Bottle Warming

My son only liked warm bottles too. What we did was this:
Since you shouldn't put warm water in the baby's bottle (due to lead or copper from the pipes) we would put in cold water. Then we would take a plastic container (like the one you get cut pineapple in from the store) and put in hot tap water in that. Then we float the bottle in the hot water to warm the bottle slowly. Once warm, we would add the powdered formula since it dissolves better in warm water too. We would do the same when I was breastfeeding in the beginning too. Cold juice, now that he's older? Not a problem. But the formula always had to be warm or he wouldn't take it. When it was warm he drank between 10 - 12 ounces at a time. Hope this helps.

What I did was let the water from the sink run until it got very hot and then put it in a large glass and then I would submerge the bottle in there(without the nipple) and in about 5 minutes it was lukewarm. My daughter liked it that way. Every baby is different. Don't put it in the microwave. It will heat unevenly and could be dangerous. Besides, I couldn't drink or eat anything that was heated unevenly.

I use to have a very large cup/glass I would put hot water in, and set the bottle in there to warm it up.(right in the sink. Worked good for me & my sister, enjoy that new baby !!!

I read that back in the day they thought that warm formula was better for babies, but that isn't true anymore. Now doctors are saying that if your baby will take it right from the fridge that's just as good (and more convenient), but most babies prefer it warmed a little.
I have a 4 month old baby girl and we use a bottle warmer. It's probably the best thing that I've ever purchased :)
We have The First Years by Learning Curve model and it works fantastic, it was only $15 too! I know Target selles one as well and it works great too. I actually have one at home and one at my parents house for when they babysit.
Hope this helped :)

When making my sons bottles, I always mixed steam distilled water with his formula. I always warmed the mixture in a glass measuring cup and then transfered it to his bottle. I am afraid to warm any plastics in the microwave.

J.,
Congratulations on your new little baby. The whole warm vs. cold, microwave vs. not is so confusing!!!

While I suppose there might be babies out there who prefer cold milk, I've never met any personally. We've raised four kids, all formula babies (after nursing 2 -6 weeks). We used warm bottles till about six to seven months old. Even in working in the church nursery I've never come across a baby liking bottles cooler than room temp. and even then has been rare.

We either made formula from powder and warm water or else pre-mixed it with concentrate and then heated it in the microwave. Our biggest concern with microwave heating was that it be shook well and tested before giving it to the baby. Bottle warmers are good, too, but the only one I had experience with heated so slow!!! I think I remember reading that if you start your baby out with bottles of a certain temp (room temp vs. warm or even a little cool) that is what they'll get used to, but again, that's just something I read in a parenting magazine, not from personal experience.

I used to warm the water in a pyrex measuring glass and then mix it with the formula and shake it really well. It seemed to be the best way so we would not get a hot spot. Your also not using plastic to warm the bottle since that seems not to be good anymore.

I wouldnt worry about 10 seconds in the microwave. I always heat my bottles in the microwave for 10-20 seconds. My kids were breast fed or bottle fed with breast milk.

You can put the water in the microwave to boil it and then put the bottle in the hot water to heat it up.

But if the baby is screaming I would just get him the bottle athe quickest way possible.

The report was probably discussing BPA (a potentially toxic chemical that leaches from plastic). BPA leaches from plastic baby bottles when it is heated. The heat from warming a bottle is sufficient. The best thing to do it to buy BPA free platic bottles or glass bottles. They sell Born Free at Babies R Us.

You can heat the bottle by placing it in hot water, a bottle warmer (15-20$) or useing a crock-pot.

My son also will not eat a cold bottle. its not that he "prefers" it warm really, but the colder the bottle, the more he spits up. i too have warmed bottles in the microwave, my son likes his bottles so warm you think its going to burn him :) what i have done with warming bottels is to put a bowl with water in it in the microwave for a few minutes to get the water boiling, then when you have boiling water in the bowl, stick the bottle with desired amount of formula in the bowl and shut the door of the microwave. depending on how much formula your son eats will depend on how long you leave the bottle in the bowl. my son at 3 months eats 8oz at a time. i usually get the water as hot as i can and leave the bottle in the water for a couple of minutes. like i said he likes his bottles WARM! lol....i know that they say you should never heat the bottle in the microwave b/c of heat spots....but it makes it a lot easier and quicker when you DO heat it in the microwave. just remember when you do so...to not only shake the bottle (duh! this will help stop "hot spots") and check the formula temp on your wrist, the bottle is going to feel hotter than the formula sometimes.
i hope that this has been helpful :) Good Luck!

I have heard the same about the microwave, we didn't bother with a warmer, we just filled a pot with hot water and let it sit in there for a few minutes. You do have to start a little ahead of time, but it works just as well.

We are hearing on the news how plastic bottles release chemicals when heated. Use glass bottles and warm the
milk. Better yet use warm water when making the formula.
I never gave one of my 5 children room tempeture or colder
bottle of milk. Breast milk is even warm. Time to wake up,
our parents listened to the professionals, so called experts
and children now have more rights than the adults..something
wrong when new mother are being told to feed room temp. milk and food to babies and yet professionals eat their drinks & food warm. Warm milk & food warms you up and relaxes you.

I know what you are talking about. My son who is 14 1/2 months does not like cold liquids. I have been using the First years bottle warmer. I love it. I picked mine up at a mom to mom sale, but I believe they are pretty inexpensive. The one I have you can heat up jars of baby food in, and I did with store bought & home made babyfood.

I saw the same story on Good Morning America, but it was puttng Hot water in the bottle not warm they also said that putting them in the Microwave is bad for them. So I'd go back to warm tap water. It's something to do with the hot water releases so chemical into whatever is in the bottle.

The temp. does'nt actually effect your babies belly any different, it's just what they prefer!! Although, most babies prefer it warm!!

Congrats on the new baby! As others have said, heating plastic is bad, and from what I have read, heating on the stove or in a bottle warmer has the same effect. We purchased Born Free bottles, two plastic and one glass, and those are great. They use the toxin-free plastics that are honey-colored. You can buy them online or at places like Whole Foods.

I have to say, though, that as soon as we bought them, we started giving our son cold water bottles and he adjusted after a bottle or two. But he is much older, so that might not work at one month.

Hi J.,

I recently switched using plastic bottles to glass..my husband and I researched this story and it is quite scary..the plastic (when hot) emits a chemical and this chemical has been linked to many problems in children...i found this article:

Toxic Baby Bottles?
By Rachel Rabkin Pechman, Parenting
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Early this year, a report by a California environmental group brought attention to toxic chemicals in plastic baby bottles, causing a run on glass versions. Next came a conference funded by the National Institutes of Health and other major groups at which similar warnings were announced. The concern: A chemical in some plastics called bisphenol A (BPA) -- which has been linked with cancer, impaired immune function, hyperactivity, and other problems -- can leach into a bottle's contents.

"There's no need to be frightened, but you should try to reduce your baby's exposure to this chemical," says pediatrician Harvey Karp, M.D., a board member of Healthy Child Healthy World, a non-profit group that raises awareness about environmental toxins. Here's how:

Avoid hard polycarbonate plastic, which contains BPA. Instead, use bottles made of glass, or softer, safer plastics made of polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyamide. Brands that carry these include Born Free (which makes only BPA-free bottles), Gerber, Sassy, and Medela; call the manufacturer to check which it sells.

Discard worn bottles (those that are cloudy or scratched): Chemicals leach into food more easily when plastics break down.

Don't heat plastic bottles in the microwave, or wash them in the dishwasher, since heat degrades plastic, releasing chemicals.

also
environmentcalifornia.org/uploads/Ve/AQ/.../Toxic-Baby-Bottles.pdf

here's another article

Debate is growing about whether toxic chemicals leach from plastic baby bottles into the breast milk or formula they contain. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has already urged parents to make sure that the soft vinyl teethers and toys their babies chew or suck are not made from PVC plastic, which contain toxic pthalates. What do you need to know about baby bottles to help keep your children safe?

Background:

Bisphenol-A is an industrial chemical used to make polycarbonate plastic, the key ingredient in clear, shiny baby bottles and many other plastic products. When exposed to heat or stress, Bisphenol-A (BPA) can leach out of the plastic baby bottle and into the formula it contains. Research indicates that at very low levels, BPA has the potential to disrupt the normal functioning of hormones, cause hyperactivity, impair learning, affect the onset of puberty, and lead to other health problems.

WebMD reviews some of the key research, conducted by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, here. Essentially, this research, conducted by the Medical School at Case Western Reserve University , shows that very low doses of BPA can have measurable health effects and that dangerous amounts of BPA can seep out of used plastic bottles.

Consumer Reports conducted its own study on BPA:

"We bought six different bottles and heated plastic from each in simulated infant formula. The plastic from each of the bottles leached into our test formula a chemical called bisphenol-A, which in lab animals has produced physiological effects similar to those produced by estrogen. During such "endocrine disruption," chemicals interfere with or mimic the action of hormones, possibly upsetting normal development. (Subscribers, see our June 1998 report, which included tests for chemicals that can leach from certain plastic wraps into fatty foods.)

Based on testing with an intact bottle, we calculate that a typical baby who drank formula sterilized by heating in the bottle would be exposed to a bisphenol-A dose of about 4 percent of an amount that has adversely affected test animals in studies by Frederick vom Saal, professor of biological science at the University of Missouri, Columbia.

Such exposure may sound very low. However, safety limits for infant exposure can be set as low as 0.1 percent of the level that has adversely affected animals. Babies who used the bottles we tested could be exposed to a bisphenol-A dose 40 times higher than that conservative definition of safety.

George Pauli, the director of the division of product policy at the Food and Drug Administration, said the agency has looked into bisphenol-A leaching, and it stands by its decades-old approval of polycarbonate baby bottles as safe. We think the FDA needs to re-examine the issue in light of our data and recent concerns about the sensitivity of babies to the estrogenlike effects of chemicals such as bisphenol-A."

Recommendations:

The Children's Health Environmental Coalition recommends the following precautions:

* Learn to identify polycarbonate plastic containers so you can avoid them. They are generally clear and rigid, and may have the recycling symbol 7 marked on the bottom.
* Select bottles made of tempered glass or polyethylene or polypropylene (recycling symbols 1, 2 or 5), which do not leach chemicals into formula or breast milk. Evenflo makes bottles and nursers from these safer plastics. Evenflo also makes tempered glass bottles. In addition to EvenFlo, Born Free offers baby bottles, trainer cups, nipples and bottle sterilizers that are BPA-free
* Avoid heating breast milk and infant formula over the stove or in the microwave in plastic; dangerous chemicals are more likely to leach when you heat in plastic.
* To avoid bacteria, look for scratches in plastic bottles.
* Avoid plastic bottles that have decorations printed on the inside. These can come off into formula when it's been heated.
* To avoid shards of glass ending up inside the bottle, glass bottles with cracks and chips should be discarded immediately.
* Avoid disposable nursers if possible, as the plastic bags may leak or burst. There have also been incidents of babies choking on the plastic tab inside.

.

I had a bottle warmer and I loved it! You can usually find an inexpensive one and they are very simple to use.
Unless it is breast milk, I don't see any reason you can't microwave. I think people advised against it because there was a worry of a hot spot in the milk. If you give the bottle a good shake before you feed your child, you shouldn't have to worry about a hot spot and you are sure to drip a little out of the nipple, so you'll know if it is too hot.
I believe, because my children were nursed for the first three months, that the best temperature is warm. Even luke warm should do the trick. I also believe it's easier on the tummy.
Best of luck!

With my kids, I used powder formula and kept a gallon of water at room temp on the counter to make the bottles. It seemed to work really well. I used the drop in bottles which should not go in the microwave. I've heard alot lately about putting any plastic in the microwave. I guess a chemical used to make the plastic gets in food when heated in the microwave. I hope this helps!

Hello J., I am a mother of two, now 4 and 2 years old. For my kids, I would warm their bottles by placing them under hot water for a couple mintues. That worked wonders and safely warmed the bottle (I've also heard the microwave can create "hot spots" in the bottle than can burn their little mouths.) I would always test the liquid first before feeding it to them by squeezing the nipple or the drop in liner. If it was too hot, I would run it under cold water for a bit until it was just right. I invested in a bottle warmer, but it seemed to take as long as the water method. On the go, I would have pre-made, chilled bottles so I would stop at a fast-food restaurant, ask for a 1/2 glass of hot water and then put the bottle in that for a bit (only 1/2 full because the water would rise in the cup when the bottle was placed in it.) After a couple minutes, the bottle would be warm! Worked great on the go!

Hi J.,

I just use room-temperature water for my 9-month old daughter, and she's always been fine with that. Each time I wash a bottle, I fill it up with cold water, and then let it sit on my counter for several hours so it can become room temperature before my daughter needs it. However, sometimes I am not always on top of things and I am unable to wash her bottles until right before her next feeding (meaning there is not enough time to allow the cold water to turn to room temperature). When this happens, I keep a large jug of tap water on my counter and just use that.

As for heating the bottle in the microwave, my own pediatrician told us it would be fine to put the water in the microwave for a few seconds (but like you, I also do 10 seconds.) What I do is, I put the water in a glass measuring cup, put THAT in the microwave, and when it's done heating, I pour that into her bottle.

Personally, I never had luck with my bottle warmer. When my 2-year old was a baby, I had used the...gosh, I think it was called Night and Day bottle warmer, and it was a popular brand, but I can't think of what it was. The water was always too hot or too cold, I could never get it right. The problem was, if the water was still too cold, I was unable to put it back into the bottle warmer, because the machine literally had to sit for a few minutes to cool down. I used to use concentrate with my son, so when my daughter was born and somebody told me about using powder with the room temperature water, I was like, "Why didn't I do that with my son??" It really is an awesome way to do it...so much cheaper with powder, and so much more convenient, especially if you are on the go!

Good luck! (P.S! Our doctor told us that warmer formula isn't necessarily better for the baby health-wise, but it certainly is usually a bit more preferable to the baby than cold formula!!)

with all three of my kids the doctor suggested room temperature--I used powdered formula and bottled water that I just left unopened on the counter until I needed it, It worked great when we were on the go cuz you did not have to worry about warming or keeping cold any formula
good luck

I used to work at a childcare center and we would warm the bottles in a crockpot filled with water. If you're staying home and you're around to monitor the water you could fill a crockpot in the morning and leave it on low all day (I would start it on high to get it warmed faster) then you just put the bottle in the water and leave it for a few minutes till the formula is warm. I'm not sure if it's easier on a baby's stomach, but it seems natural they would prefer warm milk/formula b/c that's how they get it when breast feeding...good luck!

you should never put warm or hot liquids/food into plastic. period. toxins from the plastic leach into the food. never ever heat up food in plastic in a mircrowave. in fact, when i remodel- it will be w/o a mircrowave.

go to glass baby bottles. they are becoming the new/old.

the report on abc was stupid. in fact, you should know that mainstream is owned by the advertisers...you will never get hard hitting straight facts. you will washed down topics often load with misinformation. use your internet and get the truth. harsh reality.

J.,
I am a mother of 3 boys and grandmother of 4 boys. I have found the best way to warm baby's bottle is with tap water. Let the hot water run until it gets real hot, then you can do one of two things. Hold the bottle under the running hot water or fill a pan with the hot water and set the bottle in it for approx. 3 mins. This should do the trick, it won't make the formula real warm, but at least take the chill off of it. Please do not use the microwave oven to warm his formula up as it is not good. Why go to the expense of buying a bottle warmer? First off, it takes to long, and second, they are to costly. My way is simple, cheap and fast. Another way is to heat up a pan of water on the stove and put the bottle in it for a few mins. AFTER the water has come to a boil. DO NOT put bottle in pan of water while heating the water as this will make the formula to hot. Hope this helps you.
M.

Hi J.. You can warm bottles in a sink of hot water, or simply add water that is just a touch cooler than your body temperature. Tepid formula is the best way to go to avoid burning baby's mouth. It worked out quite well with my two boys who are now 17 years and 11 years old. Babies generally don't like cooler formula, as I found out with my oldest. Keep it at body temp and you'll be fine and so will baby.

Good luck!

I didn't read everyones answer so if this is repeated sorry. I got a big cup let the tap run on hot and put the bottle in the cup and left it running for as long as I needed to to get warm. If you breast feed the temp of your milk is your body temp so that is what I would think your formula would be. I would shake the bottle every few minutes cause the milkon the outer side of the bottle is getting all the heat from the water, and yes I have over heated the formula doing this, so test it on your arm first. No bottle warmer for me, don't waste money you don't have to is my opinion. Good Luck!!

With all 3 of my kids i used room temp water. It wasn't too cold on their bellys but at the same time it got them use to having things at room temp. The reason i did that cause it seemed like the warmers would heat not the same each time. Meaning it had to be perfect for my oldest. Anyways it also helped with certain things like giving them water or.... switching over to milk. I have read/heard alot of things about plastic being warmed up. Even water bottles that we drink in the car they say is a reason for breast cancer in women. Just like they say polution is in the air but people still use cars and factories..... Now days it seems like every thing is goin to hurt us in this society. Hey there must be something right goin on cause our family members have been using plastic in microwaves for how long now and i see more people having their 93rd birthday...

J.

I always made my girls bottles and ran real hot tap water and filled a coffee cup with it then set the bottle in the cup. It seemed to heat it enough and I didn't have to worry about hot spots from the microwave. If you do use the microwave make sure you shake the bottle real good to help disperse the heated formula.
Hope this helps

K. S.

You could warm the bottle the old fashioned way. Heat some water in a pan on the stove and put the bottle in to warm it. Back when I was warming bottles, the bottles were glass so you could simply put it in a pan of water and heat it on the stove. However, today bottles are plastic so that wouldn't be such a good idea. But you can still heat the water in a pan, remove the pan from the burner and then put the bottle in the pan. It will at least take the chill off of the milk. Another thing you can do is take the bottle out of the refrigerator about an hour or so before you are going to feed the child and let it get to room temperature at least.

Putting plastic bottles in the microwave is not a good idea. However, you could take the milk out of the bottle and heat it in a glass container in the microwave for just a few seconds and then pour it back into the bottle. I know this takes a little more time and effort but isn't your baby worth it?

Yes, I personally do think warm (not hot) milk is better on a baby's stomach. Hope these suggestions are helpful to you. Good luck in finding a suitable solution.

J. T. Grandma of 9

i actually warm up the water in a coffee mug for about 35 seconds and pour the water into the bottle, that way you don't heat up the bottle in the microwave and release the chemicals into the bottle. but my baby girl is 10 months and takes 8 oz. so adjust to what you need. you can also purchase glass bottles, since your baby is young enough and probably doesn't hold his own bottle. i have noticed thought that a warm bottle as apposed to a cool bottle is more soothing to babies...hope this helps.

I had asked my daughter's Dr a similar question. It really depends on where you live. If you are on city water you should be fine, but if you are on well water, then you might want to use filtered and warm it. My daughter didn't like cold bottles either. I would sometimes put the water (in a glass meas. cup) in the mic depending on where we were, but I did purchase a bottle warmer for the house and the car. We had to drive several hours whenever we would visit our parents, and our daughter didn't like room-temp either. It HAD to me warm. If you have filtered water on your fridge, I would use that and warm it up. If you were nursing, that milk would be warm, so I'm sure he would enjoy a warm and cozy bottle.

I too am a new mom that has serfed the net looking this topic up. What I finally settled on is using a large plastic cup filled half way with water that I microwave for 2 minutes (boiling water). We then put the baby bottle in that to let the formula heat. This is the same concept as a baby bottle warmer that seems to work a lot better (read reviews and such from babies r us). I just got back from a airplane trip with my 3 month old and this worked great even in the airport. The bottle normally takes a few minutes to warm this way so you will have to keep your baby patient. As far as baby's preference for formula temp.... varies by baby. Mine definately prefers the warmer temp.

My suggestion is not put bottles in microwave -- warming plastic can be harmful according to studies from a chemical perspective. i would buy a warmer or just give him room temp water -- keep gallon of water on counter. i have always done that and they get use to it quickly.