Bottle feeds whilst out and about

suejb2

Crikey it has changed. D.D. (14)and D.S (12) I remember making a day's worth of bottles in one go and keeping them in the fridge ready woe betide anyone who interrupted me counting the spoonfuls of formula into each bottle!

ALIBOBSY

On the flip side I know someone who is a microbiologist/virologist and he made it very clear when he had kids that in his experience there was far too much sterilisation and it was far more important for kids to be exposed to things early on to prime their immune systems. His kids all grew up fine and very healthy.

Can't really comment myself as I breastfed them all to 2 or 3 years old. At one point was tandem feeding a toddler and a baby, I loved it and was so easy and convenient, best of all free

Ali x

daveyjp

suejb2 wrote: »

Crikey it has changed. D.D. (14)and D.S (12) I remember making a day's worth of bottles in one go and keeping them in the fridge ready woe betide anyone who interrupted me counting the spoonfuls of formula into each bottle!

Us too. And we warmed them in the microwave, shock horror.

DigForVictory

oooh yes! Gosh my midwife nearly had an apoplectic fit when she saw me pad over to the microwave, but since it was new, I had the manual handy & opened it at "How to Microwave your Baby's Bottle" for her.

She read, thought & accepted that things change, then watched me like a hawk, and the happy hungry boychick slurping like diesel engine, and seemed to agree that things change.

So I say take your bottle mixed & sealed, dump it in a jug of boiling water (& there will be plenty of folk who will understand, especially if youngling is beginning to grouch a bit about being peckish!), shake it furiously to distribute the heat & see how you go. Just remember the bottletop that seals the palaver!

Happy travels for you all!

notanewuser

ALIBOBSY wrote: »

On the flip side I know someone who is a microbiologist/virologist and he made it very clear when he had kids that in his experience there was far too much sterilisation and it was far more important for kids to be exposed to things early on to prime their immune systems. His kids all grew up fine and very healthy.

I agree with the sentiment, BUT I've a friend whose PhD involved baby bottles. She looked at what happened to the insides of them over weeks/months of use. They all ended up with tiny scratches on the insides of the bottles in which traces of milk would get stuck, growing dangerous moulds and potentially causing illness. The bottles washed by hand didn't use water hot enough to clean it out and the ones washed in the dishwasher got more scratches.

thriftylass

ALIBOBSY wrote: »

On the flip side I know someone who is a microbiologist/virologist and he made it very clear when he had kids that in his experience there was far too much sterilisation and it was far more important for kids to be exposed to things early on to prime their immune systems. His kids all grew up fine and very healthy.

Can't really comment myself as I breastfed them all to 2 or 3 years old. At one point was tandem feeding a toddler and a baby, I loved it and was so easy and convenient, best of all free

Ali x

I'm glad and a tad jealous that you managed to breast feed, not all are that fortunate (totally different topic, so I'll stop).

I agree too that the over-use of sterilisation and using things like Dettol is detrimental to the development of an immune system. HOWEVER, the empty milk bottles themselves need to be sterilised after use as the milk residues grow some very nasty bugs and hot soapy water isn't enough in that case. But that's where we drew the line and also followed the out of date path of making bottles up in advance.

o202

Thanks everyone for all your advice.

We're planning a slightly longer trip out this weekend so will try the premixed cartons and a sterilised bottles (and with pack some formula too, just incase)

onlyroz

ALIBOBSY wrote: »

On the flip side I know someone who is a microbiologist/virologist and he made it very clear when he had kids that in his experience there was far too much sterilisation and it was far more important for kids to be exposed to things early on to prime their immune systems. His kids all grew up fine and very healthy.

This might be true for older kids but for newborn babies I don't think risks should be taken.

Kynthia

Using the pre-made bottles is the simplest but most expensive solution.

If you want to stick to current advice on making fresh each time and sterilizing the powder formula then you need to take with you an empty sealed sterilized bottle, a thermos with boiling water and a second bottle with cooled boiled water. Pour some of the still hot water into the empty bottle and add the powder, shake, then add the cooled boiled water. If you get the proportions of hot and then cooled water right you end up with the bottle at the right temperature at the end. Some baby brands sell thermos flasks, like Tommee Tippee.

The next best thing is to make up the bottles you need at home with hot water and then put them in the back of the fridge immediately (not the door). This is so they cool quickly which prevents bacteria growth. Then take them out with you insulated or in a cool bag, perhaps with cool blocks if you aren't going to use them for a while, and sit them in a jug of hot water to warm when needed (or microwave if you're happy to do this). This can't be done if you'll be out for a very long time as you risk bacteria developing in the milk if it doesn't stay cold enough, but I'd imagine those frozen blocks would keep them cold for quite a while.

The last option is to take out a sterilized bottle pre-filled with hot or warm boiled water. Then add the formula and mix it when you need it and sit the bottle in hot or cold water if it isn't the temperature you require for feeding. This has the disadvantage of not sterilizing the formula, although the bottle is sterilized and the water has been boiled, but is probably the simplest after using readymade from your brand.

Remember to add enough water when you are adding the powder before some or all of the water. If the formula isn't going in last then it's best to have the water pre-measured. A 4oz bottle needs 4oz of water and 4 scoops of formula so the end result is over 4oz. So don't just top up the bottle to the 4oz line if the powder is already in there as it will be too thick. I shouldn't imagine the odd occasion would matter but if you are doing it often it might be best to be precise.