Essential Tips for Feeding Your Infant
Be sure to discard any unused formula after a feeding and rinse the bottle in cool water to remove any residue. Never reuse leftover formula because the mixture of formula and baby's saliva can promote the growth of disease-causing germs. Click here for more tips about infant feeding.
How much formula does your baby need?
Because a baby's stomach is quite tiny, frequent small feedings work better than larger ones spaced further apart. Look for signs of hunger before feeding your baby, including: waking and tossing, sucking on a fist and crying or fussing. Also, be sure to respond quickly to those early signs of hunger. Do not wait until the baby is upset and crying hard.
During a feeding, hold the baby in the cradle of your arm, partially upright. This makes a baby feel secure and helps to prevent choking. Tip the bottle just enough that milk fills the nipple and no air gets in. Always hold the bottle during feeding. Propping a bottle for a baby can cause choking or suffocation.
Continue to feed your baby until you see signs of fullness, including:
