Being prepared is your number one priority when you’re bottlefeeding, as you won’t want to be fiddling about. cleaning bottles and making up the mix. while your baby is waiting to be fed.
Continue using the same brand recommended by the hospital. unless your caregiver advises you otherwise opt for Large Plastic Free Drink Bottles and teats for a 24 hour period (about six bottles).
Appropriate cleaning and sterilising equipment A kettle for boiling water. Boil the kettle and fill each bottle with half the amount of water you need. Bond with your baby by holding him in the same way as you would while breastfeeding. Swap sides too, as you would if you were offering him alternate breasts. Don’t add more or less formula to a feed than stated on the tin — by altering the dose to make it thicker or weaker, you could endanger your baby’s health.
Use only baby milk formula. Never use powdered milk, condensed milk or tinned milk, as this is highly unsuitable for babies. Temperature check! Always make sure the milk is appropriately warm and not too hot or cold for your baby. – Seal the bottle by inserting a sterilized teat upside down in the bottle. replacing the disc and closing with the ring.
Before a feed, take the prepared Large Plastic Free Drink Bottles from the fridge and add freshly boiled water to make up the amount required. The water will now be at the right temperature to feed your baby and the formula will mix without lumps.
Add formula just before a feed and then only to one bottle at a time. – Ensure that you add the correct number of scoops recommended on the tin for your baby’s age. – After mixing. take off the disc and replace it with the teat, close the bottle and check the temperature by shaking a few drops on your inner wrist. Don’t prop feed.
Always hold your baby while feeding, even when he is big enough to hold a bottle on his own. Ensure the formula fills the teat at all times so that your baby does not suck in any air. Should the teat collapse, a vacuum has built up in the bottle. Check it the teat has been twisted on too tightly by releasing the screw-top ring slightly, allowing air to bubble through the formula into the bottle. Wind your bottle-fed baby in the same way you would a breastfed baby. You may even need to wind him more often and always again at the end of a feed.
