Feeding the newest member of the family requires full time commitment and awareness on food safety and good hygiene. Always remember that infants are vulnerable to illnesses borne from improper food handling. Their immune systems are not yet developed fully to resist infections so extra care must be taken.
Here are 5 baby feeding tips for your new moms to ensure good health and hygiene of your baby.
- Wash Your Hands Always
The most vital in handling food is to wash your hands initially. Note that your hands can always pick up bacteria that are harmful to your baby. These can be derived from pets, raw food, soil and even diapers. Preparing your baby’s milk requires you to have very clean hands so make sure you sanitize them by washing with soap thoroughly. Alternatively, you can also rub a generous amount of alcohol on your hands after each wash.
- Be careful breastfeeding your infant
Always wash your breasts before breastfeeding. Remember that your baby will suck on them so they should be well sanitized before you offer them to your newborn. Breast milk is the best for babies since healthy newborns don’t require water or other fluids as long as they are milk feeding. Newborns need 9-12 feedings in a day mostly to be given every 2-3 hours. You will learn that your baby is hungry when you hear him/her crying and you notice the lips in sucking motions. Be careful not to overfeed as your little one may choke. Observe carefully as you will see if babies turn away from nipples meaning it is as an indication they are full. Don’t forget to burp them soon as they are done feeding.
- Check the packaging of commercial baby food before serving them to your infant.
Always read instructions first on the label when mixing infant formula before preparing them on feeding bottles. Remember that mishandling of milk would cause severe illness to your baby. Take note of your feeding time so there won’t be duplication of feedings. Also, be aware of the expiration of the milk you prepared, ensuring that it is not spoiled before you feed your infant. Bear in mind that milk formula can be contaminated even during preparation wherein bacteria can multiply quickly when not stored properly.
- Use safe water for mixing
Boil tap water for more than a minute; boil bottled water if you choose this one. If the label on the bottled water indicates it is sterilized, then no need to boil. Cool the water speedily reaching body temperature before you prepare the milk formula. Ensure that the bottle and nipples are all sanitized by putting them on sterilizer before preparation of formula.
- Consider Vitamin D Supplements When Breastfeeding
Ask your pediatrician about Vitamin D supplements for your newborn, particularly when you breast-feed your baby. Breastmilk, though better than infant formula, might not have ample content of Vitamin D which helps absorb phosphorus and nutrients such as calcium to form strong bones. To learn more about protein powder for Breastfeeding Moms see this website.
Conclusion
Apart from following the above mentioned tips, make sure you use one of these best sterilisers for cleaning your baby’s bottles. Having one or more of these best baby breastfeeding bottles makes feeding your baby easy and effortless for you. When you sleep with your baby, make sure you know these dos and don’ts of sleeping with your baby.
