Bottle Feeding - advice needed for FTM please!

[Dav87]

Hi! I’m a first time Mum so please excuse me if these are silly questions - just want to get it right!
I will be bottle feeding my baby from birth, but there’s SO much I feel like I need to know - if any bottle feeding experts could give me some advice it would be so appreciated!

How do I know which bottles and teats to get? There are so many to choose from!
How do I choose which formula to use?
Do I need a prep machine?
What other essentials do I need?

Feeling completely overwhelmed 😢 x

Hi, sorry I'm no help either but really want to follow this post as I'm feeling the same struggle!! Hope your pregnancy is going great! Xx

I think you adapt as you go according to you baby. Don't overthink it and keep as simple as poss.

Tommy tippee bottles and tests (just get three for now)
Aptimil formula plus small cartons of ready made for convenience.
You don't need a prep machine.
You do need some form of steriliser. I used a cold water one and Milton.

Bottle type is down to choice, we used nuby or tommee tippee because that's what we happened to be bought by a family friend just in case. Size 0 teats to start the you move up as baby grows.

Formula is very much the same, personally I used ALDI mamia which was £6 a tin as opposed to some others that are up to £12 a tin. You only need first milk, not hungry baby, follow on or anything else. Just stage 1.

I dont like perfect prep machines, too worried about the mould aspect and water not being heated properly. I used premade cartons for the first 6 weeks as per our local hospital advice.

You'll need bottle brushes and a steriliser- you can get cold water steriliser (milton), electric sterilisers and microwave ones.

I would also advise to get a thermos for when you're our and about and will need to take hot water with you.

You'll be fine! Every next step feels overwhelming but we get through

I used avent natural bottles with all 3 of my children but theres loads out there that's similar.
You need a steriliser, I like electric ones personally but I have had a microwave one that worked just as good.
I've always used cow&gate formula, it just suited all my children so I stuck with it
You dont need a prep machine but I did have one with my middle and youngest child just for the convenience of night feeds x

Hi, congratulations on your pregnancy!

I was planning to breastfeed but unfortunately it didn't go as planned!

I did pre purchase bottles just in case. I bought the anti colic tommee tippee bottles, they have a valve which also changes colour if milk is too hot for baby. I found these really helpful and you can see the bubbles collect near the valve so this helps avoid a gassy stomach. I just used the slow flow teats which came with the bottle and baby was fine with them.

I also purchased a tommee tippee electric steriliser, it holds up to 5 bottles but in the beginning just needed three. Really easy to use and bottles are done in 5 minutes.

We did purchase the prep machine but if I'm honest, we don't make much use of it! Just got into the habit of preparing bottles the normal way, i do sometimes use it if I'm home alone and my son is rather demanding for his bottle!

For formula I used SMA first stage and it seems to be fine for my son. My husband also purchased the pre made milk cartons - 200ml, these were useful in the hospital and when we go out and about.

Formulas are very similar by law, so use what you can get easily at the local store incase you drop the box and spill it all over the floor and you need to get some more as short notice.

Bottles, I used tommee tippee for one and mam ones for the second as she had reflux and they helped. It's just personal choice. First size teats to start with.

Steriliser get something quite tall as the mam bottles aren't a great fit in the tommee tippee steriliser as they are much taller. Still fit but can only fit 4 rather than 6.

Perfect prep is really good as the new way to make each bottle up fresh is hard (takes a while) with just a kettle and cooling under the tap. Not impossible and you don't need one. If mine broke I'd buy another.

You also need to work out how you are going to feed whilst out. I used a flask and took boiling water and formula in a pot and bottle and then cooled down in cold water. Or if I knew that baby was due one within an hour I'd make at home and then take with me. You can also buy pre made little bottles.

I use Tommy Tippee Closer to Nature or Nuby for my fosterling. I am ancient, I had my birth children in the days before Perfect Prep machines but I have one for FosterBaby and all I can say is, oh my word it has made life easier! They aren't essential but they are convenient.

Oh and I use Aldi milk for the same reason as someone else said, it is £7 a tin and compares well to the rest of the market not only that but FosterBaby has less reflux on it.

I highly recommend MAM bottles. My 2nd had awful colic and they were a life saver. I didnt realise bottles made so much difference.

I use a perfect prep, it's a life saver for night feeds when your hungry baby is screaming the house down and doesn't want to wait for bottles to cool down or heat up.

First baby we used hipp organic formula. She did well on that. Baby 2 has dairy and soya allergy so on dairy free prescription formula.

Teats start with size 1.

As for the steriliser, I use the tommee tippee as we had those bottles first then switched to mam. However they are self sterilising using a microwave (dont have one).

Hope this helps! Xx

I tried to breastfeed but failed. I did work out a great trick for perfect temperature bottles.
Keep hot water in a thermos (you'll need to refill twice a day so it stays super hot)
Keep cold boiled water in a clean bottle in the fridge.
Add scoops to a clean bottle...say for a 5 oz feed, you'd add 5 scoops.
Then measure 2oz hot water from the thermos (measure in an empty bottle before pouring into the formula) and stir
Then measure and add 3oz of the cold water from the fridge.
Shake and check temperature before feeding.
Always ready to go, no need to cool and a lifesaver when baby is screaming the house down at 3am!!

Congratulations OP, we had planned for bf but it didn't work out. After lots of research we decided MAM bottles but bottom line was we didn't know whether he would take to them until he actually tried them. We got a few free samples from the baby and toddler show. Size 0 teats, he was fine with them and we purchased a set including the steriliser which doubled up as a food warmer. MAM bottles are self sterilising if you have a microwave. We went with Aptamil but again its pretty much your little one will choose. The hospital gives you a choice of premade sterilised formula. We asked at the time for Aptamil but others asked for SMA etc. We pondered the perfect prep but decided it was a waste of money as thermal flasks could do the same job.

NHS bottle feeding advice page is handy for the most up to date recommendations.

My first was bottle fed and took Tommee Tippee closer to nature bottles but my second who was mostly breastfed was a fussy bugger and preferred NUK bottles. I would go for the NUK again tbh as they stayed clear and markings didn't fade as they did over time with the TT ones. Although #1 is 14 now so they may have improved!

We didn't use a perfect prep as they weren't around then and I don't think I'd bother with one now as there is a lot of scepticism from health care professionals about whether the temps are consistent enough and the cleanliness of the inner parts. Plenty of people love them though so it may well with for you.

Thank you so much everyone - such good advice here :) x

I've bottle fed two babies, 5 years apart. Perfect Prep wasn't around the first time, but I used one with my second and found it amazing, would certainly recommend one. You'll read a lot of horror stories about people finding black mould in them, but providing you use the correct filters and run a clean once a month it's fine.

MAM bottles are brilliant because you don't need to use a separate steriliser, you can take the bottles apart, put water in the bottom and then stack them back together and put them straight in the microwave. Was much, much easier than using a separate steriliser and saves space in the kitchen.

I used Aptimil formula. You can get pre made bottles with teats for in the hospital (you may not have anywhere to wash and sterilise bottles there). It's not cheap but it is convenient. For those first few days at home when you're trying to establish a feeding routine, I used readymade formula that you keep in the fridge and pour straight into the bottle. From around ten days I switched to the powdered formula and a Perfect Prep machine.