Urgent help required re making bottles

[Vic75]

Please help... I am so confused re making up formula powered milk. Can I make feed and store it in the fridge until my baby is hungry? The SMA instructions say make it when you need to feed your baby but how do I do that when she is screaming for a bottle. It's impossible to feed on demand following the instructions on the tin. I have just made 3 bottles and I want to use them tonight (now) and tomorrow morning but if I follow the instructions I cannot do this. Please tell me how you all managed making and feeding milk. Really hoping I get a response ASAP as I am awake waiting and hoping to get help. THANK YOU

It is not 'advised' now but seriously I don't know anyone who hasn't made up bottles in advance.

That said, I would make sure you are scrupulous around the hygiene eg hands, bottles sterilised etc then if made up and quickly cooled and placed towards the back of the fridge (not in door) they should be fine!

Can cool bottles quicker too if you only use a small amount of boiling water to add to powder (this kills any germs in the powder) then top up with cold (cooled boiled water)

Remember though that if doing this you need to put the hot water in first before powder or the ratios will be wrong! Hope that makes sense!

Hi love, hope you aren't stressing too much.

I believe you have to make up hot as it's the hot water which sterilises the powder killing the bacteria.

From recollection with my 4 year old I think I used to boil the kettle about every 90 mins the first 2 months and have it ready for about every 2 hours. It keeps for an hour once made and it usually worked out fine for us. There were occasions when she would be screaming blue murder though!

At night I used to boil the kettle and put it in a flask so it kept warm and then I just used to add it to the powder and rapidly cool down.

It is hard but it does get easier as they go longer between feeds

Am sure someone with more wisdom will be along with a better way to keep you sane!

Sending hugs as it's so hard

Currently up feeding my 9 week old! X

@Firecarrier Thank you for replying so quickly. I made up the formulation 12:30am and let it cool. I just put them in the fridge. Shall I throw away and start again?

@moleeye Thank you. Advice and hugs gratefully received. Anxiety is high because I have read in so many places that you can make your baby ill if milk isn't made up as the manufacture advises. I do wonder if the milk companies know what it's like to have a screaming baby waiting for a feed.

I wouldn't throw them away, it sounds as though you're quite stressed (understandably) and being super careful. Remember that all those instructions are there to err very much on the side of caution as you can imagine the grimy environments some people make up bottles!

I know how you feel, I breastfed all mine then when I started fostering and had to use formula it really stressed me out

I even got told conflicting things by professionals about whether those tommee tippee things that make it up are safe!

We found the ready made stuff great for those hard nights and for going out, they come in small bottles as well as bigger sizes they do cost more though

I used to make another bottle once little one had finished the first and just tried to keep on top with a fresh one every two hours to begin with, this stage doesn’t last forever although at the time it seems like it will never end

Hi OP, sounds like you're doing it right. Follow the instructions on the tin, not sure of SMA, but all the formulas I've used said 30min wait on 1liter boiled water. The boiled water (70Celsius+ water) sterilises the formula out the box. The made up bottles can then be placed at the back of the fridge to rapidly cool them. If you're baby is happy to drink cold milk straight out of the fridge that's fine and amazing, if not, you can warm the bottle in a mug of warm water. Never the microwave.
Later if you're feeling more confident you can use less hot water and cooled boiled water to make bottles more readily but for now I would just make the bottles a little beforehand and put in the fridge.

Hi OP don’t panic. I use SMA and rarely ever pre make bottles because I always have a bottle of cooled boiled water ready.
If dd has a 6oz bottle for example I boil the kettle and put 2oz into the bottle mix the formula in shake it and then add the teaming (oz from the cooled boiled water so it’s ready to drink really quickly.
But otherwise yeah you can pre make them cool then rapidly and pop in the back of the fridge if you need to.

I put water in the tea kettle beforehand. And room temperature boiled water in a sealed jug.

Then when DS wants a bottle, I boil the kettle (small amount of water so it boils nearly immediately).

Pour 2oz boiling water into bottle, dump in the powder, leave it a moment, then top up with 4oz boiled cooled water. Perfectly warm and bottle is ready less than one minute after I've started.

When he was smaller and taking only 3 Oz I'd still do the 1:2 ratio, 1oz boiling, 2oz room temperature. I adjusted a bit when he went up to 4 and 5oz bottles.

I always used to make up enough feeds for the next 24 hours (usually 8 bottles if I recall correctly) and store it in the fridge.

I did it with a recently boiled and still very hot kettle. Cooled quickly and put in the fridge.

Apparently making them up that far in advance isn't recommended now, but I never had any problems and there was always a feed available when needed.

I always used the microwave to warm them too.

I used to do what topseyt did. It's fine.

Make up the bottles for the night and reheat them from the fridge. I know it says not up now but really the risk is small if you make them properly and cool them quickly.

Or perfect prep machine. I am supplementing with formula and just use cartons of ready made as it's easier but it gets expensive if you're solely formula feeding.

It's the half hour cooling that causes the issue. You're not supposed to use boiling water as it kills the nutrients or something.

If you're formula feeding on demand it may be with investing in a tommee tipee perfect prep machine - ours has been a godsend!

*worth

Manufacturers have their instructions for a reason.
Firstly do not cook hot milk in the fridge - it lowers the temp of the fridge and causes issues with bacteria.

Secondly please do not make up bottles ahead. There are other ways to help ease formula making.

1. Invest in a tommee tippee perfect prep machine. This makes the bottle at the right temperature and very quick and easy to use.

1. When my son was tiny and only drinking small amounts I used to boil water in the kettle and put boiled water in one flask and cooled water in another container (empty bottle, another flask)

I counted the correct ounces of powder and kept in a milk dispenser (£1-£3 in supermarkets)

When my son awoke for milk I would pour the hot water from flask into the bottle, dispense premeasured formula, shake, top up with cool water to correct ounces. Like a pp.

It will get easier. When my son started drinking more I got the tomee tippee machine - and it’s to easy my husband couldn’t get out of it and I’d nudge him up and out to make the milk - and I kept it in the bedroom next door so that we didn’t have to go all the way down to the kitchen.

Good luck x

I used to make 6 bottles up first thing in the morning, then wash all the bottles from during the night & the evening before, load up the steriliser & keep the fresh bottles in the back of the fridge till feeding time, then did the same again in the evening but took some upstairs in a cool bag for during the night. I had lots of bottles so I always did a full load in the steriliser but had enough ready to use. Then every time I needed a bottle, quick warm in microwave, shake & ready.

I would 100% recommend a perfect prep machine! You get a perfect temperature bottle in 30 seconds, which is worth it’s weight in gold when you’ve got a screaming baby

You don’t need prep machines! For night feeds, boil water before bed, cool slightly and put it in a thermos. Keep next to bed. Measure out milk in those tubs with slots you can get from boots. When baby cries, pour out water and add in milk, shake and feed. The water remains warm through the night.

Hi

How olds your baby? Mines 10 weeks and I know he feeds roughly every 3 hours so around then I'll start to make another bottle to be ready for him

At night and when I'm going out - I do that water inna bottle then just add formula when needed (sat feeding now)

Making them up like this isn't exactly advised but I've had no issues so far and it's how every I know with babies (trust me -a lot) has done it.

I've also got a perfect prep so the waters clean

Hi

How olds your baby? Mines 10 weeks and I know he feeds roughly every 3 hours so around then I'll start to make another bottle to be ready for him

At night and when I'm going out - I do that water inna bottle then just add formula when needed (sat feeding now)

Making them up like this isn't exactly advised but I've had no issues so far and it's how every I know with babies (trust me -a lot) has done it.

I've also got a perfect prep so the waters clean

Hi

How olds your baby? Mines 10 weeks and I know he feeds roughly every 3 hours so around then I'll start to make another bottle to be ready for him

At night and when I'm going out - I do that water inna bottle then just add formula when needed (sat feeding now)

Making them up like this isn't exactly advised but I've had no issues so far and it's how every I know with babies (trust me -a lot) has done it.

I've also got a perfect prep so the waters clean

God sake. Sorry for posting three times!! It kept saying it had failed.