Your questions on breast, bottle and mixed feeding have been answered by MAM's expert midwife, Katie Hilton

[BellaMumsnet]

Whether you’re a first time parent or have had babies before, feeding newborns and infants can raise a host of questions. Katie Hilton, MAM’s expert midwife and nurse, is here to help you find answers.

Katie is a dual qualified nurse, midwife and health visitor. Her experience has been mainly in labour delivery, postnatal and public/family health settings in hospitals and in the community. She has experience working with families in the UK, North America and Asia. Her specialist areas include infant feeding, sleep and child development. She currently practises independently as a midwife and health visitor and provides specialist advice to parents and families on behalf of the parenting press and nursery industry brands.

Here’s what MAM has to say: “Here at MAM we believe in supporting every mum on their feeding journey, whichever journey they choose. We want mums to join us in supporting each other, whether you opted for breast, bottle, or combination feeding, MAM has a solution to help parents feel confident and babies feel good. We know lots of parents end up opting for combination feeding - ie using a combination of breast and bottle feeding, whether with breastmilk or formula milk - and this can be a tricky thing to get good advice on, so if you've got any combi-feeding questions we'd love to hear them. Any question or experience shared could go on to help another mum out there.”

So whatever your question about feeding babies, if you'd like some advice please post your questions on this thread for Katie to answer. Katie will be back between the 25th January and the 5th February to answer your questions.

All who share a question on the thread below will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky Mumsnet user will win a £200 voucher for a store of their choice.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Insight Terms and Conditions apply

@OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea
I APOLOGISE profusely. I DID not mean it is as nutritional and good as breastmilk. I speak from experience with 3 diffrent powdered milks. Cant remember the name of the one I used for my son 20 years ago but I remember the one I used 6 years ago and didnt like the taste or smell of. Aptamil is the one I used for my 3 year old from the age of 1 as I felt she needed the extra vitamins it contained. She didnt like the taste of semi skimmed milk then so it was a stepping stone from breast milk which she had for a year. Nothing can substitute breastmilk and I dont actually know about the advertising...? ....as I tend to go make a coffee when adverts come on....wouldnt believe anything I havent tried myself. All I can say is that I prefer Aptamil. It seem to taste similar to breast milk and my little one like it. Someone on here asked and I jusy wanted to help. Its just trial and error really....

@jacqui5366

I bottle fed (and expressed) during the day, and breast fed at night, where it was calmer darker and I was able to settle afterwards easier, I found that this worked for me, I have had conflicting advice that I should alternate between breast and bottle - so my partner can be more involved and I can rest, what is your best advice when mixed feeding

Hello @jacqui5366, thank you for your question. Breastfeeding obviously offers big benefits for mum, baby and family both in the short and the long term. If your partner wants to feel more involved there are many ways he can get involved whilst breastfeeding i.e. bringing your feeding cushion, helping with positioning baby, bringing drinks whilst you're feeding. Your partner can also bond with baby in many other ways including skin to skin, babywearing, bathing baby and playtime. I think ultimately the decision has to be yours, but I would expect your midwife/health visitor to support you regardless of your decision.

@Yasminie

I am first time mum, due in June. I want to try breast fed and express for bottle feeding, I have been told to solely breast fed for 5 weeks before using a pump otherwise I won’t produce enough milk. Is this true ? Any advice will be greatly appreciated

Hello @Yasminie, thank you for your question. It's advisable to feed exclusively at the breast for the first 6-8 weeks to establish your milk supply and give you and baby a chance to learn and understand the techniques of breastfeeding.

@Ki86

I am due next week and i plan on breast feeding but was wondering how long I should wait before introducing a bottle. I want to introduce a bottle do his dad can do the nightime feed.

Hello @Ki86, thank you for your question. It's advisable to feed exclusively at the breast for the first 6-8 weeks to establish your milk supply and give you and baby a chance to learn and understand the techniques of breastfeeding. Many parents do then choose to go on to combination feed, which is totally your choice. I'm a big believer in parental choice and all parents should have access to support and advice, regardless of their method of feeding.

@justanothermamma

Would you support the notion that it doesn't matter if a baby is breast or bottle feed, in that nobody ever asks a grown adult how they were fed as an infant? I feel this would help so many mums who are shamed for not breastfeeding.

Hello @justanothermamma thank you for your question. I agree very few people ask this question of adults, however we do know from evidence that breastfeeding offers both short and long term benefits for both mum and baby, which can't be replicated through any other feeding technique. So the saying 'breast is best' does ring true. However I would like to see a much more open, supportive, non-judgemental environment for all parents, regardless of their feeding choice. I actually believe if we had this kind of environment then we would likely see an increase in breastfeeding rates, because many more mums would come forward for advice and not be afraid to speak up for fear of being judged for their feeding decisions. I've always been the kind of practitioner who is supportive of all parents. Of course I will always discuss the benefits of breastfeeding with families first and foremost, but the decision should always be theirs and nobody should ever feel bad, guilty apologetic for their feeding decisions. Parents should have access to qualified advice and support on all methods of feeding from somebody who is knowledgeable and confident in all types.

Parents should have access to qualified advice and support on all methods of feeding from somebody who is knowledgeable and confident in all types.

Whilst I would agree with most of this post KatieHiltonMAM surely that person should be able to give accurate, non biased information without the conflict of interest that working for a formula company and bottle / teat manufacturer brings?

I am shocked to find this thread here on mumsnet in violation of the WHO code. Is Mumsnet not able to get an independent infant feeding expert to provide advice on a thread rather than someone sponsored by a company that sell bottles and pumps?

Hello
Since my last post I welcomed my baby son into this world. I suffered a large haemorrhage which depleted all the lovely work my body had done in preparing my breasts for baby.
I am using MAM bottles with formula in the meantime while trying to increase my milk supply and I have just purchased some MAM breast shields due to arrive today to see if they make any difference to my son latching on.
Its so disheartening💙

@Ki86 congratulations on the birth of your baby and I'm so sorry to hear that things haven't gone smoothly. If you haven't already please ask to be referred to the infant feeding team at your local hospital or call the National Breastfeeding Helpline on 0300 100 0212 and talk through your options. All is not lost and you will be able to transition to breastfeeding if that is what you would like to do.

@Lalapurple (any anyone else who feels this way) please can I encourage you to formalise your complaint to Mumsnet. The easiest way to do this is to report posts that you feel are factually inaccurate.

@honeybee88 please have a look at this (independant) website www.firststepsnutrition.org/parents-carers

All infant formula on the UK market must meet compositional regulations, so all products are perfectly ok to feed a baby. More expensive brands still have to meet the same compositional standards as cheaper brands

How do you get a baby to take a bloody bottle?! 😂

@Rigbyroo

How do you get a baby to take a bloody bottle?! 😂

Depends how old they are - you might be more successful going straight to a cup.

Is one brand of formula really better than another?

71"

@HotToddyColdSauvignon

Is one brand of formula really better than another?

No! Have a look at my post about First Steps Nutrition.

WTAF MNHQ?

Flogging a specific brand of formula

Is that the best you could do?

I am

What evidence is there that bottle or breast or combination feeding makes any difference in later life? Eg when the children are 20?

@YesIDoLoveCrisps

What evidence is there that bottle or breast or combination feeding makes any difference in later life? Eg when the children are 20?

There is absolutely loads. Hence the massive worldwide public health focus on improving breastfeeding rates.

How breastfeeding affects obesity rates in adults - www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031395505702935

The protective effects of breastfeeding on chronic non-communicable diseases in adulthood: A review of evidence - www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3929058/

The Long-Term Effects of Breastfeeding on Child and Adolescent Mental Health: A Pregnancy Cohort Study Followed for 14 Years - pubmedinfo.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Oddy10mentalhealth.pdf

Breastfeeding and Adult Personality - www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5614468/
Findings included - ‘Participants who had been breastfed scored lower in neuroticism, anxiety, and hostility and higher in openness and optimism than those not breastfed.‘

The long-term effects of breastfeeding (WHO) - apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/79198/9789241505307_eng.pdf;jsessionid=B260EAC490EFF455DABE63771321FD7D?sequence=1
This is a comprehensive systematic review.

I could literally go on and on all day just pulling up proof of the many, MANY lifelong benefits of breastfeeding.
There is a very good reason that breastfeeding is promoted so strongly worldwide.

Do you offer impartial unbiased advice? How can you do so when employed by such a company?

Real question: how much are growth charts to be relied upon - are they U.K. centric and therefore perpetuate a combi / formula approach ? My DS dropped off significantly from birth percentile much to medics dismay but few months in found a new line much lower down the chart but consistent. How big a deal was this really?

I’m new to this so I apologize in advance if I don’t do it correctly. I’m currently 27 weeks pregnant and exhausted. No one in my family ever breast fed so I was thinking I wouldn’t either. Is that a bad thing? This is my first pregnancy and I’ve been terrified with every step of this process.

@wellingtonsandwaffles

Do you offer impartial unbiased advice? How can you do so when employed by such a company?

Real question: how much are growth charts to be relied upon - are they U.K. centric and therefore perpetuate a combi / formula approach ? My DS dropped off significantly from birth percentile much to medics dismay but few months in found a new line much lower down the chart but consistent. How big a deal was this really?

The Q&A has ended now, but I can tell you the UK swapped over to UK based data, purely breastfed babies in 2009 because that's when DS1 was little and it was big in breastfeeding circles at the time.

One change that came in with these charts, which hcps should have received new training in, was the change in policy to ignore birtg centile which can be affected by gestation, mother's physical size, fluids given during labour and gestational diabetes, and instead take the child's weight at 2 weeks old to be the starting centile. Within the first 2 weeks focus is on any weight loss and regain. This explanation is actially on the page preceding the chart in your read book if you want to read it.