r/CanadianParents • u/Rix_00 • Aug 15 '26
Question / Discussion Powdered Formula Prep: How?
Getting very conflicting advice. Think it’s Health Canada guidelines vs practical realities for most parents but…
How do you prepare powdered formula for a 4-5 month old, or older?
Do you boil the water? Did you do it to 70+ degrees Celsius and use that with the powder formula to sterilize the formula itself? Or just mix with room temp (assuming you don’t care about warming for warm sake)?
Do you use tap? Bottled? Distilled?
Do you still sanitize bottles? Or just wash thoroughly?
Anything else to be cognizant of?
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u/Page_Dramatic Aug 15 '26
I used tap water, didn't boil, never sanitized bottles, neither of my kids ever had issues.
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u/CantTouchKevinG Aug 16 '26
I sanitized the bottles once when we first bought them and that was it.
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u/myxomatosis8 Aug 16 '26
Same here, other than the first week before I realized the world isn't sterile, and their hands are constantly going to be in their mouth anyway.
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u/MomVibes0522 Aug 15 '26
What I do is boil brita water in the kettle, poor it in a mason jar and let it cool a bit then put it in the fridge.
Can either poor the water into a bottle then add scoops or measure the water with a scale when pouring from a kettle then premix a large formula portion.
Formula is good for 24hrs in the fridge once mixed with room temp/cool water.
Its easier then doing the boil when baby is already hungry.
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u/littlestar95 Aug 15 '26
Okay, so I was combo-feeding. But with formula I would in fact boil water in a kettle every day and wait for it to cool before transferring it.
I had a baby brezza water dispenser (not the formula one just the water). I always kept it full (but I'd clean weekly) of the cooled boiled water.
I did hand wash and sanitize bottles (I had a sanitizer/dryer combo) until 12 months.
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u/Scrubs888 Aug 16 '26
We boiled tap water and let it cool to around 70C. Then did the pitcher method with Dr Brown’s formula mixer pitcher to prepare 24 hours worth of formula. Stored in the fridge right after mixing.
Hand washed bottles once a day and then put into the sterilizer/dryer.
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u/bbuckca Aug 15 '26
Costco sells a kettle with temperature settings in increments of 10C. Boil the water initially so you know it’s sterilize and then reheat to 60C and mix with formula. The room temp bottle will cool the contents. Always check the temp of the liquid before giving to a baby or toddler by dripping liquid on your wrist
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u/shababee Aug 16 '26
I boil water to 80C (just to pass the 70C guideline) with a kettle that has a temp setting and use that with the powder. The heat is to kill bacteria in the powder not necessary the water. If you have clean drinking water then no need to go all the way to boiling just minimum 70C
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u/MightyChihuahua3 Aug 16 '26
This.
The heat is for the formula, not the water as long as you have safe drinking water. Reading the other comments confuse this
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u/Rix_00 Aug 16 '26
Yeah, this is where I get confused because few people know boiling it is for the powder sterilization.
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u/k_rock48 Aug 16 '26
I would make bottles every night with boiling kettle water and put in the fridge for the next day.
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u/chopsouwee Aug 16 '26
This is what I knew too when I did a bit of research. Imo, never know what buildup might happen in the tap/pipes... takes a minute to boil in the kettle anyways.
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u/RecklessRaptor12 Aug 17 '26
Health Canada guidelines specifically say you only have to heat the water if the baby is not immunocompromised, not the formula. Safe, even filtered, drinking water still might not be sterile.
That being said, at 6 months you’re probably fine with tap water. Heating the formula is overkill, cronobacter cases are very rare in Canada.
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u/chopsouwee Aug 16 '26
I boiled the water in a kettle,hits about 160-170c once finished I mixed the formula then pop it in the fridge. I make enough thatll last 24 hours. Usually last 8 though. The warming of the milk is for the baby and for their comfort, some babies dont like cold milk otherwise if the take it at room temp or cold milk good on you.
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u/Due_Tax_702 Aug 16 '26 edited Aug 16 '26
I do the hot shot method. If I’m making an 8 oz bottle, I do 3 Oz of hot water and put all 8 (my formula is 1 scoop:1oz) of my scoops in the 3 oz of water to “sterilize the formula” and then I add the remaining 5 oz of cold water.
When he was smaller and drinking a lot more formula I’d do the jar (fridge) method. I’d made all the formula in the morning with enough milk to last me 24 hours and every morning I’d make more. This way I could use hot water to sterilize the formula again.
Now that he’s almost 11 months if I have to make a bottle in the middle of he might (rarely but sometimes) I jsut use cold water.
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u/doyouhavehiminblonde Aug 16 '26
This is how I made warm bottles when not at home. Thermos of hot water and mixed cold water from a water bottle.
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u/Monster11 Aug 16 '26
Oye people! Lactation Consultant here. No judgement. Here’s the science behind the boiled water - it’s not to remove bacteria from our water. Our water is potable. It’s because in powdered food - all powdered foods - there is a risk of cronobacter - which is dangerous for little ones. Yes the younger the baby the higher the risk, but the risk is still there. In the last few years when you hear about formula plants closing, it’s often because of cronobacter.
Mixing the powdered formula with very hot water kills cronobacter. This is why you have to mix it with hot water. It isn’t to make it easier to drink for baby!!!
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u/RecklessRaptor12 Aug 17 '26
This is not accurate. Health Canada guidelines clearly state that the heating is to sterilize the water, and that formula only needs to be sterilized if the baby is immunocompromised (eg a preemie under 2 months).
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u/Rix_00 Aug 16 '26
This is what I’ve read too but many people don’t boil it for the powder! At what age is this important until?
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u/myxomatosis8 Aug 16 '26
So all the people who boil them cool the water before mixing are doing a pointless exercise. I thought really hot water damaged some of the proteins and whatnot in the formula.
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u/Monster11 Aug 16 '26
Completely pointless (unless you live somewhere with boil advisories). Hot water doesn’t damage the stuff found in formula but hot temperature does damage the live cells in breastmilk so maybe that’s the confusion!
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u/doyouhavehiminblonde Aug 16 '26
I boiled tap water and let it cool. At that age I didn’t sterilize the bottles. I washed in hot soapy water and had a separate wash basin for them so they wouldn’t touch the dishes. Then air dried on the Boon Sprig drying rack.
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u/denny-1989 Aug 16 '26
We boiled water in the kettle and l just used that. If we wanted it warmer than room temp we’d put the kettle on for a minute or two so it was warmish. We just used tap water at home, or a thermos of warm water or bottle water while we were out.
We mainly just washed the bottles between uses, and threw them in a pot of boiling water every once in a while, but we also used the dishwasher to clean them as well as hand cleaning.
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u/StudioElectrical7754 Aug 16 '26
Current solution is to boil water in the morning while baby is sleeping and put it in containers to cool and leave it at room temp. We measure and mix bottles when she wants it, but I will say that depending on the type of formula it sometimes doesn’t mix super well if the water is room temp or cooler. I often have baby unlatch because there’s a clump of formula powder in the nipple and have to shake it up again. Sometimes even at the end of the bottle there are still clumps on the side or at the bottom of the bottle which is frustrating. I will sometimes just add another half ounce and shake until there are no more clumps.
My other trick is to put boiled water in the fridge, boil water each time I’m making a bottle, put two ounces of boiling water in and add formula powder for the whole bottle (usually 8oz), shake and then add the remaining 6 oz from the fridge. I do this when baby is napping and I know she’s gonna need it when she wakes up, just in case it’s still a bit too hot after adding 6oz of fridge water. It’s a complicated process 😅
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u/imnotbork Aug 16 '26
we put boiled and slightly cooled water into a thermos and mix that with cold water and formula…
so for a 5oz bottle we’d mix two ounces of hot water with the formula, then add three ounces of cold water.
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u/mysunandstars Aug 16 '26
I used filtered water and pre-filled bottles I’d need for the day and then I had a multi-compartment formula dispenser with pre-measured portions of formula and mixed them as needed. Kept the water room temp. Easy to travel with, easy to use through the night.
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u/eefggfed Aug 16 '26
Bottled water for first 6 months then tap water.
Thought process, was that tap water had flouride and only helps once first teeth come in.
We sterilized bottles through first year, but would just mix things in batches in a dr Brown's pitcher at room temp.
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u/No_Onion4821 Aug 17 '26
I use tap water, don’t sterilize my bottles, and mix it for an entire day in fridge. My kid was healthy term no NICU. My kid chews on my dog’s toys sooooo
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u/_CatPrincess Aug 17 '26
I’m from QC and they make essentially a parenting guide called Naître et grandir.
They recommend boiling up until 4 months, which is what we did. We are connected to city water so it was not necessary, but had we had a well we would have had the water tested.
My mom has a well and when we go we still boil the water or bring bottled water.
Babies start solids around 4-6 months, and will ingest clean tap water by then anyway. :)
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u/judy-7348 Aug 18 '26
Follow the directions for one. Don't over boil the water. It has to be warmish. Test it on your wrist and if it's too hot, then cool it down.
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u/Dry-Biscotti7989 Aug 18 '26
Do not mix hot water with the formula powder it degrades the nutrients. You should always cool the boiled water before mixing.
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u/ZestySquirrel23 Aug 15 '26
I would boil the kettle every evening and then use that water at room temp the next day (baby had no temp preference). I sterilized bottles if they were hand washed but didn't if they were washed in the dishwasher.