Bottle feeding questions

- Do bottle feeding mums ever get given flak by people for not breastfeeding? What's the best way of dealing with it if you do?

I dont think it really matters if you breastfeed or not. You get flak no matter what you do. Whether you buy too much toys not enough educational toys to what you dress your child in and Oh gasp you gave your child a cookie (how bad can you get). I think it helps that you believe in the decisions you make for your family and to stick with it and bugger the rest.

- How do you get the last 30 or so mls out of a bottle, given that you are supposed to feed the baby upright? I can't seem to get the bottle even close to empty unless I lie him pretty much flat, and I'm told that can lead to ear infections

You dont need to lie them flat, just cradle them in your arms as you would for breastfeeding. If you are worried about reflux then I know you can get special bottles that has an angle on it to make it easier and they can sit more upright but otherwise I wouldnt worry. Ive never heard of a baby getting ear infections from having a bottle, as i said its the same as when they are breastfeeding so dont worry about that.

- How long do you sterilise bottles etc for? 3 months? 6 months? Forever?

generally for about 6 months i think is the guideline but you can do it for longer if you want to. By then they are starting to put anything in their mouths so the whole sterile enviroment is out the window anyway. You can also stop using boiled water about this time to if you choose to. i personally kept sterilising and using boiled water right up to about 10 months i think but it was more out of habit than anything.


- Do bottle feeding mums ever get given flak by people for not breastfeeding? What's the best way of dealing with it if you do?

sometimes they do, Ive never had anyone be out right rude to me and first time round i probably wouldnt have handled it to flash but second time round i was much more confident. Just dont let it bother you, either way your baby is getting feed and thats the main thing. Just be happy and positive in your decision and dont let anyone make you feel bad.


- The Plunket nurses have told me to give him 20mls of water a couple of times a day to avoid constipation from the thickened formula. Does this have to be given separately, or can I add another 20mls of water to his formula bottles, just diluting it a bit?

I would give it seperately incase he doesnt take a whole bottle then he is missing out on some of the nutrients etc... that he will need from the formula. You may find you dont need to give any water though, I know I have never had to but at the same time it wont be long before he starts using a wee sipper cup for water between feeds anyway. I would just see how he goes on formula and if you find he is getting constipated then start giving some extra water.

Good luck

We switched to bottle feeding for the same reason. Daniels reflux was bad on boobie, he now doesn't need any meds now that he's on formula.

Getting the last bit outta the bottle, if you hold him sitting up and let his head tilt back on your forearm you should be able to get the last bit out. Daniel seems to manage. But this may also depend what kind of bottle you are using as to how easy. I find some are easier than others for this.

I had more water to his bottle. Daniel coughs and splutters on plain water really badly so it's easier for me to just add the extra water to his milk. All goes in the same way so I don't see why it matters.

I have only had one person have a go at me for giving up boobie feeding. I tell them simply that he is better off on formula if it means that he doesn't need to be medicated and he is much happier for it!

I stopped sterilizing once he started shoving everything he could find in his mouth, which was about 2 weeks ago.

I do add water to his formula as he has a real big constipation problem. I normally add about 20ml to a 180ml feed, but he normally only drinks about 140ml in total. I am just swapping him to goats formula though as his constipation is becoming a real issue.
I tilt him back slightly to allow the last bit to empty out, don't think there is any other way unless you buy a podee.

I recently wrote a thread called my breastfeeding rant, which is about my feelings about not breastfeeding and some of the trouble that can unfortunately happen. I am not quite like neeandsam but I am getting close to not caring what people think.
I use to feel like I had to explain why I am bottle feeding but now if people ask if I am breastfeeding I just say no, and I am trying to ignore any other negativity. (sometimes easier said than done, I take things way too personally)

Mikaela wrote: How do you get the last 30 or so mls out of a bottle, given that you are supposed to feed the baby upright? I can't seem to get the bottle even close to empty unless I lie him pretty much flat, and I'm told that can lead to ear infections

I used to sit in a chair and have Olivia lie on a pillow so she was on an angle. I never had her sitting upright for a feed, where did you get that from? I think (IMO) it would be much more optimal for him to be sat upright for 20 mins after a feed and feed at an angel greater than 45 degrees.

Mikaela wrote: How long do you sterilise bottles etc for? 3 months? 6 months? Forever?

I stopped sterilizing Olivia's bottles at 5.5 months as it was just a PITA! You can however stop at 3 months. I just gave her warm tap water in her bottles from about 6 months onwards as well. Keeping boiling water was another fruitless activity, it doesn't matter on town supply but it does for country supply from tanks and stuff. I think 6 months is about the right age to take them off boiled water anyway.

Mikaela wrote: Do bottle feeding mums ever get given flak by people for not breastfeeding? What's the best way of dealing with it if you do?

Like SMoody said: it doesn't matter what you choose, you are going to get flak for it. I actually have a little soap box that I get on if people are rude to me being a bottle feeder. Unfortunately I didn't have a choice, I had no breast milk at all. I think work out your own demons and stick to your decision. Don't let anyone make you feel guilty for doing something that was right for you.

Mikaela wrote: The Plunket nurses have told me to give him 20mls of water a couple of times a day to avoid constipation from the thickened formula. Does this have to be given separately, or can I add another 20mls of water to his formula bottles, just diluting it a bit?

Do you have a syringe? Or a medicine dropper? Maybe just give him 5ml 4x a day 20mins after a feed? I would be careful with giving too much water, babies under 6 months of age can get quite sick from having too much water. The maximum per day is like 50mls (so you are well under).


Best of luck!