All posts filed under: Feeding

Expressing and storing breastmilk

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You may be expressing to ease any engorgement, to boost your milk supply or to have a stash of milk for bottle feeds. Some women find expressing easy, while it can be more of a challenge for other women – this is a basic guide to help you find something that works for you, along with links to more information and videos. Getting started… You need to be as relaxed as possible – sitting comfortably, not feeling rushed or tense and where you won’t be disturbed can help your milk to flow. It can take a bit of experimentation to find the best time of day for you – some mums find it easier to express in the morning when their boobs feel fuller and their milk flows easier, other women are more relaxed in the evening so this is a better time for them to express. Make sure you are not hungry or dehydrated as this could make expressing harder. If you are expressing regularly, it can be beneficial to plan it into your …

Combination Feeding

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Combination feeding is about needing or choosing to do both breastfeeding and formula feeding. This comes up a lot in my postnatal sessions and mums can need to do this for a number of reasons: top up feeds as part of a weight-gain plan so their baby can take a bottle to ease the pressure on them, so they can share the feeding to take a break, to go out, to go away, to go back to work easing stress and pressure as part of making the switch from breastfeeding to bottlefeeding There’s no firm advice on how to do this but having a plan and some consistency can be important – this will help with your milk production as well as eventually building a gentle routine. You might choose mixed feeding because you need to do top-ups to help with weight-gain, you want to give your baby a regular bottle each day or because you want to continue breastfeeding but you need to do more bottle feeds than breastfeeds. Combination Feeding: Top-Ups This can …

Formula-feeding Basics

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You might be using formula for all of your baby’s feeds or just one or two throughout the day – this is a quick guide to making up a bottle so you can find what works for you. Making-up bottles *Fill your kettle with fresh cold water, boil and then leave to cool for 30 minutes (so it lowers to 70c)*With clean hands, fill the bottle with the correct amount of water. *With the scoop, measure the powder, level it off with the leveller or a clean knife and add to the bottle. (Follow the instructions for the formula you are using and only use the scoop that comes with that formula.)*Add the teat and lit and shake so the powder dissolves.*Cool the formula down by running the bottle under a cold water tap or a standing the bottle in a jug of cold water. You can test the temperature of the milk on your wrist before offering it to your baby. How much milk Your baby’s stomach will hold small amounts of milk and …

Sterilising Basics

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If you are using bottles for formula or breastmilk, they need to be cleaned and sterilised before your baby uses them. There has been much discussion about whether equipment used with breastmilk needs to be sterilised because breastmilk is without the potential bacteria that could be in formula. The guidance doesn’t distinguish between breast or formula. The NHS guidance for cleaning and sterilising your bottles includes…cleaning bottles and teats in hot water as soon as possible after a feed, using bottle and teat brushes to clean thoroughly and then rinsing with cold water. After an initial clean with bottle and teat brushes you can use the dishwasher to continue to clean bottles and teats but they will still need sterilising. You can sterilise with either… a steam steriliser – following the instructions, as each steriliser can be slightly different. These often hold a few bottles and takes a few minutes. microwave sterilising – some bottles can be sterilised individually in the microwave or you can use a microwave steriliser – but make sure it fits …

Feeding Your New Baby

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The Pregnancy, Birth & New Baby Guide is packed full of information, ideas and tips for expectant and new parents. These pages focus on providing you with essential basics for feeding your new baby…