Responsive bottle feeding

There could be barriers to responsive feeding in bottle-fed babies - such as mothers or caregivers encouraging the baby to finish the whole bottle to avoid wastage rather than recognising the signs that baby has had enough and is full.

The feeding tables on packaging are based on average requirements and shouId onIy be treated as a rough guide. Responsive feeding helps determine how much miIk the baby needs and when they are full.

It has been shown that breastfed babies have a reduced risk of developing overweight or obesity in later life - and that infants fed breast milk from a bottle gain more weight in the first year of life.^6,7

Many breastfed babies also receive breast milk in a bottle. Responsive bottle feeding allows parents to build a close bond with their baby.

Tips for bottle feeding:

• Parents and caregivers should offer the bottle in response to feeding cues. When baby starts to show signs of hunger, the caregiver should offer a feed. Delaying feeding can lead to distress and have negative consequences
• Gently invite the baby to take the teat
• Pace the feeds
• Avoid forcing the baby to finish the feed. If there is any feed left over, the caregiver should throw it away
• Skin-to-skin contact can be developed in formula fed babies also. The caregiver can simply take off their top while feeding the baby and have a cuddle
• They can also look into baby’s eyes and develop eye contact.