Formula feeding mums need your help please

[Nanny4u]

I am training as a maternity nurse and am trying to complete a part of my assignment on formula feeding... I just want your advice on the ways you make up your bottles and store the formula milk?

The problem I am having is every book or website I look on advises something different.....am completely getting my knickers in a twist over this, which I know I shouldn't as have made up lots bottles before. Just not sure what is right now

do u keep water at room temp and then add powder as required?

do u make up bottles with water and then put in fridge and reheat with formula?

Do u make up bottles with formula and store in fridge for 24hrs?

Do make up feeds as u go along?

Thanks very much x

I'm not a FF but the current advice is: boil water, allow to cool to no less than 70 degrees C, add water to formula, use asap. What people actually do varies.

On the back of the tins of formula, I think they are advising to make the bottles up as you go..boil water, pour in bottle, add formula, cool down....hope this helps.

no, you're doing a survey, which is pointless as you'll end up with a load of hooey about how x or y never did my kid any harm. the way to make up bottles safely is using water at 70degrees (this kills the bacteria in the powder), cooling it if necessary under a running tap and then giving it to the baby immediately.

no room temp, no fridge, no storing.

whatever else people do in the privacy of their own homes is of no interest to you because as a professional you must surely be obliged to advise best practice.

i'd imagine you'll be sued if your advice were to be anything that led to the death of a child, as making up with water under 70degs has done in the past.

please follow the new and current advice , rather than doing what a load of strangers off the internet advise

local maternity units and health visitors can give you copies of the NHS bottle feeding leaflet.

totally agree with aitch re best practice

Agree with Aitch. I know my SIL has decided to do with her dd exactly what she did with her ds but what she is doing does breach the guidelines. Her ds and dd are perfectly fine btw!
However, as a childcare professional, you must follow guidelines because ultimately if a child became ill or God forbid, died, the respnsibility would lie with you.

OK, here's what I do. It's a bit of a faff but it's safe and easy to make up a bottle quickly.
I sterilise bottles in advance and keep them made up and empty (for no longer than 24hours)
I also sterilise little bottles and fill them with 4oz boiled water. These go into the fridge (for no longer than 24hours)
When I need to make up a bottle, I boil the kettle, put 3oz boiling water into the sterilised bottle, add 7 scoops of formula and shake well. This kills any nasties in the formula. Then I add the 4oz of cold water from the fridge and shake again. This usually gets the bottle to about the right temp to serve, but if not, a quick run under the cold tap does it.
DS is very obliging and usually finishes a bottle in one sitting. If not, I chuck the rest away.

Completely agree with Aitch. As a trainee maternity nurse you should only be following the guidelines!

Did you not cover this in the course? I am a maternity nurse and am a bit surprised if they didn't. The advice has changed since I did my training though I always keep up to date on what is best practice.

Nanny4u - the UK DH/NHS/Food Standards guidelines on this are pretty clear and consistent, and I would wonder why is your course not directing you to them?

To all. Thank you for help, I am sorry if I have affended anyone.... I had not meant for it to.

I think under the stress of trying to get all of my coursework done by brain has gone a bit to jelly so just wanted some extra reasurrance. Also i would never use not boiled water and I do understand the risks that would happen. After re reading my thread not sure if it comes across when I said water, I meant that it would be boiled water not straight the tap or anything. , ,

I don't bottle feed (except for one in the evening) - but am interested how do people manage when they are out?

I made up battles with water and stored in fridge, reheated in microwave to appropriate feeding temperature, and served to baby.

spottedandstriped, as i say what people do in the privacy of their own home/when out and about is not relevant. nanny is a professional, she can't go pissing around making up ways to do it, she has to give people the correct, safe information and then leave them to it. she'll be finished in her career if lackadaisical advice harms a child. (she does seem to have missed the point of the recently boiled water, worryingly).

for the record. it's easy enough to get a teapot full of boiling water and a glass of cold from a cafe, or use a flask and a bottle.

you take the powder in a powder tub, mix with less boiling water than you need to make the whole bottle, shake, then add cold to taste. or sometimes i'd fill the bottle with boiling water if i knew that dd would be drinking it within about half an hour of leaving the house, so i'd be fine.

tbh it's just another good reason to encourage your clients to persevere with bfing, nanny4u, safe bottle-feeding is a pita these days.

I did the same as ThatBigGermanPrison. If I was out I heated the water in a mug of boiling water, then added the powder.

nanny4u, which course are you doing?

I make up a days feed and warm them when needed. I know you are supposed to make them up fresh but it really isnt easy with a screaming baby.