Helpful Tips Formula feeding

General formula feeding tips from other parents:

• Be comfortable with your decision to bottle feed. You will come across lots of opionated people who think they know best, but add the end of the day you need to relax and do what works for you. Mother of Matthew 4 months.

• Buy a formula dispenser, these make life much easier. Father of Will 6 months.

• Don’t feel guilty. You’re still feeding your baby! Happy and healthy mum equals a happy and healthy baby.  Bianca

•  Keep a jug of cooled booked water in the fridge makes making bottles in middle of night easier.  Chantelle

•  Don’t feel stressed if your baby isn’t drinking the amount on the tin, it’s only a suggestion. Every baby is different and will drink different amount.   Ashley

•  You need to give formula two weeks before you know if it’s the right one for your bub or not!   Carissa

•  Don’t follow the tin when it comes to how many feeds and how big a bottle should be!!! My daughter was feeding 200-300mls at 2mo when it only said 125 or something like that!   Ashlee

•  Not all babies are able to digest the gold brand formulas. Regular formulas are just as good. The gold brands can be too rich and cause digestive discomfort for little tummies.   Charlene

•  I have found (and quite a few other formula feeding mums I know have too) that the scoop to water ratio doesn’t seem right. If you follow the scoop to water ratio (eg. Heinze – 1 scoop per 50mls of water) you end up with a constipated baby since my first sons doc told me its common & to reduce the mix by 1 scoop we’ve had no problems and I tell everyone now, if their bub gets blocked up reduce the mix by one scoop. It beats adding sugar to every bottle they have!   Amber

•  When switching from breast milk to formula, my doctor suggested to add an extra 30ml of water to the bottle for the first week to help prevent constipation, worked for both of my boys.   Ashlee

•  And invest in a small thermos for outings! It’s great! Because a lot of people don’t want to heat babies bottles for you! It’s the best thing I ever done!   Stacey

•  My best tip for Formula feeding is the price doesn’t indicate the product. Just because it more expensive it isn’t necessarily better. I have found (for 3 children) that the happy baby bottles and dummy’s work the best you don’t need to change sizes flow etc etc and normal S26 & Heinz nurture( not gold) to be fine.   Rebecca

•  Always leave a little bit of formula left in the teat so bub isn’t sucking an empty bottle… this gives them a belly full of wind.   Stacy

•  After 3 kids I have found s26 the best. Not the gold!! Best tip is to have at least 3 tins in the cupboard so u never risk running out. And buy in bulk when on special u can save heaps.   Kimberly

•  Don’t feel bad if you can’t breast feed, it’s 2013, the formula is good, in 20 years time you won’t be able to put a BF adult next to a FF adult and pick which ones which! Do what’s right for you and your baby at the time, babies change every day. My little rule was that if my son leaves some in the bottle he’s had enough, if he’s sucked it dry offer a little more!   Kate

•  I wrap a freshly boiled bottle of water in a towel just before I go to bed. I leave it just outside the nursery with a pre-measured amount of formula in a little canister. That way when bubba wakes at 3ish, it’s all there ready to go. I just add and shake and it’s still warm… No more tripping on the way to the kitchen!   Jo

•  My best bit of advice… don’t bother heating formula if baby will drink it at room temperature. Will make life much easier for u.   Grace

•  After I make a bottle I only use it for up to an hour as I got told that bacteria starts to grow in the bottle after an hour.   Samantha

•  Add more water, especially in thickened formula.   Jackie

•  To work out amount suitable for your baby is weight x 150 divide by how many feeds they have a day so 7kg x 150 / 8 = 131mls.   Mary

•  Have FF both my kids. My advice is don’t go by what the tin says your baby should be having. My daughter never drank a 250ml bottle in her life! My son is nearly 1 and is still only drinking 180ml bottles 3 times a day. Don’t screw the lid on tight, screw it just enough so that it doesn’t drip, this helps with air flow. Ummm, don’t bounce from formula to formula. Take bubs a couple weeks to get used to it. Don’t stress about it, baby will eat when hungry, just be wear as bubs gets used to it they might be constipated. Good luck!    Jodi

•  I was told you should always make a size bigger than they drink- which make sense sometimes bub will have a growth spurt so will need that bit extra!   Carissa

•  My son suffered from severe reflux and the best thing I learned was to keep bubs as upright as possible when feeding. After all, we wouldn’t be too comfortable if we drank whilst lying down. Hope this helps.   Sara

•  I tried nearly every brand on the shelf including the mainly the gold because I thought it was better. Not the case! My lo is happily on Heinz nurture (not gold) we had a lot of problems with reflux and constipation even went on the karicare allerpro while waiting on test and appointments at the ped & dietitian. He is good now bit they ate some signs that it doesn’t agree with your bub.   Sandi

•  I fill our kettle, & boil the water, that way when I have to make a bottle I just turn the kettle on, hold the inside of my wrist on the kettle until its warms, then flick the kettle off. Fast, easy & perfect temp for bub. Sometimes it’s hard to get that right temp in the microwave, especially if your half asleep.   Shannon

•  Don’t bother heating your bottles; babies can have formula at room temp. Makes things soooo much easier, especially when out and about! I just have my bottles of cooled boiled water ready and waiting just add the formula and good to go.   Natalie

•  To make a bottle and pop it in the fridge before going to bed. Makes that 3am wake up so much easier!   Amy

•  I found those formula storage containers with like 3 compartments a god send I had a couple and I would just measure water in bottle and have 24 hours of formula and water all measured out and ready.   Jessica

•  Don’t ever feel guilty, and all the above advice. Having cool boiled water ready in bottles makes my day a lot easier … And I add the extra 10mls of water never had a problem with Aldi formula.   Nikkoletta

•  There are some samples of formulas from different supermarkets and chemists, give them a try and see how they go.   Amanda

•  Don’t pay attention to the recommendations on the tin (apart from how many scoops to MLs of water!) let your baby drink as much as they want. My DD has always drank much less than recommended on the tin, she’s always been only little, but happy, healthy, growing and gaining weight perfectly. If baby gets constipated add an extra 10-20MLs of water to their bottle, to dilute the formula a bit more. If baby wants a little bit more some feeds, keep a bottle of made up formula in the fridge for little top ups (change every 24 hours) Don’t heat formula more than once. Use the bottle within an hour after it being heated or chuck it out. Keep bottles filled with cooled boiled water at room temperature rather than in the fridge as they will heat up easier and quicker. Get a formula container for when out and about, or for the middle of the night, so much easier having the right amount of scoops measured into the container, rather than sleepily losing count of scoops and having to start again lol. Formulas are all different its just about finding the right one for your child! I used S-26 Gold on my daughter, because she never had an upset tummy or reflux! The key is to follow what your baby’s body is telling you! If you listen to that then you’ll have no problems! Follow your child Q’s on how much to feed them some need more some need less! Follow them and you should have no problems.   Jamie

•  I add the powder on demand.   Angela

•  I use a thermos flask. I fill it half way with the cold preboiled water from the kettle then top up with boiled water. Keeps the perfect temp.   Angela

•  I make up her bottles with 80% cooled boiled water and then the remaining 20% with boiling water. That way I don’t have to heat them.   Millika

•  Love this post! Don’t feel guilty. You’re feeding your baby and that’s all that matters. Also….I couldn’t lay my girl downright afterwards. Acid reflux and colic.   KaLeigh

•  Then just pop it in the microwave to warm it slightly.   Amy

•  Always give your baby a week at least to get used to a formula. Too many ppl switch & change after a few days thinking its not working. It generally will take a few days of runny poo & unsettled belly before they adjust. Sometimes switching regularly can be worse for them…Adriana

•   If your baby is vomiting a lot or keeps getting constipated it’s probably not the right formula for them. One formula even gave my daughter severe nappy rash. I had so much trouble finding a bottle that anti reflux formula would come out of the teat. Tommee tippee closer to nature have a X teat instead of a hole. That worked. When travelling I took bottles with 2/3 the amount of cool boiled water then I’d stop at a servo or maccas and ask for a cup of boiling water to tip in to make up the other third. No messing around with microwaves that heat differently.   Joelene

•  I had a big baby, I tired s26, karicare and Nan Ha was the best for him! He is a happy healthy baby!    Jodie

•  Heinz formula for my girl was great, once we were able to switch her off the reflux formula. No issues with constipation. Just don’t pay too much attention to the ‘recommended’ feed schedule. My girl was initially taking 4-6 bottles a day, at 150mls. She’s only just taking 200ml now, at 18mths age. They recommend 2 a day at this age. I figure she’s only drinking what she needs.   Should add my girl is in the 97th percentile for height and weight, over 80cm tall and is 12.5kg heavy.   Danielle

•  in the fridge also makes it easier to do up the bottles and don’t go by what the tin says, my ds was drinking well over the amount per bottle when first born as now drinks one sometimes two bottles less than recommended but gains weight and riches milestones etc.   Leah

•  Be prepared for an adjustment period. They can react to different formulas and just need to work out what’s best. The golds can cause constipation. And what worked for us was a baby chiro who helped my son’s digestion and a lactose free formula.   Emily

•  Use the tin as a guide, if bub is putting on weight and is happy and healthy I’m sure there getting enough.   Cherie

What are your best tips for feeding baby formula?