Advice on how best to make up formula feeds please?

[Chelle1986]

Hi ladies.

Just looking for some experience here really. Am due my first DS is the next 2 weeks or so (38+4) and am a bit confused on all the guidance around formula feeding. I am going to be trying breast feeding initially but want to be fully prepared in case this doesn't work out.

So, I understand the latest advice is to make up each feed as needed - but I can't really understand why my steriliser does 6 bottles at a time if I can't make more than one at once? Surely I am not supposed to sterilise a single bottle every time bubba is hungry? This would a) take forever and b) not be very practical ie leaving child to scream while you sterilise/boil kettle
/cool etc?

How did you approach this (in easy step by step terms if poss - I don't think I have that many brain cells left!!) in terms of making up feeds for the day, going out for the day and also night feeds??

I know my MW would give advice - but you are all always so knowledgeable on everything else I though maybe you could help?

Many thanks in advance.xxxx

This is what worked for me but I am no expert:

Pre-prep: I sterilised the bottles together and left them covered in the steriliser until they were used. I bought a powder dispenser and in the morning I would measure out the powder for each bottle into the dispenser. Then I would boil some water and set it aside in measured amounts to cool down.

When I wanted a bottle (e.g. a 4oz bottle) I would boil the kettle and measure 1 fl.oz of hot water into a clean bottle, add the powder directly to the hot water to kill any bugs in the powder and then add 3 fl.oz of the cooled, boiled water to make it the right temperature for immediate drinking. Obviously, you may have to tweak your ratio of hot to cold. That way you have used the correct volume of liquid, the correct weight of powder, you've used heat to kill any bacteria in the powder and your milk is ready to drink.

In the night I used the same method but with a flask of hot water and when out-and-about I used bought, ready mixed formula.

It would have been much easier for me to persevere with the breast feeding. Good luck!!!

Just thought I'd recommend you buy some Lansinoh lanolin, it is quite expensive for a tube (about £9) but it is amazing stuff - it must be as it made the difference between giving up breastfeeding and continuing until my daughter was 15 months old . If you CAT me, I could send you a few free sachets .

Oh, I used to make the bottles up in advance, store them in the fridge and when I needed to go out I just put them into the insulated part of the changing bag, when needed they weren't too cold and my children (I've got 5) needed feeding they were fine, they didn't mind not having warm milk) and they've all been absolutely fine .

Gettingtogrips: I like your technique, we used room temp bottles nearly from the start but I know that's not what's recommended!

What we also found that measuring out the powder into special containers made life very easy, it's hard to get the count right with a screaming baby beside you, we used tommee tippee containers as they hold up to 6-7oz individually.

Good luck

Me and all my friends all sterilised the bottles, boiled the kettle then measured out the correct amount of water and left to cool. When the bottle was needed, we added the powder and heated it (or used at room temp). This is how all our midwives told us how to do it as making up on demand just isn't practical as a hungry baby isn't going to wait for 30 minutes.

None of our DCs were ever ill because of it.

However, now they are going on again about how bad this is so I am tempted to make them up in advance and store in the fridge and heat when required. I will speak to my midwife and HV at the time and see what they say.

I also agree that the Tommee Tippee powder despensers are fantastic, as is a microwave steriliser. All done in 4 minutes!

My son wasn't very good at BF and also had reflux so I was advised to give him a top up bottle after every BF. This was so unmanageable as by the time i'd done the B/F and top up feed then kept him upright for 1/2hr after it was practically time for the next feed. I ended up doing 3 BF a day and 3 formula feeds instead.
We started off making each feed individually with fully boiling water and then placing it in iced water to cool to drinking termperature but after a while changed to making up the full feeds for the day, cooling them in the fridge amd then heating as required. Personally I would never make up a formula feed with water that had not been heated or that had been heated and allowed to cool before the formula was added.

Thanks all. Pretty much reinforces my own thinking really.

I plan to sterilise the bottles for the day first thing and then make the bottles up ready and store in the fridge until needed and then take the edge off them with the bottle warmer.

Although I do like the sound of the 'adding the last 2oz hot water' when needed to bring to correct temperature.

I agree that making up on demand must be a nightmare - and like someone said - crying baby is not going to wait a half hour for a feed.

Thanks again.xxx