Feeding the 3 month old (1012)

If you are bottle feeding, don't prop the bottle up and leave your baby alone, and don't put baby to bed with a bottle of formula or juice. A baby left alone with a bottle could spit up and choke.

It's important for your baby to have the closeness of being held in someone's arms at every feeding. If feeding takes a long time because baby gets distracted, feed her in a dimly lit, quiet room to help speed things up. Other family members, even older children, may be able to give baby a bottle.

When baby drinks while lying on his back, formula can back up into the tubes between his throat and ear. The formula can grow bacteria and cause painful ear infections that could hurt baby's hearing.

You also need to be aware of “baby bottle mouth”. If baby has a bottle in her mouth all night, the juice or milk sugars can decay her gums or new teeth! Children lose their baby teeth later, but they are important for keeping space in the mouth for permanent teeth. If she must have a bedtime bottle, use plain water only.

Breastfeeding mothers do not have to give up nursing if they go back to work. A couple of weeks before returning to your job, start building up a supply of frozen breast milk for your child care provider to give baby. Pumping twice a day, in addition to nursing, will build up your milk supply. Introduce bottles to baby once or twice a day, several days before you go back to work. Sometimes baby will take the bottle of breast milk better from someone other than mother, since baby expects mother to nurse.

For more information on this subject, Please visit the College of Agricultural Sciences Publications Web site.

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