Formula Bottle Shelflife

I made all my formula for the day in advance, in a pitcher! Once I knew how much my daughter would use. Like another poster said I may get a no-no from the doctor but it worked for me. It was easy to make it first thing in the morning and then use it up as the day went along (that way no bacteria from the bottle!) My daughter hardly ever got sick and is now a thriving 6 yo!! Hope that helps!

Formula doesn't last as long as breastmilk. I would only make an extra 2 ounces at a time, this would save some worry about it getting old.

Once the formula is made, it is really only good for 1 hour. I would just continue to make him a 4 oz bottle and then if he still needs more, just make him another 2 oz instead of another 4 oz bottle. That way if he only takes an ounce, you are only wasting an ounce. If he takes the whole 2 oz., then you have no waste. If he still seems hungry after that then just wait a couple of minutes and see if he settles down. I know my little guy thinks he is still hungry when in reality he just really likes drinking his bottles so he is just sad it is over. I know he is not hungry so I just try and get him distracted and then he seems fine. Hope this helps.

Hi M.,

My son's father is a nurse and according to the doctors and nurses at the hospital where he works, the shelf life of a REFRIGERATED bottle is 2 hours once it has been partially used and put back in the refrigerator. You need to throw it out after that as bacteria will spread in the bottle.
The shelf life of a formula bottle that has not been partially used or opened is TWENTY FOUR HOURS. After that you need to throw it out as it goes bad and spoils.

I'm pretty sure its an hour.

Of course, a doctor will probably tell you that an hour is all you should keep the milk out...for liability reasons, they don't want to be sued over having told you something and your baby would get sick...but I have four children all of them nearly grown, our "babies" (twins) are now 17 years old. I gave all four of them formula and used all of it and after a while if they didn't drink it all, I refrigerated it and when they needed it again, I took the lid off the bottle, microwaved it and gave it to them. Formula is just too expensive to throw away. So, my four kids, none of them ever once got sick from me doing this. Sometimes I'd make up bottles in the morning and have them out (in the diaper bag) for hours and never a problem. Back then people just weren't as UPTIGHT as parents are now a days...everyone is completely germ conscious...use common sense and for the most part all should be well. We just never, ever had a problem with it! Good Luck.

It should say on the formula package. My son takes Enfamil and a bottle is good for 1 hour after feeding begins.

Good luck!

In the hospital (when my son was born) they told me that bottled milk (either breast milk or formula) was good for one hour un-refrigerated and any milk not consumed within this time should be thrown away to avoid bacterial contamination. Also, once he has eaten some of it the milk should not be put back into the refrigerator (something about heating and re-heating the milk isnt good for it).

Hope this info helps. If you have more questions I would try to call the hospital that you delivered at-- they often have mother-baby nurses available to answer questions (sometimes a whole department).

Good luck with your little one.

I'm sure I would get a slap on the hand from doctors for this, but I reused formula with both of my kids. If my child didn't finish the bottle, we put the unused formula in the bottle in the refrigerator. As the day progressed I would consolidate any unused formula into one bottle and use it either that evening or the next morning. Technically once a child has drank out of the bottle there is a risk for bacteria getting in the milk, however, we took the risk because we needed to be a frugal as possible due to the cost of formula. So my recommendation is that if you are going to reuse formula, I would try the refrigerator instead of leaving it out as bacteria would thrive better in a warmer environment.