Tips to Prepare Baby Formula Milk

For a newborn baby, mother’s milk is the best and you cannot compare it with any formula or other feed. It is advisable to mother that breastfeeding is the best for baby and mother too. Every mother wishes to breastfeed her baby as long as possible for her, but in some situation if she cannot feed her baby she needs bottle feed or formula feed to her baby. You need to provide some formula feed with breast feeding when you think that breast feeding is not sufficient for your baby or you are working woman or for any other reason. You can take advice of your pediatrician about formula feed for your baby. You can get milk powder and other formula feed available in market. You need to read instruction on that. Some formula feeds are advisable to give after six months only.

Extra Care is Essential for Formula Feed Baby

Cow’s milk is easily digestible and considered the best for grown up baby. You need to select milk powder, which is made up from cow’s milk. Check ingredients, types and protein proportions, fat and sugar. You need to take advice of your baby’s doctor before start new formula feed or milk powder.

When you start any new formula feeding to your baby, check that it is easily digestible to your baby. If your baby found any indigestion problem, check proportion. If it persists for more days, consult your doctor.

Use popular brand formula powder for your baby.

Many women give home made formula milk to their baby like adding some water and sugar in the milk and then boil it and thus feed is ready for baby. This is not advisable for infants less than six months because milk is very hard to digest for small baby and sugar is also not advisable for infant. Use of skimmed milk powders is also not good for baby as it contains less nutrition. You need to check ingredients and calories your baby gain from milk powder. You can take guidance from experienced people regarding popular branded formula milk powder available in the market at your nearby place. Your baby’s doctor can also guide you to provide brand name of formula powder by considering age of infant.

You also need to ask that how many times you need to give formula milk to your baby. If you breastfeed to baby, you need to provide formula feed for less number of times. If you are not breast feeding your baby, you need to read instructions of milk powder container. They provide instructions that how many times you need to give formula feed with specifying age of baby. You should follow the instructions and use same scoop provided in container. You should also understand your baby’s capacity that how frequently baby needs formula milk. As a mother, you can understand within two to three days regarding need of your baby for bottle feed.

How to Prepare Formula Milk

First boiled water in clean container. Make it little warm that powder can easily dilute in water. Add scoop of formula powder in the boil water. Remember to maintain proportion of water and formula milk powder. It is essential because it gives taste to your baby and in addition your baby will get sufficient energy from it. Otherwise, if water ratio is high, your baby will not get any taste or nutrition while if water is less, it becomes thick and get difficult for your baby to suck as it will not come out easily from nipple or sipper.

Shake well before giving it to your baby.

Check that powder is diluted completely for easy feeding to baby. You can check in your hand that formula milk can come out from nipple easily. Thus, you can also check that water is not very hot. Make it warm if you felt it hot. 

Every time keep same proportion of water and formula powder. If your baby found different taste each time she may refuse to drink it sometimes.

If you are planning for travel with your infant, you should keep formula powder together. You can take separate boiled water in flask to keep water hot during journey. Never used prepared formula milk for a long time in journey. It is even not recommended for more than two to three hours. Therefore, try to arrange fill boil water in your flask whenever it becomes available while traveling. Try to use mineral water for your baby to avoid any bacterial infection from water as it affects digestive system.

Always Remember

• If you use bottle for feeding your baby, you should care to make it clean perfectly. You should keep good stock of bottle and nipples.
• Boil bottle in water once in a day. Open top of the bottle and remove nipple and put everything in boil water to make it insects free.
• Do not reuse bottle without wash.
• Keep bottle brush to clean bottle easily.
• Always closed milk powder container properly after use. Do not keep it open. Store it in a place as per instruction written on milk powder container.
• Always check manufacturing date and expiry date of formula powder on container before purchasing.
• Do not use prepared formula milk after 2-3 hours. If you keep it in refrigeration then also you need to follow instruction as written on the tin. It is advisable to use fresh preparation and avoid prepared formula milk for a long time. Many manufacturers clearly specify on the tin of formula powder to not used prepared formula milk even after one or two hours.

Infant’s digestive system is not developed properly. Therefore, you need to take extra care on her/his feeding if you give formula feeding. In case of breast feeding, you are providing the best to your baby. Always try to give formula feed as supplement as nothing is as nutritious as mother’s milk.