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Bottle feeding your baby
Feed your baby with love and care
Feeding is a good time for you to bond with your baby. You can look at your baby, talk to them quietly, smile, hold them close and respond to them with a gentle touch and care. This helps your baby feel safe and loved.
Other family members can also help feed the baby, like partners and grandparents. This helps everyone bond with the baby.
Read more about how dads can help.
Responsive bottle feeding
Responsive bottle feeding means paying attention to when your baby is hungry or full and following their signs. Here are some simple tips to help you practice responsive bottle feeding:
Follow your baby's signs
Let your baby decide how much to eat. Look for signs they are hungry (like sucking on hands, opening mouth, or becoming more awake), and signs they are full (like turning away from the bottle, stop sucking or falling asleep).
Comfortable position
Keep your baby a bit upright while feeding. It helps them swallow and control how much milk they drink. Do not prop or hold up the bottle with pillows or towels. This is not safe and can cause choking and ear infections.
Slow down the feed
Feeding your baby usually takes 20–30 minutes. Keep the bottle flat or slightly tipped up so the milk does not flow too fast. If the bottle is too high, it can be hard for the baby to control the amount of milk they are drinking. This will give them time to know when they are full. It is okay to pause if your baby looks tired or needs a break.
Quiet space
Feed your baby somewhere quiet so they can focus on eating.
Check the teat flow
Milk should drip slowly, not pour out. You can check this by turning the bottle upside down, the milk should drip steadily. If it is too fast or too slow, try to loosen or tighten the ring on the bottle. Fast flow can cause tummy pain. Slow flow can make baby tired and not drink enough.
Talk to your Family Doctor or Maternal, Child and Family Health Nurse for more help and support.
Changes are normal as babies grow
As your baby grows, they may become more awake, easily distracted while feeding and may want to hold their own bottle. Don't worry, this is normal but it is important to stay with your baby and look after them.
Sleep and feeding
Babies usually wake at night. This is normal.
It does not mean your baby needs solid food or extra formula.
What you can do
Feed your baby 4–6 times in 24 hours
Feed your baby in a quiet place.
Follow the formula tin instructions when preparing your baby’s milk.
Separate feeding from sleeping
Give solid foods around 6 months
