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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Making up formula - do you follow the rules??

213 replies

MumtoHarry · 06/03/2008 10:11

We have just moved Harry onto formula and I am worrying about how I should make it up ... does everyone follow the new guidelines about making it up with boiled water cooled for less than 30 mins, and then let that cool enough for the baby to drink it (which seems a real faff - and a bit impossible to get the timing right if you are letting the baby demand-feed)... or do people make up the bottles of cooled boiled water in advance (and make up the feed with water at room temp)... or do people make the feed up in advance and keep in in the fridge?? I am probably over-thinking this, but it all seems SO much hassle to do it properly and yet if baby was ill because I couldn't be arsed to get it right I'd feel awful ....

OP posts:
tiktok · 10/03/2008 13:49

You don't wait 30 mins - you wait no more than 30 mins

You can do it straight away if you want, except some powders don't mix well immediately.

FAQ · 10/03/2008 14:06

hehe tiktok - have you ever tried to shake a bottle of baby milk to mix it when it's made with water that has only just boiled

wurlywoo · 10/03/2008 14:10

Anyone else confuzed??? I am definately,think I have been doing things really wrong, I always thought to use freshly boiled water but how can you leave it 30 mins as this will no longer be 100 deg hence I dont believe it can destroy the bacteria in the formula that may be present.

Lulumama · 10/03/2008 14:12

the NHS and the NCT had leaflets on the correct way to do it, you can download the ones from the NCT .

misdee · 10/03/2008 14:17

blimey this is all confusing. glad i dont need to make bottles up anymore.

casting my mind back over 5years now, i used to take bottles out of steralister. fill bottles to 6oz mark, put lids on. leave on side to cool down. when dd2 wanted a feed, i would boil the kettle, top the bottle to 8oz and then add the powder. perfect temp for her.

no idea if that was wrong though

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:19

FAQ - what's the problem? You put the cover/lid on the bottle and shake gently from side to side...if it's too hot to hold, wear an oven glove

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:21

wurly - read the rest of the thread. 70 deg c is enough to prevent harm from the bacteria. It doesn't have to be 100 deg c.

Lulumama · 10/03/2008 14:23

it is actually not confusing!!

the confusing thing is that 18 months ago it was different. and peopel always have their own way of doing thing, which throws people off the new way.

the guidelines are there

you can follow them or not

Aitch · 10/03/2008 14:30

it's not in the slightest bit confusing, it's very clear. it's only confusing if you don't want to do it and are pretending you don't understand...

seona's WHO leaflet is for what is acceptable if you don't have access to hot water. it in no way says 'yeah, go for it, put away your kettles'.

wurlywoo · 10/03/2008 14:33

I am very worried now as i fear that I have been doing it totally wrong, in any case unless you get a bloody thermometer how the hell do you know it has cooled to 70 degrees before you add it to the formula??

This is my first so I am feeling that I am the worst mum ever only because I have been doing things to make things easier on myself.

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:35

wurly - read the guidance! It says 30 mins is a useful enough rule of thumb...but you don't have to wait this long, just no longer than this!!

Aitch · 10/03/2008 14:36

you leave it for no more than 30 mins, that's how. and then you cool the bottle down to drinkable level under the tap.

look, as i have mentioned on the thread, there are alternative safe methods, have you read the rest of the posts?

Lulumama · 10/03/2008 14:37

www.nct.org.uk/press-office/press-releases/view/69 info here and a link to download the leaflet

using water within 30 minutes of boiling is hot enough to kill bugs

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:37

And who's talking about thermometers? Boiling is 100 deg c. Make the feed then if you wish. If this is not convenient, then wait, but no longer than 30 mins. This will ensure your water is no cooler than 70 deg C.

Sorry, and all that, but what is difficult about that??!

FAQ · 10/03/2008 14:38

thing is I'm sure if you do it too hot (ie just boiled) it alters it somehow......

DS3 won't drink it if I make the bottle up too soon after boiling the kettle and having tasted them myself - yuck! - to see what the difference was the taste is definitely different if they're made up with just boiled water...

wurlywoo · 10/03/2008 14:42

well so far it hasnt been a problem using just boiled water but now I will have to rethink. Thanks for the advice will read the leaflets and make up my own mind.

Gosh, wish I hadnt moved from breastfeeding now

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:42

FAQ - then you will adapt your preparation routine to your baby's likes and dislikes.

Don't see the problem.

If it was a health issue (boiling meaning a different taste) this would be part of the guidance.

tiktok · 10/03/2008 14:43

wurly - using just-boiled water is fine. Why do you need to re-think?

Aitch · 10/03/2008 14:45

wurly, what is it that you are doing at the moment?

Monkeybird · 10/03/2008 15:10

this has been a very helpful thread. I'd be interested to know what people do with these guidelines when returning to work etc. I'm sure in the old days when I sent DS1 to nursery, we had to send in pre-made bottles of formula too. This isn't the best recommendation based on these guidelines is it? I might check with my nursery in case (though am hoping not to need to send bottles and get back to BF & water only by then...)

Rachel32 · 10/03/2008 19:32

Lulumama, thanks for posting this link, I'm so pleased the NCT are highlighting the issue. The press release will be very useful to use as a handout to new parents. The NHS bottle feeding leaflet gives accurate infomation and explains things clearly but people tend to disregard this and follow the instructions on the formula pack, or advice from Carelines which contradicts DOH Guidelines.

link repeated in case anyone missed it
www.nct.org.uk/press-office/press-releases/view/69

Treeny · 10/03/2008 22:20

Haven't read every message on this thread and am a bit late in joining the debate - but here goes. I've bottle-fed two babies, both from a few days/weeks after birth, and haven't had any problems. I've always followed the advice in Clare Byam-Cook's book 'What to expect when you're breast-feeding...and what if you can't'. On making up bottles, she advises boiling the kettle, cooling it for 10 mins (tho I often leave for 30 mins or so), making up bottles with water and milk powder, then putting the bottles straight in the fridge without leaving them to cool first (on the grounds that the sooner bottles are cooled, the sooner any germs will stop multiplying). She advises that you can make bottles for the next 24 hours in this way, and that's what I've always done, without any ill effects that I've been aware of.

Why make things more complicated than they need to be??

NellyTheElephant · 10/03/2008 22:34

From the links that have been attached the implication seems to be that it doesn't matter what temp the water is when the bottle is made up provided that it is consumed immediately. Can somebody confirm whether my understanding is correct or if I am being thick???????????

In the NCT leaflet just attached by Rachel32 it states "formula made with water at 50°C ?generally results in the greatest increase in risk?, according to WHO, unless it is consumed immediately". So am I right in surmising that if you add the powder to water at a temp that is below the magic 70 degrees, (whether at the most dangerous temperature of 50 degrees or otherwise), but then give it to the baby immediately this is generally acepted to be safe??

I only ask because I hope to have another DC in the not too distant future and I am horribly lazy and would prefer not to change my habits unless I have to. If it is safe to add formula to cooled boiled water and give it immediately then I'd like to stick with that............

Aitch · 11/03/2008 10:36

look if you don't want to change what you're doing then you can find justification somewhere, i'm sure. it doesn't alter the fact that there's a bug in the powder which, if you're child is affected by it, has a 30-50% chance of fatality and it is killed at 70degs. it's a very small chance tbh that your baby will get it, but if they do, living with yourself if something happens might be a bit tricky.

Lulumama · 11/03/2008 10:40

perhaps claire byam-cook wrote her book before these new guidelines were issued? making up a days worth of feeds is not what the guidelines say

to all of those who think it is confusing, read the NCT and the NHS leaflets and links.

if you don;t want to change the way you are making up bottles now or in the future, then that is your decision!!

if you can afford it, use cartons of milk for the first few weeks until the baby is a bit more predictable