A question for mothers that have formula fed their children.?

Question

This is a question for women that have fed their babies formula - whether it be for medical reasons or by personal choice only:
What advice would you give someone that will be feeding their newborn baby formula? Any words of wisdom will be greatly appreciated. Breast feeding women please don't respond - I will posting a separate question.

Answer 1

-Do not buy to many of one type of bottle.

- Make sure to get get slow nipples for newborns then go from there.

- you do not need to sterilize if you use a dishwasher

- make sure to measure the formula carefully and mix exactly as Directed. to do otherwise is dangerous.

- pour any formula out of the bottle if not drank with in 30 minutes. It goes bad fast.

- do not use microwave to make the formula as it causes hot spots.

- You can make up bottle ahead of time but do not make to much. Once mixed it is good for 24 hours.

- powdered makes some kids get bad gas. Concentrated costs a little more but is easier to mix. Ready made is expensive but good to keep on hand for emergencies. When traveling out of house take bottles filled with water and powder in a separate container. It is alot easier to mix it then to keep bottles cold. I used old baby food jars to hold formula. They also make to-go type things.

- Remember to burp baby often. Bottles cause alot of air.

- watch baby for reactions

- pick one brand and stick with it unless is causes issues. trying more then one bran at time is bad for babies tummy til they are about 6-8 months old.

- not all babies like formula hot. Once baby is 6 months old you do not have to heat it.

- watch for constipation.

- good luck and healthy babies

Answer 2

I sterilized bottles and nipples with boiling water. Get the water to a boiling temp first, then boil for 10 minutes. You don't need the fancy expensive sterilizer devices out there; a pot will do the same thing!



Watch the expiration dates on formula, especially the ready-made kind. If you use the ready made kind and are out and about, pay attention to the temperature. For example, in deep summer, if you keep the ready-made formula in a car, it will go bad pretty quickly. I brought powder formula with me, and used bottled water to mix as needed. However, I left it in the diaper bag once, thinking it would be okay, and 2 weeks later there was mold growing in the powder formula! This has happened more than once. It's pretty gross. If the powder is getting "clumpy" it's probably going bad. I know it's expensive, but throw it out. It's not worth the risk to your baby's health.



Oh - and like the above poster said, you can mix it up and keep it for 24 hours - but only if it's in the fridge and has never been in the baby's mouth.



Never make the baby finish a bottle. If he doesn't want all of it, that's fine. Most baby's eat too fast when they are bottle fed. When they are less than 4 months, give the bubby a burping break every 15 cc or so. This will help him slow down, and pay attention to his body when it gives him the "I'm full" cue. Otherwise, he may overeat and throw up - or overeat and get fat. :)



Start with a low flow nipple. Watch the baby as he eats. You'll know when he's ready to go up to the next flow rate.



Watch for the same cues of hunger and fullness, as you would in a breastfed baby.

Answer 3

My daughter was in the NICU because she was born 5 weeks early. They gave her the pre made bottles of Enfimil Newborn. She was due to come home in 2days and she gained no weight in the 5 days she was in there. She was actually losing weight. So they switched her to Neosure...When we got home I tried using my bottles ( different nipple then the NICU ) She wouldn't take to the nipple I had so we had to go out that day and get some Med Flow nipples for her. The milk was coming out to slow for her....Then at her 2 month appt she gained some weight...She was VERY constipated so we switched her to Simliac Sensitivity. She is now a 6 month healthy little girl.



Alright now that you know my story...



I wouldn't buy to many of the same bottle. Most bottles these days have a nipple that matches and you cant find ones that you can switch out. Only the flow...So maybe put a few different ones on your baby registry and try one out until your bub takes to one. He or she may take to all of them and if they do then you have a good amount of bottles.



I do sterilize my daughters bottles everyday. I wont be doing this much longer tho, she is going to be 7 months and she can handle them just being washed.



I use baby water. I have a well and her PED said its best if she doesn't drink it. We live by a farm and there is always a lot of run off from when they pollinate their crops. I get the gerber water and she does wonderful on that.



Like I mentioned above we had her on the neosure..That was because it had high levels of iron to make her gain weight faster. But if your bub is healthy and you are considering the formula I'd start right off with a sensitive kind. I have seen so many people start with enfimil newborn or infant and switch because their babies were constipated. Just do it right the 1st time and get the sensitive.



Oh and another thing, your going to lose a bottle here and there and go find it. It will be STINKY! We have thrown out 2 because they had mold in them and I didnt feel right giving that to my daughter..



My daughter is VERY smart for being a preemie, and they say breastfed babies are smarter....BOLOGNA!!!!!!!

Answer 4

I started my son voluntarily on formula right after birth. I was not interested in breastfeeding. I feel it's a Personal choice, and I did not want to do it.



We started him on Enfamil. After a few days, he started to be very colicky. He was crying about 23 hours a day. Turns out he was intolerant to the cow's milk protein. We had to switch him to Similac Alimentum for sensitive tummies. I had bought one of the best types of bottles out there, turns out my son couldn't drink from them, even the smallest flow was too much. So don't buy too many bottles of one kind in case your baby doesn't like them. Buy a few, if he does drink well from them, then go buy more.



It's true that it's more work to feed formula to your child, however - you get used to it and it becomes very easy. You find a system that works for you. For example, each morning I would boil the water necessary for the entire day, divide it in each bottle and leave them in the fridge. At the time of each feeding, all I needed was to add the appropriate amount of powdered formula and heat it up. Plus, my husband really enjoyed helping out and bonding during the feedings with out son.



I'm now pregnant with my second one, and I still do not intend to breastfeed.

Answer 5

Make time to feed, enjoy being able to focus on your child and treasure the moment

Answer 6

I found it much easier to bottle feed using the bottles with the plastic drop ins. Helped reduce my babys reflux. It also reduces the amount of air they get in their stomach which can cause a lot of discomfort. I also found that my baby spit up a lot less. Good luck and Congrats!