Food Safety for Infants After a Disaster

Breastfeeding

• Breastfed infants should continue breastfeeding.

Formula Feeding

• For formula-fed infants, use ready-to-feed formula if possible.
• If using ready-to-feed formula is not possible, it is best to use bottled water to prepare powdered or concentrated formula.
• If bottled water is not available, boil water for 1 minute and let it cool before mixing with formula.
• Use treated water to prepare formula only if you do not have bottled or boiled water.
• Clean feeding bottles and nipples with bottled, boiled, or treated water before each use.
• If your baby is younger than 3 months old, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system, consider taking extra precautions to safely prepare powdered infant formula when ready-to-feed formula is not available.

Hand Washing

• Wash your hands before preparing formula and before feeding an infant. You can use alcohol-based hand sanitizer for washing your hands if the water supply is limited