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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

Fresh bottle every feed? How do you do yours?

26 replies

Jelliebaby · 15/02/2009 18:58

I have a two week old baby and have been advised to make a fresh bottle every time she is due a feed. She is unpredictable at the moment as to when she wants a feed so boiling the kettle and letting it cool for half an hour is proving to be a nightmare with a screaming baby.

Just wondered if anyone had any tips to make life easier? I am making up 2 bottles at a time at the moment and putting one in the fridge.

OP posts:
LaTrucha · 15/02/2009 19:02

They do boxes of SMA and some others. More expensive but the only safe alternative, I think.

lou222 · 15/02/2009 19:03

you can buy ready made cartons but they re more expensive. i always served at room temp and never bothered warming up! but am mainly bfeeding that's just for the one bottle at night. am sure you don't have to make fresh every time though.

poshtottie · 15/02/2009 19:04

The advice you have been given is right. Could you use ready made for some of the feeds?

HeadFairy · 15/02/2009 19:04

It is a slightly more expensive route, but while things are unpredictable you can always use ready mixed formula, you can pour a little in to a sterile bottle and put the rest in the fridge, that's considered safe to do (whereas formula you make up has to be used within one hour).

Josie3 · 15/02/2009 19:06

we used bottles. We make it up as instructed - then cool it under cold running water. Takes a little bit of time - but not horrific. We now have little flasks to make it up when we're out, and as LO is older now (4mth) she is on a routine, so we can make it half an hour in advance.

hth x

poshtottie · 15/02/2009 19:06

The formula has to be added to the hot water to kill any bacteria.

Original poster
Jelliebaby · 15/02/2009 19:12

I think when DD is a bit older she will be in a routine and it will be easier but at the moment i'm finding it hard, I also think the pre made cartons are too expensive for me.

OP posts:
laumiere · 15/02/2009 19:46

I know it's against the rules (which I think came out in 2005, so before my DS was born), but we boiled enough water for the day, sealed in sterile bottles and allowed to cool, then added powder as needed. DS has had one stomach upset in 2.8 years, which he picked up at nursery. Should also point out he was 9 weeks prem and the hospital were fine with us making up bottles this way.

One of the US MNers was telling us they don't even sterilise over there, just use bottles straight from the dishwasher.

NorktasticNinja · 15/02/2009 19:51

I'm afraid to say the only safe options are a newly made bottle for each feed or ready made formula. I can understand that it's a real PIA but formula powder isn't sterile so needs to be treated properly, the Bad Things that can happen are rare but really very serious.

NorktasticNinja · 15/02/2009 19:51

PITA even...

CherryChoc · 15/02/2009 20:17

laumiere, my birth to 5 NHS book says US dishwashers run at a higher temperature to the ones we have in this country and that is not safe to do here.

lizziemun · 15/02/2009 20:22

I have always made up bottles of water and kept in fridge until needed.

Then warm water in the microwave then add powder and shake to mix (and get rid of any hotsopts).

Both dd's would never take bottles cold, so i have always heated them.

bitofadramaqueen · 15/02/2009 20:33

here are the guidelines on preparing formula.

Making up a fresh feed each time is recommended. There are guidelines for making up feeds in advance if it is not possible to make up a fresh feed.

I personally used the making up in advance guidelines for every day use, but would always recommend that anyone thinking about deviating from the official guidance should read these before coming to a decision.

Oh, when I started off and DS was being fed on demand, I boiled the kettle and then kept the water in a thermos flask for up to 8 hours so the water didn't fall below 70C. Then at least I didn't have to wait for the kettle to cool for half an hour.

HTH.

Monkeytrousers · 15/02/2009 20:34

Cartons and then use a microwave to heat up - 20 secs

Jenice · 15/02/2009 21:01

bitofadramaqueen I did the thermos flask thing also which was a lot easier than the waiting for 30 mins. It also meant that I could easily make a bottle while out as the formula I was using did not come in ready made cartons. I would measure out the formula and put it in tommee tippee powder containers and take it with me ready to mix with the water. They are easy to pour into the bottle and much cheaper than ready made cartons.

It is really upsetting to listen to your LO crying out of hunger while you wait for the stupid kettle to cool.

bitofadramaqueen · 15/02/2009 21:05

I used those tommee tippee containers too jenice. I found the whole bottle making thing a bit of a nightmare - I had always planned to bf, it all went horribly wrong and I must have purchased every single piece of bottlefeeding equipment known to mankind while I figured out how to go about it.

Ewe · 15/02/2009 21:06

Here is what I have always done, my DD is on 7oz bottles so you will need to amend this depending on how much milk you need.

Always have a bottle of cooled boiled water ready.

Get out bottle, boil kettle and put 2oz of hot water into the bottle. Add 7 scoops of formula.

Get bottle of cooled boiled water and add 5oz of the cold water. Shake and voila!

Meets all the rules and regs and takes no time at all.

Ceebee74 · 15/02/2009 21:13

I do exactly what Ewe has said - seems to be the safest (and cheaper than ready made) way and doesn't require space in the fridge!

Plus, as long as you get the ratio of hot/cold water correct, the bottles are the perfect temperature.

I do use ready made formula for when we are out though.

cupcake76 · 16/02/2009 14:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

memoo · 16/02/2009 14:58

when my DC were born 8 and 10 years ago the advice was you could make bottles upto 24hrs in advance as long as they were stored in the fridge.

Neither of my DC had any problems, why has the advice changed???

GrapefruitMoon · 16/02/2009 15:01

I was wondering the same memoo - when I switched to formula I always made up the bottles in one batch, once a day.

memoo · 16/02/2009 15:03

its confusing isn't it. I am pregnant with no3 and can't believe how much advice changes in such a short time

kiddiz · 16/02/2009 16:00

Blimey how times change!! When I ff my ds1 20 years ago I used to make up a day's feeds in one go and keep them in the fridge. I then used to warm them as needed in hot water. He never had a stomach upset in the whole time I did this. Everybody I knew did the same and I can't remember any of them having upset tummies. It was what the hospital, midwife and hv told me to do.
Has the way formula is made changed? Or were we all just extremely lucky?
BTW I am not one of those "never did mine any harm" parents I just wondered why the change in advice given that I can't remember there ever being a huge problem with stomach upsets when my ds1 was a baby.

Ceebee74 · 16/02/2009 16:03

DS1 is only 2.7 years old and I used to make all his bottles up and store them in the fridge - so the advice has only changed VERY recently.

I don't know why - I wouldn't have known any different but I read a thread on here when I was pg with DS2 and discovered that things had changed. And tbh, me and DH were wondering where the hell we would put 6-8 bottles in the fridge anyway so the way I do it now has saved that hassle

poppy34 · 16/02/2009 16:22

I think the guidelines change due to some very serious incidents on the continent where formula wasn't made up with boiled (or near as damn it boiled water) -the fact that the advice in the continent re making up bottles is still differet (in france at least they continue to suggest using mineral water to do it).. is somewhat confusing.
but think ewe's suggestion is the best if you can't do cartons

and tbh dh still made up bottles in advance if he was there on basis that was what he did for older kids...

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