How to manage bottle feeding when travelling?

Planning to take your baby for his/her first outing? Congrats! You may ask, why? Well, going out with a baby should be considered a milestone too, not for the baby but you! However, do keep in mind that bottle feeding when travelling can be quite tricky. If you are planning to take your child out of the comfort of the home and far from it signifies that you have grown up as a parent and build the necessary confidence. It doesn't really matter if you take your baby out for a one-day outing, to some other town for a week, or across the country. You will require being prepared to feed her as little ones need to be fed every 2-4 hours. Breastfeeding can be done anywhere but if you are bottle-feeding your baby, you would need to make some preparations before traveling. Also Read: 7 Tips to prevent and treat ear ache in children while travelling in flight

Options for bottle feeding when travelling

#1. Ready Made Formula Milk

If you are going out only for a couple of days, you may wanna carry ready-made formula milk. Though they are a bit more expensive than formula milk powder, they will make your life a lot easier and give you some extra time during your vacation. You will only have to pour the milk into the sterilized bottle and you would be good to go. Pack enough of those for the number of days planned and some extra for any delays.

#2. Formula Milk Powder

If you are traveling for weeks and want to prepare the baby’s feed as and when they need it, you can carry their favorite formula milk powder. You would have to make sure that you have access to clean water that you can use to prepare the milk. If there is not, carry freshly boiled water with you in a high-quality vacuum flask. The flask normally keeps the water warm for about 4 to 6 hours. You can also try feeding the formula at room temperature or warm it up by keeping the formula bottle in the warm water for a while. To warm the milk, you can carry a travel bottle warmer that works on electricity/batteries for the time you are on the road and not halting. When you are staying at a hotel, you can pour some hot water in a bowl and put the feeding bottle in that bowl to warm the milk before you feed. Most hotels or resorts can get you a bowl filled with hot water if you ask. A lot of good hotels have hot running water in taps all the time. You can check with them while making reservations to be on the safer side. If you don’t want to depend on the hotel for the warm water, you can carry an electric kettle of your own to warm the water/milk. The bowl and the kettle will also come handy to sterilize the bottle and baby’s other utensils if you are carrying them. Also Read: 13 Things You Must Carry When Travelling With Kids

How to Clean & Sterilize the Bottles when Travelling:

Be Prepared

1. Carry a small dish-soap and a brush.
2. Use disposable bottle liners if possible and wash the bottle at the end of the day.
3. If you're staying somewhere with a microwave, bring a portable microwave sterilizer with you when you travel.

Wash the Bottles in Hotel Sink

1. Rinse the sink to remove any obvious dirt.
2. Fill the sink with hot water and add dishwashing liquid/soap.
3. Pour hot, soapy water into bottles, and rotate a baby bottle brush inside until the bottle is clean.
4. Wash the bottle with hot/warm running water to ensure it is cleaned.

Sterilize using a Travel Kettle

1. Fill the kettle with water, plug it in and allow to boil.
2. Pour the boiling water over the washed bottle parts in the sink.
3. Place the bottle parts on a clean towel and allow to dry.

Also Read: How to manage bottle feeding when traveling?

11 Useful Tips to Manage Bottle Feeding When Travelling

1. If your baby could not finish the bottle, do not consider saving it for later as germs can build up in the remaining milk and upset the stomach of the child.
2. Always carry more than enough formula for the trip especially if you are traveling to a new place.
3. It is recommended to make a minimum amount of feed so that your baby could finish it. If required, you can always prepare more.
4. When traveling by air with a child, you are allowed to carry more formula milk and sterilized water than the usual liquid limit of 100 ml. So, carry a reasonable amount of each to meet your baby’s needs for the journey.
5. Make sure that the water you are using is clean. If you are not sure, buy bottled water but please check that the bottled water has less than 200 mg of sodium (Na) and less than 250 mg of sulphate (SO or SO4) per litre. If you have the option, boil the bottled water too and cool it down before using it for preparing your baby’s feed.
6. A few days before you leave for the vacation, try bottle-feeding the baby with milk at room temperature. If the baby responds to it well, you will not have to worry about warming the milk before feeding.
7. Always carry a small dish-soap and a brush to wash the bottles after feeding.
8. If you do not want to carry an electric kettle to warm the water to sterilize the bottle, you can carry cold-water sterilizing tablets instead.
9. Hygiene is one of the biggest concern when traveling with a child. Make sure that the baby is fed with a sterilized bottle every time. A good practice is to keep enough bottles for the whole day when you are out and then you can wash and sterilize the bottles once you are back to your hotel or resort and prepare yourself for the next day in advance.
10. If you are not bottle-feeding your baby yet, introduce the bottle to your baby a few weeks before starting your journey. This will make things a lot easier for you and your baby too.
11. Never heat the formula milk directly over the gas flame.

Also Read: Nutritious Recipe For Babies While Travelling Want to share your mommy experience with other moms through words or images? Become a part of the Moms United community.Click here and we will get in touch with you

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