EQUIPMENT FOR BABY’S NEEDS: CHOOSING BOTTLES

If you'll be bottle-feeding human milk or formula to your baby, you have a number of bottle and nipple styles to choose from. None is inherently superior, but your baby may prefer a particular nipple, and you may find that some bottle systems are more convenient for you than others. The following list outlines the advantages of various nipple and bottle features.

You may want to buy a sample of each style in the beginning, then let your baby and your budget help you decide which to stock up on.

Bottle Features

• Shape

- Straight bottles are cheap and easy to clean.

- Angled bottles have a forty-five-degree bend that keeps the nipple filled with liquid to reduce baby's air swallowing and makes it easier to hold a baby upright, which prevents liquid from washing into baby's middle ear (a cause of ear infections).

• Usage

• Reusable bottles are economical and environmentally sound because they can be used throughout your baby's bottle-feeding stage and create no waste. They also allow accurate measurement of the bottle's contents.
• Disposable bottles require less cleaning because the milk is drunk from a pre-sterilized plastic liner, which is thrown away at the end of the feeding. This bottle type may minimize baby's air swallowing (and thus prevent gassiness) because you can squeeze air out of the liner before feeding; also, the liner collapses as baby feeds, which prevents additional air bubbles from entering.

• Size

• Four-ounce bottles are practical for newborns, who may drink only a small amount at each feeding. They're also handy for storing expressed breast milk.
• Eight- or nine-ounce bottles are practical for older babies with bigger appetites. They can be used for a baby of any age and are therefore more versatile and long-lasting.

• Other features

• Bubble-free bottles are ideal for gassy babies who don't like disposables. They let air in through the bottom of the bottle, which prevents it from mixing with the milk and being swallowed. Because both ends screw off, cleaning is easy.
• Chambered bottles are great for traveling with a formula-fed baby. They have separate compartments for premeasured powdered formula and water. At feeding time, you twist the top and the formula mixes with the water.
• Hands-free bottles are useful in a pinch, when young multiples who can't hold bottles yet need feeding simultaneously, and there aren't enough hands on deck for the usual holding and cuddling. The bottle fastens to a car seat or stroller, and a tube extends from the top to a pacifier-like nipple.

Nipple Features

• Material

- Latex nipples are sorter and more flexible than silicone nipples.

- Silicone nipples are firmer and hold their shape longer than latex ones. They're less porous than latex and thus less prone to bacteria. They typically last three to four times longer than latex. They're also heat resistant and can withstand dishwashers.

• Shape

- Bell-shaped nipples are inexpensive and widely available.

- Flat-topped nipples mimic the shape of a mother's nipple.

- Orthodontic nipples are elongated, flat on one side, and indented in the center to encourage the tonguing action of breastfeeding. They may help reduce tongue thrusting and bite problems caused by standard nipples.

• Flow

- Nipples come with varying numbers and sizes of holes for varying flow speed. Here's a quick guide to choosing the right flow.... Always use newborn nipples for a breastfed baby of any age. The following guidelines apply to exclusively bottle-fed babies. For a newborn, the nipple size is right if the milk drips steadily when you turn the bottle upside down. For older babies: If your baby is sucking hard, fussing, then sucking hard again, you probably need a faster-flow nipple. If your baby is sputtering and gulping, you may need a slower-flow nipple.

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