Formula feeding - advice needed please

[YellowLionDots45]

DD is now 2 weeks old and is home after being readmitted to hospital for a week after being born.

BF has not worked out and we're now looking at formula feeding exclusively. I'm just wondering what methods people find best for preparing bottles?

The Prep machine and Nuby rapid cool seem popular, does anyone have experience of either?

I know the NHS recommends the kettle method but I can't see how it's possible to do this and also feed responsively if we have to wait for the kettle to boil and cool each time!

I used both. Perfect prep at home, rapid cool when out and about. We formula fed from day one and had a good experience.

Some people will warn against prep machines - like with much of parenting it comes down to personal choice, but we couldn't have lived without ours and I was happy the water was at the right temp etc.

I liked the perfect prep. It’s just makes everything so easy. I also used the readymade at the start when DD was drinking tiny amounts and for out and about. It’s useful if they will drink room temp milk when out and about so you don’t have to bother warming bottles.

If you use the kettle method you can boil it then keep it hot in an insulated thermos type flask so you don’t have to boil it each time. I found with the kettle method I could get a bit sloppy with the amount of water which is fine after 6 months but not for a newborn.

I had a flask with the temperature thing on top. So long as it’s above 70degrees it’s safe. Mine stayed above that for around 4 hours.

baby will also over time develop their own routine so you will know when they are likely to want a bottle.

i formula fed both of mine. Perfect prep didn’t exist the first time around and neither did the temperature flasks which honestly was a god send.

i also used glass bottles second time around and they seem to cool down much faster.

Thanks everyone! We're using the ready-made currently and will probably keep doing so for out and about but the Perfect Prep sounds like it'd be handy for home

The Nuby rapid cool was an absolute golden purchase for us, we used it with every bottle.

Also used a Milton cold water steriliser and left the Nuby and bottles in there until we needed them. Also pre made formula was really helpful when out and about - can just pop in a cafe and ask for some hot water to warm the milk up.

You can use the kettle method like a perfect prep - 1/2pz of kettle water to mix with the powder, then add the extra oz in cold water to bring it to drinking tempt.¹

Does the rapid cool need washed and sterilised after every use? I'm trying to work out if it's feasible with the feeds being so frequent at the min!

Yeah you are meant to sterilise them after every wash, which is why the cold water steriliser was really handy because you just chuck it in for 15 minutes and it’s done.

You can use something called the “hot shot method” if you have a look on Instagram reels or tik tok it’s easy to find, where it doesn’t need repeatedly sterilising because it’s only had boiling water inside it.

Hi,
We have been using both for our 13 week old as he wasn’t able to breastfeed - prep machine at night and the nuby during the day and baby is doing very well!
Just wanted to say that our local midwives and health visitors said that the nuby is a good method and follows nhs guidelines (boiled water).
Hope this helps x

In the early months I just made 6 feeds at a time - all with hot water. Chilled them in a sink bowl of cold water and put them in the fridge.

Congratulations on your new baby. Hope you're settling into life after the hospital remission. We used both of these. Perfect prep was a godsend especially for night feeds. There are lots that warn against them but as long as you clean them and change filter as per manufacturer guidance we never had a problem. We had a very refluxy baby which resolved after tongue tie was cut so it certainly wasn't down to the prep machine in
Our case. We used the rapid cool for our and about and on holiday etc we tweaked how we used it. The instructions indicate making the formula up within the flask. We would measure out the hot water into his MAM bottle then pour most into the cooling flask retaining a 'hot shot' in the MAM
Bottle to add the formula too. We would then add in the cooled water from the cooling flask. We would still sterilize the flasks each day but for us this allowed us to make multiple bottles if our for the day and when we travelled abroad. Our baby wasn't a fan of ready to feeds (and Kendamil RTF was like gold dust at the time) so this enabled us to make fresh bottles for him xx

I use ready made formula when small (way less wind) but it is £££.

Then formula and rapid cools with cold water sterilisation when very little.
it a doddle.
You make the feed, rinse, dump it in milton. Next time you need it.... rinse in boiling water briefly and make as usual. Then rinse and Dump back into bowl with milton.

As baby gets bigger i used to just wash and rinse them as you pour boiling hot water in anyway 🤷🏻‍♀️

We actually have 4 rapid cools 😅
3 for house and 1 for going out.
I'm obsessed they are so good...

I think the tt perfect prep cant be trusted. Too many dont heat to correct temperature there's the mold issue and i dont like that its not portable. With rapid cool its boiling hot water.

We have a perfect prep and it’s great. Like a pp I also have a Milton cold water steriliser and just leave the bottles there til we need them.

Out and about I tend to just use pre-made formula which is obviously pricier but much more convenient.

My one tip is to pick a formula brand that’s stocked everywhere! My first we used Aldi own brand and it was a mare when our local Aldi ran out, which they did often. Now we use cow and gate for our second and you can buy it basically anywhere

Just be aware of the reason the perfect prep is not recommended. Formula powder is not sterile so it is up to the person making the feeds to kill any bacteria in the powder. This requires water of at least 70C to make up the feed.

When preparation machines were tested the water was not 70C or more in 85% of cases. This means only 15% of machines were giving water at the correct temperature to kill bacteria in the milk.

This is why the kettle method is preferred.

If you choose to use a machine please get a digital thermometer and check the temp of the water.

I was going to suggest exactly this. We've got a perfect prep and it was a godsend with DD3 but DS is a prince and likes his milk warmer than the machine makes it so we have to use the kettle but get away with the machine for nightfeeds. Thankfully he only has 1 feed overnight.

You can do the kettle method and make 6 at a time, put in the fridge and use within 24 hours. Loads and loads of advice is make fresh every time, but then at the very bottom they will say that this method is still fine.

I have a a bottle with cold water always ready so I can make milk the perfect temp .
I put the formula in a empty bottle , put in an ounce or so of just boiled kettle water and then top up with the cold to the right amount ( remembering that the powdered formula does push the water up so for 6oz of milk it will
Come up as about 7oz in the bottle )

We used the ready made bottles for the first month or 2 while baby wasn't drinking very much at a go but then got a prep machine and never looked back!

This is what we did.
It's a perfectly safe and very easy method.

We've just switched to formula and do the 'human hot shot' or kettle method I think people call it too.
Half boiled, add formula, half cooled - perfect bottle. And no need for the extra equipment of perfect prep! We have a boiling water tap though which makes it easier - which for us was not much more than the perfect prep machine and far more useful haha
Although we were abroad when we started formula feeding and they actually recommend the opposite - half boiling, half cooled and then add formula - 'to stop the boiling water degrading nutrients in the formula'- so not sure the temp of the water can win either way!!

Perfect prep is not recommended due to the temp of hot shot not being high enough. We basically did our own version. In evening boil full kettle, pour in a clean jug and then when cooled put in back of fridge. To make a 4oz bottle for example, 1oz fresh boiled water from kettle, add powder, then top up with 3oz cool boiled water from fridge. Easiest thing ever and fresh bottles each time