10 Questions About Follow-Up Milk!

Of course, your baby should be fed with breast milk for at least the first 6 months. However, your milk may not be enough for your baby, the milk may be low, and you may need to apply for some supplementary foods for your baby. At the beginning of these supplement products is follow-up milk.

What is follow-on milk, what are the differences between formula and follow-on milk? We’ve answered what you need to know for you!

1. What is follow-on milk?

Follow-on milk is a supplement product that can feed the baby and get the necessary nutrients in cases where breast milk is insufficient. Follow-on milk, also called “formula milk”, is shaped with some additions and deductions in organic milk. The main ingredient of most of them is cow’s milk. The baby’s body is not ready for cow’s milk for at least 8 months, as cow’s milk is at risk of allergic reaction.

2. What is the difference between formula and follow-on milk?

If you are wondering the difference between formula and follow-on milk , let’s say that there is no difference between these two foods. Both products are the same, they are just named differently. In cases where breast milk is not enough for the baby or the mother cannot breastfeed the baby due to any health problem, follow-on milk is used under the control of a doctor.

When you buy follow-up milk, you can see products with different numbers such as 1, 2 and 3. Let’s inform you about the difference between number 1 and number 2 in formulas . While formula 1 is given to the baby in the first 6 months after birth, after 6 months, formula 2, which is more enriched, is given.

3. What is the difference between follow-on milk and breast milk?

The digestion of follow-on milk and breast milk does not occur at the same rate in the body. Follow-on milk contains casein proteins and whey. Casein is a protein substance in milk. Since this substance is less in breast milk, digestion of breast milk occurs more easily in the baby’s body. Since the amount of casein is higher in follow-on milk, its digestion is slower.

In addition, while breast milk, which contains all the nutrients the baby needs, can be tolerated in the baby’s body, follow-up milk is tried to be produced in the closest way to the content of breast milk. But of course, it is more difficult to tolerate in the body than breast milk.

4. How is follow-up milk prepared?

While preparing follow-up milk, you need to pay attention to some points, we have listed them below.

• Make sure that the water you use is boiled, lukewarm and clean.
• Before preparing, decide how many ml your baby will consume. Use the ml measure of water you have determined and add 1 level measure of follow-on milk for 30 ml of water each time. For example, use 120 ml of water for 120 ml and put 4 wipes in it. You can make the follow-up milk ready with a light shaking.
• During all these processes, take care to clean your hands and not to come into contact with the food.

Let’s clarify whether the follow-up milk is heated . Follow-up milk needs to be prepared fresh at each feeding time. If the resting water has lost its temperature, you can warm the bottle in a bain-marie for a few minutes.

5. Is follow-up milk useful?

In case of insufficient breast milk, which is extremely important and valuable in infant nutrition, the most appropriate food to support your baby is follow-on milk. Therefore, of course, it is beneficial for your baby.

However, if you have enough milk, it is best to breastfeed your baby as long as you can. It is absolutely wrong to start home-cooked meals for babies, especially between the ages of 0-1, and to try to fill this gap with home-cooked meals. This gives his baby high calories and protein, leading him towards becoming an obese child.

6. When is follow-up milk given?

• Babies can start solid food after 6 months . Depending on your baby’s condition and needs, you can start additional foods such as vegetable soups, yogurt, breakfast, tarhana soup, spoon food.
• Again, depending on the needs of your baby, you can give 1-2 of them as a meal during the day and give follow-on milk for the remaining meals.
• There is no harm in giving follow-on milk to your 6-8 month old baby 4 times a day.
• Although it is not very important what time you give it during the day, it is usually better to give complementary foods during the day.

7. How much follow-up milk should be given?

A suckling baby takes 100 or 120 ml of milk from the mother at a time. According to this situation, when there is no or insufficient breast milk, babies should be given 100 or 120, maximum 150 ml of follow-on milk at 3 hour intervals, just as in breast milk.

As the baby grows, the stomach volume will also increase, so the amount he eats at one meal will increase, but the intervals between meals will be longer. When you start giving complementary foods in the form of three main meals, you can give follow-on milk to your baby as much as he can consume in between meals.

8. Until what age should follow-up milk be given?

Let’s say until what age babies should be given formula. You can use follow-on milk until your baby is 1-3 years old.

9. How many hours does the follow-up milk wait?

Ready-to-use formulas have a short shelf life. Therefore, you must use the follow-on milk within 48 hours.

10. Is follow-on milk given to all babies?

If your milk is sufficient, you should definitely not give follow-on milk to your baby. You can give follow-on milk to your baby after the sixth month in cases where there is no breast milk or if it is insufficient.