Deciding how to feed your baby is a personal choice. You can talk with your health visitor at your antenatal appointment and ask any questions you may have to help you make your decision.
If you’d like to breastfeed there’s lots of support and information to support you from your midwife, health visitor and our local breastfeeding community Beside You.
Breastfeeding is a skill that both you and your baby will learn together. No matter what stage of the breastfeeding journey you are in, Beside You is here to help every step of the way. You can find out more about the benefits and how to get ready to start once baby arrives, or speak to your midwife or health visitor for more support.
If you're planning to bottle feed with expressed breast milk or infant formula, these tips will help keep your baby safe and healthy. It’s important to feed your baby responsively. Responsive feeding means responding to your baby's needs, not getting distracted during feeding time and not encouraging your little one to over-eat or finish bottles of milk when they're no longer hungry. This can mean your baby has too much and can lead to obesity later in life.
Sometimes in the early days, feeding your baby can seem overwhelming and time-consuming, especially if they feed little and often and you have to get up countless times in the night. It can be helpful to remember that as your baby grows bigger, they will get more efficient at feeding and their milk feeds usually space out more as they grow.
You can ring your local Health Visiting Team with any questions Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. We really want to hear from you if you need our help or are feeling worried about anything.
Useful resources
- Find more information on formula feeding at NHS.uk.
Looking for breastfeeding support?
No matter what stage of the breastfeeding journey you're in. Beside You is here to help every step of the way.