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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

formula-fed babies, boiled and sterilising fuss required for 6 month old baby?

12 replies

Mimsy2000 · 15/04/2009 15:57

so without starting a rant about health visitors, i have just returned home with the most perplexing information on formula feeding babies at 6+months. can anyone clarify for me the following?

for a 6 month old formula fed baby...

  • he's taking SMA gold, should I move on to SMA Stage 2 or 3?
  • do i need to continue to use cooled boiled water when mixing with formula or can i just use tap water?
  • should i be sterilising bottles (i'm not and havent' since 4 months b/c it seemed totally ridiculous)?
  • how much water should he be getting throughout the day?

any clarity help appreciated!

OP posts:
tiktok · 15/04/2009 16:04

Did your HV not answer these, or did she just confuse you?
Anyway:

  • no reason to swap to another formula if you don't want to. There is no advantage in switching
  • boiling the water and then cooling it - to no cooler than 70 deg C - reduces the risk of infection from the powder, which persists no matter what the age of the baby
  • I don't see any reason to sterilise bottles for an older baby as long as you keep them very clean, though official guidance would say to continue

Can't answer the water question, and it seems to me there is no answer to this - there is no 'must have' amount of water at any age

LackaDAISYcal · 15/04/2009 16:04

no need for stage 2 milks if he is fine with the stage 1. Both of my older ones were on first stage milk until they were one (DS from five weeks and DD from 10.5 months)

you need to use water hotter than 70 degrees to mix the formula regardless of baby's age to make sure any bacteria (which can be present) in the milk powder are killed off. accordng to the leaflets available you shouldn't even be using cooled boiled water and should make bottles up on an as needed basis. I used to use half boiled water to the right amount of powder and then top up with tap water (after 6mo) to get it to the right temp

I wouldn't bother sterilising for a baby older than six months who is lying on the floor and putting all sorts of grubby toys in their mouths.

LackaDAISYcal · 15/04/2009 16:05

oh, and on the water; I can't remember what I did with DS1, but with DD she had a small cup of water with solid meals and milk at other times.

StarlightMcEggzie · 15/04/2009 16:11

Make sure the water is very hot for mixing with formula and then cool.

You can and should offer tap water with meals.

No need to sterelise anything

Stick with the formula your baby likes.

hth

LackaDAISYcal · 15/04/2009 16:16

I'm intrigued as to what she actually told you mimsy?

Original poster
Mimsy2000 · 15/04/2009 16:53

thanks so much for the info. very much appreciated - straight answers in short supply!

so i hate to be annoying but i'm just not getting the issue with having boiled water with the formula. what is it about boiling the water [and cooling it?] and then mixing with formula that makes it safer....?

lacka - it was an idiotic conversation. i went to her with pretty straightforward questions and she just bombarded me with the 'introduce a cup!' 'get him on three meals a day' and then saying everything still had to be sterilised for the first year. when i tried to get clarity it turned into a conversation on third world gastroenteritis rates. i then made a crack about our similarities with the third world, which went down like a lead balloon but made me feel better

OP posts:
pooka · 15/04/2009 16:55

My understanding is that the water mixed with the formula should not be any cooler than 70 degrees. That is in order that the heat from the water will kill any bacteria lurking in the dried milk (which it can).

StarlightMcEggzie · 15/04/2009 16:55

The formula has to hit the water when it is hot (to kill the bacteria in the formula), THEN it has to cool so it doesn't burn the baby.

StarlightMcEggzie · 15/04/2009 16:57

If you mix formula with cold water and then warm it, you are creating the perfect breading ground for dangerous bacteria.

LackaDAISYcal · 15/04/2009 17:07

why are HVs obsessed by getting them on three square meals a day at this age? Has no-one told them that milk is still the most important source of nutrition at this age? the cup thing; it's good practice to get them used to a cup ealry on, but my older two had their milk from a bottle, especially first and last thing until around a year old.

The water has to be hot enough to kill off any nasties which may either be already in the milk powder or introduced after it has been opened. the main culprits are enterobacter sakozii and e-coli but I think infection is pretty rare. there have been fatalities though so better to be safe than sorry.

It isn't easy to calmly tell a hungry baby that they need to wait for the water to cool though. Using half the amount of boiled water to mix the powder and topping it up with either cooled boiled water (under 6mo) or cold from the tap (over 6mo) is a good way of doing it. Just watch the quantities.

StarlightMcEggzie · 15/04/2009 17:15

Thanks for that LackaDAISYcal. I've always wondered how it is done.

Original poster
Mimsy2000 · 15/04/2009 20:09

got it re: the formula/water thing. thanks.

and yeah, top tip re: boiled water/cool water ratio lackadaisycal. cheers.

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