BABY born 515 826904 EA Bottle with Cap, Multicolor

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Slow flow is generally preferable for newborns, while you’re both learning how to feed. If the flow rate is too fast it makes paced feeding more difficult. In which case babies would have very little control over how they feed: milk would flow into their mouth faster than they can swallow it. This might make your baby cough or splutter, or struggle to keep up with the flow of milk so it dribbles to the side of their mouth. This could also mean they feel upset, get indigestion and bring up lots of milk. From the best breast pumps to the best changing bags, part of Mumsnet's mission is to take the confusion out of the choices new parents have to make. We research, test and review products that make parents' lives easier - offering honest, authentic recommendations with options to suit every family and budget. Plastic bottles should now be made from BPA- and BPS-free plastics – both chemicals can reportedly leach into food and drink and affect the body – which should also be obvious on the label. You might find attending one of our NCT New Baby groups helpful as they give you the opportunity to explore different approaches to important parenting issues with a qualified group leader and other new parents in your area. Finally, if you’re using bottles with expressed breast milk, you’ll need a way to express – see our roundup of the best breast pumps here.

Often this category of bottles overlaps with the eco-friendly category. They are bottles designed to last long after the baby years, to toddlerhood and often beyond. This is a solid bottle that handled to all our tests brilliantly. The plastic bottle, base and lid are all made from BPA- and BPS-free plastic, and the teat is hygienic silicone, with different sizes to prevent too fast a flow. If you're formula feeding, boil fresh tap water and leave it to cool a little (no longer than 30 minutes) before pouring into the clean, sterilised bottle. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions exactly to add the right amount of powder, then put on the teat and lid and shake to combine. You can cool the bottle so it’s safe to drink by standing it in cold water or holding it under cold running water with the lid on. Don’t use bottled or reboiled water and don’t make up more than one feed at once. How do I bottle-feed my baby?

There’s no official guidance about this, though manufacturers might advise how often to replace teats – usually every three months or so. Bottom line, no one type of bottle is best. Choose one and see how your baby likes it. Some babies will adapt to the bottle straight away, others might need a bit of time to learn the new skill of feeding from that bottle, so don't give up too soon. Each time you change to a new style of bottle, your baby has to start learning all over again.' A vented, removable base prevents the baby from swallowing too much air, which also makes it ideal for newborn babies and babies suffering from colic. A curved, ergonomic design with plastic bubbles for grip will help your baby to hold on when she’s ready and the self-sterilising function is great for travelling or for families with smaller kitchens. Any parent who bottle-fed their baby will tell you that not every bottle is the same. Even the size of the bottle can help – or hinder – your baby accepting it for feeding. So, what makes them so good? Vented bases help babies to drink at their own pace which reduces colic, while the SkinSoft silicone teats are designed to feel familiar and more like a nipple. According to MAM’s research, this makes them accepted by 94% of babies – hence their reputation.

As well as your bottle of choice, you’ll need a way to sterilise the bottles – this is easily done with a standalone steam steriliser, a sterilising box placed in the microwave or sterilising tablets in cold water. If you’re making up a lot of formula, an automatic formula prep machine can save you a lot of time and fiddling about.NHS (2019a) How to make up baby formula, Available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/breastfeeding-and-bottle-feeding/bottle-feeding/making-up-baby-formula/ [Accessed 3 December 2021] Sterilising bottles is recommended for babies under a year because bacteria can easily grow in any milk remaining on the bottle or teats (Unicef, 2019). Babies are more vulnerable to these bacteria. Teats are made from silicone or latex. Silicone is less flexible but more durable than latex, which needs to be replaced regularly (Which? 2019). The main variation in baby bottles is in the size. Newborn bottles have a capacity of around 150ml (5oz), going up to around 250ml (9oz) for older babies. Some sets have a number of each size. All bottles have measurements up the side to help you put the right amount of water in when making up formula. Some brands also do larger bottles if you find your baby draining 9oz each feed. What bottle teat should I buy? If your baby seems to be suffering with indigestion, it’s worth trying a few different feed formulas as well as trialling different teats. How do I make up a bottle?

Volume markings: Are they clear and easy to read? This will become much more important at 4am – trust us. Bottles come in two sizes, small ones which hold 150mls (5 fl oz) and large ones which hold 250ml (9 fl oz). For the first few weeks, newborns feed little and often because their stomachs are so small (Unicef, 2019). The smaller bottles are more suitable for this period. Babies who feed from larger bottles consume more milk, which may lead to overfeeding (Wood et al, 2016). As you use the bottle, don’t put the teat on too soon after filling with boiling water. The build-up of pressure can squirt hot water out of the teat and present a hazard. All designs look a little different, but generally you should look for a soft silicone teat that your baby can latch onto without slipping off (if your baby doesn’t like the feel of silicone, NUK also make a latex version). 2. Anti-colicIf you plan to use bottles occasionally, or once a day, then it might make sense to buy just one bottle and teat. Most lactation experts recommend six bottles in rotation for daily full-time feeding. However, if you’re combination feeding or just occasionally expressing, you’ll be able to get away with two to four, depending on how often you use them. Size: Bottles almost always come in more than one size. While the smallest size might look most appropriate for a newborn, it’s actually the teat flow that matters most. We’d recommend buying the next bottle size up because your baby will be drinking more milk before you know it, and you don’t want to have to replace the bottles too soon. Plus, it’s important to be sure that your baby is feeding till they’re properly full. Since 2011, the European Commission has banned the use of Bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles. This was due to concerns that the chemical could leach out of the plastic and be absorbed by babies. None of the bottles for sale in the UK should have BPA (NCT, 2011).