Bottles!

Meeeee79

Hi all, first time mum to be here but posting in the newborns thread in the hope that you parents can help me out!

Basically trying to get prepared for the imminent arrival of our first and trying to educate myself on all that a newborn needs.

Im stuck on bottles and feeding! Im not breastfeeding and have not got a clue how many bottles etc I will need! We have bought a set with 6 bottles and a microwave sterliser - is this enough or how many would I need? Whats your normal routine regarding bottles, sterilising etc? How many can you make ahead of time? Id love to be able to make as many as possible up in advance and use a bottle warmer when its feeding time? Am I making any sense here at all?!

Thanks in advance for your feedback/advice!

Loveinapril

If you still have the receipt, I would say return the pack of bottles and buy a few individual ones from different brands to find out what works. The same goes for soothers if you intend to use them. Babies can be fussy and downright refuse to take a certain brand. I breastfed my boy but when I introduced bottles, he would only take Tommee Tippee. He refused Tommee Tippee soothers though 🙄 and would only take MAM. Your baby could take up to 7 bottles in a day so you would want to have at least 7 I would say. Our steriliser holds 4 so when we have 4 used bottles we wash and sterilise them.

smaoifs

I bought the 6 pack of Tommee Tippee. I got in the habit of batch making bottles for the next day every night. The formula makers don't recommend it but we never had any problems once the bottles were used within 24 hours of being made and stored in the fridge.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

What you have is fine.
Your pre natal classes and the mid wives in hospital will tell you the most up to date guidelines on bottle making. As far as I know, fridge temp is fine, no need for a bottle warmer.

Hopefully and more than likely, the bottles you have will be perfectly fine for your baby. If they don't suit baby you could try different teets. If they still don't suit you could try a different style bottle but that will be after weeks, so no need to worry now.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

Actually don't forget brush for cleaning bottles!

Meeeee79

Thanks for the advice. There are 6 bottles in the set we have and they all fit in the microwave steriliser so I'll stick with them until/if I have to change I suppose.

Batch making at night sounds good to me so think I'll try that.

I presumed anti natal classes would go through this also but Im 2 classes down of 3 and it hasnt been mentioned yet. I'll ask next week for a quick run down!

appledrop

My anti natal class was no help on this. All about the breastfeeding. What you have is perfect for the moment. No point buying more until you know if child likes them. We used Tommy Tippee no problem there. The hse will tell you not to make up batches but in real life people do + store them in the fridge. Boil the water let it cool for 30 mins than add the formula. Then give the feed straight away or store at back of fridge.

ally_pally

I'd be very surprised if you get advice on this at ante natal classes. It's breastfeeding or nothing for them. It's SUCH a bugbear of mine as they're deliberately holding useful information from women who are making a valid choice on what's best for them. By all means ask but I wouldn't hold out much hope of getting any advice.

Sounds like what you have is great. My baby couldn't take to Tommee Tippee bottles at all but loved their soothers. She was very windy so we used Nuk and then Dr. Brown's bottles. If you find wind is an issue I'd highly recommend Dr. Brown's.

jlm29

I was definitely given leaflets on how to make a bottle at antenatal classes. And it was discussed there too. That’s 6 years ago tho.
When I was discharged from hospital this time last year after having my third child, the midwife insisted on discussing how to make bottles with me, even though I was quite successfully breastfeeding, and told her we didn’t own any bottles. I eventually told her that if I did need to make one, I’d read the instructions on the packet.
And then the PHN, 2 days later, needed to discuss bottles also. It’s obviously on some checklist they have to tick or something.

PhoenixParker

I'd suggest buying 1 or maybe 2 more bottles. It'll mean you can sterilize 6 and still have one made up and ready to go.

mirrorwall14

4 years ago there was zero help for bottle feeding. I ended up contacting a friend who I knew had bottle fed in the end to ask did the hospital provide formula etc.

We made up on demand where possible but we were in the childrens hospital for two nights with our lad and the hospital made up the bottles once a day and kept them in the fridge. I figured if they were doing it then it was fine when I knew I would be under pressure time wise. Just keep them in the back of the fridge as cold as possible

We had tomee tippee but it didn't work out so switched to Nuk. This time around I'm going to try Mam initially

xzanti

The bottles they will give you in the Hospital will have Nuk teets. They are latex and soft enough for their little jaws to get a good draw from them.

My advice is to invest in some Nuk bottles. They're not as readily available as the likes of Avent or MAM. The bigger Boots seem to stock them.

Best of luck.

Meeeee79

Excellent advise all round, thanks a million. Definitely all breastfeed geared at my ante natal, not a word on bottles! Really fed up with the attitude of some midwives!

I have plenty to go on here so thanks a million! Have literally learned more here with your answers than anywhere else! The joys of being a first timer!

TheIronyMaiden

I'd recommend the tommee tippee prep machine - I have a 3 month old and it's a godsend. We have 6 bottles - you can get 5 oz bottles and 9 oz bottles. I'd recommend just getting the larger 9 oz ones as we initially got the 5 ones and now they're too small for him, which is a pain.

appledrop

We used the Tommee Tipped machine as well + found it brilliant. Again you will have people saying oh don't use it but if you child has reflux + on 11 bottles a day at start like ours was it was a godsend. It's a personal choice but see how you get on with making your own for start anyway.

One thing to be careful with bottles is make sure you never used reboiled water. I know that might seem like a simple thing but people will often reboil the kettle for tea but no no for bottles. Think the minerals build up which is not good for baby.

appledrop

I actually think it's terrible the lack of information your given about bottle feeding. I remember in the hospital trying the breastfeeding + in fairness I got loads of help but wasn't for either of us so I said I'd switch to bottle. They asked me what formula did I want . I said I hadn't a clue which one would they recommend. That was a complete no no as they weren't allowed to help me. Yes I get that there is a whole industry behind artificial milk but God I was just looking for some guidance. In end had to ring my friend for advice. So unlike me decide which one your going to use before the baby comes or at least know the names!

xzanti

appledrop wrote: »

I actually think it's terrible the lack of information your given about bottle feeding. I remember in the hospital trying the breastfeeding + in fairness I got loads of help but wasn't for either of us so I said I'd switch to bottle. They asked me what formula did I want . I said I hadn't a clue which one would they recommend. That was a complete no no as they weren't allowed to help me. Yes I get that there is a whole industry behind artificial milk but God I was just looking for some guidance. In end had to ring my friend for advice. So unlike me decide which one your going to use before the baby comes or at least know the names!

You can't buy infant milk using vouchers in supermarkets either, or clubcard points as far as I know. Follow on milk is different though. They're allowed advertise it etc.

bee06

xzanti wrote: »

You can't buy infant milk using vouchers in supermarkets either, or clubcard points as far as I know. Follow on milk is different though. They're allowed advertise it etc.

It’s all to do with the WHO code. More info here if anyone is interested. https://www.breastfeeding.ie/Uploads/The-WHO-Code-of-Marketing-of-Breast-Milk-Substitutes.pdf

appledrop

I know why it's there but I object to it. There were terrible issues before in 3rd world countries were women were encouraged by manufactures to bottle fed when they had no money or access to sterile water. That was wrong. However we have enough money here in west to make our own choices. Also women here actual have a choice on returning to work after our babies are born when breastfeeding just wouldn't be viable. I have no problem with no advitersting etc but we should be allowed know the basics if we want +,make our own choices.

colm_c

We made up bottles ahead of time usually at night after the last feed, and got a bottle warmer to warm them up.

It's basically a steamer that warms them up within a minute. Microwave is not recommended due to hot spots.

bee06

appledrop wrote: »

I know why it's there but I object to it. There were terrible issues before in 3rd world countries were women were encouraged by manufactures to bottle fed when they had no money or access to sterile water. That was wrong. However we have enough money here in west to make our own choices. Also women here actual have a choice on returning to work after our babies are born when breastfeeding just wouldn't be viable. I have no problem with no advitersting etc but we should be allowed know the basics if we want +,make our own choices.

I’m not making a comment either way. I’m just giving the information for anyone who doesn’t know why midwives etc can’t give formula advice and push breastfeeding so much.

Edited to add: maybe it needs its own thread but it just came up on my local Cuidiu facebook about Aptimel changing the ingredients in the formula and it’s made some babies sick. Just in case anyone has a baby not feeling well and they can’t figure out why.

MightyMunster

Highly recommend the perfect prep machine. Pre making bottles isn't recommended by the health authority, using cooled water also isn't recommended as the formula may/does contain bacteria so you need heat to kill them.

jlm29

MightyMunster wrote: »

Highly recommend the perfect prep machine. Pre making bottles isn't recommended by the health authority, using cooled water also isn't recommended as the formula may/does contain bacteria so you need heat to kill them.

I’ve seen in a few places that these machines aren’t safe because they only use a small amount of hot water, then top up with cooler water. To kill the bacteria in formula, it needs to be made up as per the instructions, 1oz cooled boiled water to each scoop of formula (I think? It’s ages since I made a bottle!)

splinter65

Don’t forget a good bottle brush. I was very very fussy about scrubbing and rinsing the bottles.

Anne_cordelia

appledrop wrote: »

I know why it's there but I object to it. There were terrible issues before in 3rd world countries were women were encouraged by manufactures to bottle fed when they had no money or access to sterile water. That was wrong. However we have enough money here in west to make our own choices. Also women here actual have a choice on returning to work after our babies are born when breastfeeding just wouldn't be viable. I have no problem with no advitersting etc but we should be allowed know the basics if we want +,make our own choices.

You are misinformed. It is absolutely possible to breastfeed and return to work.

Also your post is making sweeping generalisations as unfortunately many, many women are driven back to work for financial reasons and do not have a choice.

Anne_cordelia

MightyMunster wrote: »

Highly recommend the perfect prep machine. Pre making bottles isn't recommended by the health authority, using cooled water also isn't recommended as the formula may/does contain bacteria so you need heat to kill them.

Again more misinformation. There is a HSE leaflet that states preferably bottle should be made fresh but, if that’s not possible, they acknowledge that once bottle is made the correct way (1L of water boiled and left to cool for 30mins then formula added) they can be cooled quickly and stored in the fridge for 24 hours. The FSAI do not recommend those perfect prep machines.

appledrop

This thread was started as advice for someone who wants to bottle feed. Those of you who have a problem with bottle feeding shouldn't be posting here

splinter65

appledrop wrote: »

This thread was started as advice for someone who wants to bottle feed. Those of you who have a problem with bottle feeding shouldn't be posting here

I don’t see anyone having a problem with bottlefeeding as much as having a different opinion about the practice of batch making bottles.

smaoifs

bee06 wrote:

Edited to add: maybe it needs its own thread but it just came up on my local Cuidiu facebook about Aptimel changing the ingredients in the formula and it’s made some babies sick. Just in case anyone has a baby not feeling well and they can’t figure out why.

I've seen this too, all over Facebook. It sounds like as part of their rebrand/redesign they've changed the ingredients. They've also reduced it from a 900g box to 800g but kept the price at €13.49.

Anne_cordelia

appledrop wrote: »

This thread was started as advice for someone who wants to bottle feed. Those of you who have a problem with bottle feeding shouldn't be posting here

I’ve no problem with bottle feeding. I’ve got a problem with someone trying to back up their argument with misinformation about breastfeeding. I was just replying to your comment on that.

ETA just because you choose to do one type of feeding doesn’t mean you need to put down the other. Everyone does what works for them. No judgement on anyone’s choice.

Anne_cordelia

smaoifs wrote: »

I've seen this too, all over Facebook. It sounds like as part of their rebrand/redesign they've changed the ingredients. They've also reduced it from a 900g box to 800g but kept the price at €13.49.

Just to add to this if anyone is reading this and using the new Aptimal, they released a statement today saying the new formula is more sensitive to temperature and needs to be made exactly according to correct bottle making instructions - 1L cooled for 30mins etc