Bottles

Hi there,
My twin girls are 9 weeks (2.5 weeks adjusted age). We're bottle feeding (formula and EBM) and sometimes they take a really long time with their feeds (45 minutes to an hour) and then they've only taken 2-3 ounces (I assume they should be eating around 4 ounces which they do a couple of times a day). I know they'll be hungry again before their next scheduled feed in 3 hours so I'm wondering if I can give them the remainder of their first bottle?

I know the tin of forumula says to discard within an hour but I'm wondering what "real" life says? And what do you do at night time? I find myself up a million times getting bottles out of the fridge and warming them up and then throwing a lot out in the morning. Does anyone not refrigerate?

Any suggestions are appreciated. My goal is to get them to eat every 4 hours instead of 2.5-3 hours....when does that happen??

Thanks,

 

My babies didn't start eating 4 oz. regularly until around 12 weeks. I usually throw out anything they haven't finished within the hour. Can you try making smaller bottles? You can always give them an extra ounce or two if they finish and want more. We leave a container of formula in the fridge that isn't poured into bottles yet. It helps when you want to add a little extra or if the babies want a little more after their bottle.

 

With formula I always tried to follow the guidelines and finish it within the hour. BM can be left out quite a bit longer than that, which is a MAJOR benefit :lol: . I would try making smaller bottles and have an extra couple of bottles or even a small pitcher with just 1-2 ounces on hand in case they need more for one feeding. Bottles are a pain!

 

We use bottles up to two hours and I have put formula bottles back in the fridge and used them later. Now I am not condoning this behavior, but I've done it plenty.

We use jugs of spring water to make bottles as needed. We got so tired of warming up bottles in the middle of the night. My babies have been fed warm-temperature formula since birth.

 

It's pretty important if you want to avoid major diarrhea, which can be life threatening in young babies if not properly treated at the hospital. I found the inconvenience of making more bottles much less of a bother than the inconvenience of an ER visit. This diarrhea/dehydration issue is a major reason why bf'ing is not recommended in areas without proper sanitation. Since formula is so nutrient rich, bacteria grows in it very quickly and can make a baby (especially a young one) very sick--you know, like potato salad left outside at a picnic. Probably the 1 hour rule is conservative--I've certainly used bottles 70 minutes old! But I would not feel comfortable with 2 hours--you just never know, so why take the risk?

Prefilled formula dispensers + distilled jug water kept in the bedroom OR the prefilled 8 ounce bottles that you just pop a nipple onto.

 

Well...in real life I NEVER throw a bottle away after an hour unless we've been outside and its exposed to high temps. I do, however, throw them back in the fridge and save them for the next feeding. I suggest having room temp bottles of water and pre-measured formula for night so you can just mix and feed.

Honestly the best thing we did was to buy a small (tiny, the smallest they had) refrigerator and small microwave and put it in the boys' room. That way we had all bottles needed for the night made and in there at bedtime and all we had to do was pull them out, feed, and put the unused part back in. The thought of having to go downstairs and make and heat bottles multiple times a night is awful to me...haha. Our boys ended up liking cold bottles (woohoo!!!) so we never had to warm them either.

And we have not once had ANY diarrhea or upset tummies! I think it will be just fine...just don't leave them out of the fridge for long periods.

 

We have a mini fridge and microwave outside their room. I usually make 2 6oz and 2 4oz bottles, then throw in refridge. We have bottle warmers in their room.we also sterilize their bottles 3x/day. I don't see how I can wake up, mix and feed at middle of the night. That's just too much work when I m half asleep half awake hahah.

Ebm: we refridge leftover.I don't throw away ebm.

My twins don't wake up for middle night or early morning bottles. We dream feed them. And if they don't have enought milk that day. I dream feed them again around 2-3am. Their first bottles start at 7-8am.

 

Why can't I figure out what you are saying here? It's NOT recommended in areas WITHOUT proper sanitation... If you're saying what I think you're saying, that's the wackiest thing I have ever heard! Wow, so they should make their formula with all the fresh, clean spring water laying around?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10636370 - Our findings support WHO's recommendation to continue breastfeeding for at least 2 years, especially in settings with poor sanitation and inadequate water supply.

Same with us. The 1 hour mark is a very conservative time frame, both for liability reasons, to keep people from getting close to the contamination period AND to make people buy more formula sooner by throwing away anything unused...

 

My boys took forever with their feeds. Forever. Rarely, especially when little, did they finish a bottle in the one hour time frame. Sometimes we left the bottle out longer. Sometimes we forgot to put it back in the fridge. Sometimes we were traveling with no fridges, etc. So yes-my kids got their bottles after that one hour time frame. More times than I can count, or should admit to! LOL! And I always used the bottle again if it wasn't finished. It was added to the next bottle. Formula is NOT cheap. I don't think I ever saved it for a third feeding. Two was the tops.

And my boys are now three, and Annabella is 17 months old. My kids have never had diahhrea-from bottles, food, or other illnesses.

As for nighttime feeding, before I went to bed, I used warm/hot water to fill their bottles. Then I left them out on the counter, so that they would be at room temperature, and then just used the formula dispenser to make up their bottles. It took all of a minute, if that.

 

Our formula container (Similac Sensitive) says it can be out of the fridge for two hours. If you haven't warmed it or your kiddos haven't had any, you can return it to the fridge before the two hour mark. Once your LOs start drinking, you have an hour. I was quite paranoid, so I actually emailed similac about it.

 

I think cat mommy used "bf" to mean bottle feeding since that is what this post is about.

I know that mine never took 4 oz until they were 3-4 months old and they were full term. I would say 2-3 is just right for babies as small as yours. Especially if its EBM, babies tend to need less than formula because of the fat/calorie content. One of the biggest issues with bottle feeding is overfeeding, so pay attention to their cues and if they act like they are done, then they probably are. A 2 week old's brain still tells them to eat small amounts frequently, so you really can't expect them to fit a perfect 3 hour schedule. My guess is that 45-60 min for a feeding is just tiring them out. I would probably start with 2 oz bottles and limit feeds to 30-40 min.

I know we never kept formula bottles after feeds because we only made as much as we knew they would take. We only used formula very occasionally, though. I always made sure EBM was saved for the next feeding since its shelf life is longer! As for nighttime, I don't have any advice. This is one of the main reasons I nursed instead of pumping. Just stick the baby on the boob, no mixing, no pouring, no washing.

 

Nah....just a tired twin mommy typo. I meant to say "bottlefeeding."