In answer to Maureen's post about teaching a prenatal infant feeding class
which is supposed to include bottle feeding.
I would go right ahead and teach breastfeeding as the norm, stressing the
health of breastfeed babies.  As part of teaching breastfeeding, you can
teach things about how to feed a baby from a bottle of expressed breastmilk
while emphasizing that this should ideally not be done for at least the
first 4 or so weeks to allow breastfeeding to be well established. Combine
this with a discussion of pumping if mother needs to be separated from the
infant to go to work etc (Yes I know people are going to jump on this and
say that it is best for a baby never to see a bottle but the reality is that
many women are going to want/need to leave their babies sometime during its
years of breastfeeding or want Dad to wake up during the night etc so its
better ) Make it clear that there is no need for a normal baby to ever have
artificial baby milk. You can then spend about 5 minutes at the end of the
class saying that if you do use formula, then it is quite important that it
be prepared EXACTLY as it says on the instructions because if prepared
incorrectly it can make the baby quite sick.  You can even state that the
manufacturer states that the water should be boiled prior to use to help
prevent infection.  Stress the sterilization or cleaning of bottles (and
make it sound like a pain in the neck) This is really all one needs to know
about bottle feeding to do it correctly. Every thing you have said is true,
worth knowing and doesn't make it sound attractive.  You done your duty and
you have not promoted bottlefeeding.  (Some may feel that there should be no
mention of bottlefeeding in breastfeeding promotion but at this point this
is not realistic in the US especially in a WIC environment and when bottles
and formula are advertised everywhere.  Better to admit bottlefeeding exists
and point out its shortcomings in my opinion.)

Deena Zimmerman MD MPH IBCLC