Resources to support new parents

For parents in Tameside support with feeding your baby is available from the 0-19 service.   We offer a variety of support in the home, on the phone, in healthy baby clinics, Early Start Groups, Feeding Support Groups and Specialist Feeding Clinics, from health visitors, community staff nurses, community nursery nurses, breastfeeding peer supporters and a lactation consultant. All our staff are trained to the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative standards/ Breastfeeding Network Training to support parents with breastfeeding, bottle feeding and introducing solid foods. 

Why Breastfeed?

It is never too early to start thinking about how you're going to feed your baby. Today, most women in England are choosing to breastfeed and these are some of the reasons:

• Breast milk is the only natural food designed for your baby
• Breastfeeding protects your baby from infections and diseases
• Breast milk provides health benefits for your baby
• It's available whenever and wherever your baby needs a feed
• It's the right temperature
• It can help build a string physical and emotional bond between mother and baby
• It can give your a great sense of achievement

Health Benefits for your baby

Breastfeeding is the healthiest way to feed your baby. Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended for around the first 6 months of your baby's life. After that, giving your baby breast milk alongside other food will help them continue to grow.

Breastfed babies have:

• less chance of diarrhoea and vomiting
• fewer chest and ear infections
• less chance of being constipated
• less chance of becoming obese, and therefore developing type 2 diabetes and other illnesses later in life.
• less chance of developing eczema.

Health Benefits for you

Breastfeeding doesn't only benefit your baby, it benefits your health too. Breastfeeding is good for mums because it:

• lowers your risk of getting breast and ovarian cancer
• naturally uses up to 500 calories a day
• saves money-infant formula, sterilising equipment and feeding equipment can be costly
• can help to build a strong bond between you and your baby

Infant Formula

Most infant formula is made from cow's milk that has been treated to make it suitable for babies. Cow's milk-based infant formula is the only infant formula your baby needs. You should not feed your baby other formulas unless your midwife, health visitor or GP recommends you to. If you think a particular brand of formula disagrees with your baby, ask your GP, midwife or health visitor for advice.

In the UK there are a variety of infant milks for sale. These are marketed as:

• Infant formula – milks which are the sole food for infants from birth.
• Follow-on formula – milks to be used after 6 months of age.
• Milks which are specialist formula.
• Milks for children over the age of 1 year.

Hungrier baby milks and follow on milks are not recommended at any time only first milks should be given.

Useful Documents and Links

Guide to bottle feeding

Guide for Parents who formula feed by UNICEF

Contact us

Infant Feeding Team

Telephone Number: 

0161 366 2319

Monday-Friday 9am-5pm

Email Address:

infantfeedingcommunity@tgh.nhs.uk

Homestart Infant Feeding Team Tameside & Oldham

Telephone Number:

Duty Contact-07802883947

7 days a week 9am-6pm

Email: home.start@nhs.net

Website:

Home-Start HOST (Oldham, Stockport & Tameside) | Home-Start UK