-milk

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:09

I don’t want to give up bf I don’t mind bedtime and even im the night I just need the day feeds cut down and this seems like 2 ways to do it-add a couple of formula feeds and increase food just so i can get a small break when needed

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Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:13

I was told by the dietician it was breastfeeding that caused his anaemia because he had reflux and couldn’t keep down the vitamin drops I couldn’t give them and she said that breastmilk and even foods like meat green veg chickpeas lentils etc just wasn’t enough as his level was low so best thing was Sytron liquid and introduce a stage 2 or 3 formula as they have more iron

OP posts:
Glitterbugle · 19/02/2019 22:30

I thought that the advise was to lessen milk and increase food intake to avoid anaemia...

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 22:35

I wondered if maybe his reflux medication had stopped him absorbing nutrients but they said def not the case.
The iron liquid seems quite harsh on his stomach too it doesn’t stay down very well
I suppose I’ll see in 8 weeks if this has helped. The main reason though was just to replace some breastfeeds

OP posts:
Graphista · 19/02/2019 23:03

Honestly? I'm wondering why he's not under a specialist gastro to investigate why he's not absorbing nutrients properly.

I think there's more to this than reflux if his iron levels are SO low

Original poster
milkissue · 19/02/2019 23:12

We were told repeat the iron blood test every 3 months. The one time it was just within normal range they said it didn’t count as he had an infection and that would have caused it to rise so it wasn’t a true result?
Maybe I should see the gp and ask for a referral then ?

OP posts:
Graphista · 20/02/2019 02:07

How many tests has he had so far? How long has this been going on?