Best Bottles for Breastfed Babies

There are plenty of guides out there that claim to offer sound advice on the best bottles for breastfed babies, but the fact is there is only one person who can tell you the best bottle for your baby, and that person is your baby. I have four children, two of which were given a bottle while breastfeeding just for the occasional sitter, and two who required supplementation at a younger age due to growth issues. Each child preferred a different bottle.
best bottles for breastfed babies 2018
Generally, your best bet is to just try one that looks good, and if your baby rejects it, do some trouble shooting. For example, I found the first bottle I gave baby four (new this March) had a flow that was too fast for her. So, I went on Amazon and bought one of each of the available bottles designed for breastfeed babies. Then I checked the flow rate on each using their slowest flow nipple, found the slowest one, and tried that bottle for her. It worked like a charm, and I am now successfully breastfeeding and bottle feeding together. However, I might not have had to buy so many bottles if I’d known a bit more about what was on the market, so while I may not be able to tell you which is “best,” I can offer a short review of each.

What makes a bottle best for breastfed babies?

Bottles for breastfed babies are usually designed with a wider top and nipple that more closely mimics the breast. They often attempt to create a more natural flow where the baby needs to nurse to get milk rather than it just dripping out due to gravity as well. Many also have unique orthodontic nipples. You can read a bit more about bottle differences here.

In my sampling of the best bottles for breastfed babies, I had some perquisites. All of the bottles in this review are:

-Relatively inexpensive. I placed a $10 cap on each bottle (Yes, there are bottles that run more than $10 each!) This did rule out several commonly suggested bottles such as the Tommee Tippee, Medela Calma, Munchkin Latch, and Adiri NxGen.
-Simple to clean and assemble. This is why you won’t see the often recommended Dr. Brown’s bottles on my list. I learned with my past children all those components just get lost and are a pain to clean, so a ton of multiple parts was a deal breaker for me.

So, what made the cut? (Alphabetically ordered, not by “best” to “worst.”)

Avent Natural Flow
Breastflow by the First Years
Comotomo
Lanisoh mOmma
MAM Anti-colic
Nuk Advanced

The best bottles for breastfed babies reviewed:

Avent Natural Flow Bottles:

Philips AVENT BPA Free Natural Polypropylene Bottle
Amazon rating: 4.5/5 from 541 reviewers
Most common complaints: Odd shape, causes gas
Most common praises: Trusted brand, nipple does not collapse on itself

My take: Avent is a brand most people know and trust, and I have used their bottles with my kids in the past, so I had high hopes. The flow on the slow nipples for these is in the mid-range for the bottles I tested, a steady drip when tipped upside down.

I will agree with many reviewers that the shape is a bit awkward. These bottles are short and fat, but wider at the tops than they are at the bottom. This makes storing them in the sides of diaper bags hard, and holding them sort of–weird? Maybe it’s just because this isn’t a common bottle shape. I did also note I had to burp, and often, with these. My baby would actually stop nursing and begin fussing, get burped, continue feeding, and so on until the milk was gone. She doesn’t typically need burped during feedings, after yes, but not during.

 

Breastflow Bottles:

Amazon rating: 3.5/5 from 187 reviewers
Most common complaints: Leaks, milk is trapped between nipples and wasted
Most common praises: Slow flow, reduced air intake

My take: I have no idea why so many folks said these have a slow flow. These actually had one of the fastest flows of all the bottles I tried. I’m talking a steady stream when tipped upside down, no need for suction at all. They gagged my slow-feeding booby baby, but may be okay for a baby who prefers a faster feed.

These bottles also do have a double nipple. There is an insert (easy to wash vs Dr. Browns) as you can see in the pic that creates a second nipple within the first. This section fills with milk with an aim to reduce air intake. It does do that, but as this compartment never really empties, it also makes telling how much your baby has consumed difficult and can waste milk, which is particularly annoying if you are pumping. I did not note any leaking, unless of course they were tipped upside down.

Comotomo Bottles:

Comotomo Natural Feel Baby BottleAmazon rating: 4.5/5 from 684 reviewers
Most common complaint: Frosted color makes reading measurement marks hard, falls over easily/hard to store, expensive
Most common praise: Mimics breast including let down, easy to hold

My take: This is actually the bottle my baby chose. They have a very slow flow, even when tipped upside down there is only one small drop every few seconds. The, albeit weird, round shape keeps the milk at the top of the bottle, so very little air is taken in while nursing. My baby at 3 months even is able to hold these herself. She’s a boob squeezer and seems to enjoy the soft-squish silicone material they are made of.  It can be difficult to angle these so the last about oz of milk can be drained while feeding though.

Sadly, technically Comotomo shouldn’t have made my best bottles for breastfed babies list, as their regular price is just over $10 per bottle ($12.99 at this time). I caught them on sale when I bought the bottles for my test. This does make a good point, if your baby won’t take any of the more affordable bottles, trying some on the higher end of things one at a time may pay off.

Lansinoh mOmma Bottles:

Amazon rating: 4.7/5 from 74 reviewers
Most common complaint: Flow is too fast
Most common praise: Nipple doesn’t collapse, lean shape makes for easy storage

My take: What breastfeeding mom doesn’t know the name Lansinoh? Their nipple creams are a life saver. Honestly, it was that name recognition that led me to try these. They don’t look much different than your typical $1 department store bottle, and reviewers are spot on when saying even the slow flow nipples are not so slow. These were the second fastest flow of the bunch. Surprisingly though, despite ditching the common wide design bottles for breastfed babies have, if these would have had a slower flow I think they’d have worked. She tried to use them. She seemed to like the shape of the nipple, but just couldn’t handle how fast the milk came out.

 

MAM Anti-Colic Bottles:

Amazon rating: 4/5 from 45 reviewers
Most common complaint: Leaks, tricky assembly (could be why so many feel it leaks)
Most common praise: Truly anti-colic, orthodontic nipple good for breast to bottle

My take: These, the Nuk Advanced, and mOmma bottles all had about the same flow with a slow flow nipple. They drip rather quickly when tipped upside down. This bottle comes apart into three pieces: the nipple, body, and bottom. If you fail to properly attach the bottom, they leak, a ton. It can be tricky to get that bottom on right, and it needs to be taken off for proper cleaning. My baby disliked the fast flow anyway, but I’d not have kept up with these just because of the leak risk. I have enough messes to deal with.

Nuk Advanced Bottles:

Nuk Advanced BottlesAmazon rating: 4.4/5 from 68 reviewers
Most common complaint: Not durable, hard to clean
Most common praise: Orthodontic nipple good for breast to bottle, attractive designs

My take: Nuk isn’t exactly designed for breastfed babies in particular, but they worked quite well for me in the past. Now, I will note the Advanced model has a new nipple, and I wasn’t impressed. They were the first brand to offer human nipple-like shaped orthodontic nipples to my knowledge, and the older style was awesome.

The new nipples land in the mid-range for flow rate on a slow flow nipple with a fairly fast drip, but not a steady stream, when tipped upside down, but are a pain to clean. These nipples also have air vents to help prevent colic, but I wouldn’t say they are any better than your average bottle. If you want to try Nuk, I recommend the classic orthodontic nipples–which are also cheaper.

 

Overall, if I were trying these with another child, and needed to rank my test bottles as far as the best bottles for breastfed babies, I’d say from best to worst: Comotomo, mOmma, Nuk (classic), Nuk Advanced, MAM, Breastflow. This may not hold true for your baby.

Note: This review of the best bottles for breastfed babies was not paid, though there are affiliate Amazon links throughout. These bottles can be purchased elsewhere. If you choose Amazon, and are pregnant, check out their baby registry which offers a 10% discount (15% if you are an Amazon Mom), all of the bottles listed here are also Prime eligible for free shipping (there is a free trial for this.) As an added bonus, Rakuten regularly offers 3% cash back via PayPal for Amazon Baby items.

Bottle Weaning: A Guide for Weaning from the Bottle

My kids weaned from the bottle with ease–during the day that is. As toddlers, all four still clung to that nippled-relic of babyhood at bedtime, and stories of baby bottle rot fueled my feeling that big kids didn’t need bottles. However, if you’ve made it to the toddler stage, you likely know that discovering your child shouldn’t have something is a lot easier than taking it away. Breast or bottle fed right from birth, babies are taught to associate milk with sleep.bottle weaning

Why should I wean my toddler from night and nap-time bottles?

That was a big question for me. A bottle at bedtime really comforted my toddlers. It also helped when they awoke from nightmares. Often they didn’t drink much of the milk, just held the bottle like a security blanket. I thought to myself, eventually they’ll give it up on their own so what does it hurt? Sadly, it does hurt.

Prolonged pacifier or bottle use can cause dental deformities including over, under, and cross bites. On top of that, the bacteria that like to cause cavities like to feed on the sugars present in milk, which just so happens to pool around the teeth while sleeping. As a result, children who sleep with bottles often develop what dentists call baby bottle tooth decay or rot. Between the two, a toddler who is allowed to bottle feed at night may be smiling at bedtime, but it likely won’t be a very pretty smile after a few years. Ideally, according to dentists, babies should cease nighttime feedings and be weaned from the bottle onto a sippy cup if bottle-fed by 6-12 months of age.

How do I wean my toddler from nap and nighttime bottles?

While there may be subtle variances in each, there are basically two ways to go about bottle weaning a toddler at nighttime or nap.

Crying Turkey:

This is pretty cut and dried. You take the bedtime bottle feeding away, suffer the drama, and eventually your toddler will get over it. Some parents are shocked to find their toddler isn’t that upset by it. Others have a long tantrum-blocked road ahead of them. It may help to exchange your child’s bottles for something, for instance, like a nighttime stuffed friend. You can even make up a bottle fairy, much like the tooth fairy, that will come and switch the bottles for the bedtime snuggly.

Like-a-Turtle:

Your other option is to take it slow and gradually remove the bottle from your toddler’s night or naptime routine. This is where the slight variances come into play. You could slowly decrease the amount of milk in your toddler’s bottle until it is no more than an empty plastic snuggly and then take it away, which makes it less heart-breaking.

You could also simply replace the milk in your toddler’s bottle with water, which eliminates the worry of baby bottle tooth decay, and then slowly decrease the water in the bottle, adding it to a sippy cup. Water is fine all night long and a sippy cup does not cause dental alignment issues as your child won’t be sleeping with it in his or her mouth. Some parents also add a stage on this one where they water down their child’s milk before switching to water. Personally, I find the idea of watered-down milk fairly unappetizing, so this may help deter desire for bottled comfort.

Fence-Sitting Turkey Turtle:

If you just can’t decide which way you want to go, you can take away the bottle cold turkey and introduce a milk-filled sippy cup which you then use one of the gradual techniques with. Alternately, you could offer an empty bottle and a full sippy cup, and let your toddler choose to ditch the bottle, because it’s empty. Also remember that if something just isn’t working and you’ve given it plenty of time (it will take time), there’s no shame in switching your game until you find something that works.

 

 

 

 

 

How to Bottle Feed a Baby: When, How Much, and How to Feed

Bottle feeding a baby isn’t a horribly difficult process, but like most parenting tasks there are tricks, tips, and facts to make the process easier. Our guide on everything you need to know about bottle feeding will walk you through the entire process of how to bottle feed a baby from choosing a bottle and preparing it for use while answering your questions along the way and offering helpful tips and tricks. Bottle Feeding: When and How Much to Feed Baby

One of the most important points in bottle feeding a baby is knowing when and how much to feed.

When to Feed a Baby:

The majority of pediatricians agree that demand feeding is the best way to decide when to feed a baby. Demand feeding, also sometimes called cue feeding, means you feed your baby when he/she is hungry for as long as he/she wishes to eat. You don’t need a baby feeding chart, just let your baby tell you when its time to feed.

How will your baby tell you? To know when to bottle feed your baby watch for cues in behavior that indicate hunger including:

– Side-to-side head movement, as if looking for something.

-Turning towards breast or towards your hand when cheek is touched.

-Sucking on hands, arms, etc.

-Opening of the mouth repeatedly and possibly sticking out tongue.

-Puckering lips or making sucking motions.

It’s unusual for feedings to be stretched more than 5-6 hours apart in formula-fed babies, and 3-4 hours in breast-milk fed babies. The average newborn is hungry every 2-3 hours, though this often slows with age.

How much to bottle feed a baby:

How much to feed is also dependent on your baby’s needs. Every baby will be different, and the right amount may fluctuate with age, what’s being offered, baby size, appetite, and more. The typical newborn infant eats 2-3 ounces every feeding, but you can get a better estimate based on your baby’s weight. Per pound most babies need about 45 calories to grow. So, say your baby is 11 lbs, his/her caloric need is 45 x 11 or 495 a day. For formula, the next step is as easy as checking the label for calories per ounce. In breast milk bottles, an oz has about 20 calories.

When your baby is full, he/she will lose interest in food, stop sucking, or pull away and turn his/her head from the bottle. As long as your baby is showing healthy weight gain and wetting at least one diaper every three hours or three diapers every twenty four hours, you’re doing just fine.

Now that you know when and how much to feed a baby, your going to need something to feed with, which means….

How to Choose Baby Bottles

The bottle you choose for your baby can really affect how well the bottle feeding experience goes, but, unfortunately no guide can tell you which bottle to pick. A bottle that works great for one baby, may not for another.  Generally, your baby will have more say in which bottle you chose than you do, so when first beginning bottle feeding, you may want to buy a few different types of bottles and experiment. I may not be able to tell you exactly how to choose a baby bottle, but I can explain the various options available.

A typical bottle consists of two parts, a base and a nipple.

Baby Bottle Bases:

For the bottle base, there are two primary material choices, glass or plastic, but the shape of the bottle itself can vary greatly by brand. Overall, you’ll see four main types in either material.

baby bottle shapes

Straight bottles:

This is your typical baby bottle. Straight bottles are said to be easiest for babies to hold. Straight bottles may also come in a slightly hourglass shape, where the middle is narrower for little hands.

Bent Bottles:

These bottles have an angle to them. The bend in the bottle is meant to reduce the amount of air your baby ends up sucking in by keeping the milk at the top of the bottle.

Disposable Liner Bottles:

These bottles are actually a shell which holds a plastic insert in which milk is placed. The insert is disposed of after use.

Round Bottles:

Round bottles are relatively new and not very common. The base is usually oval in shape with a flat bottom so the bottle can be set down. Much like bent bottles this is an effort to reduce the air your baby gets while feeding.

Glass versus Plastic:

Plastic bottles are basically impossible for a baby to break and often slightly lighter weight while being less expensive. However, plastic bottles do eventually begin to deteriorate and will need to be replaced. Plastic bottles that do not say “BPA free” may leak bisphenol-A into milk if boiled. A baby’s bottle should NEVER be brought to the boiling point.

Glass bottles will never need to be replaced unless broken, chipped, or cracked, but they are also more expensive and heavier than plastic bottles.

Baby Bottle Nipples:

Bottle nipples typically come in three materials: plastic, silicone, and latex. Rubber and silicone nipples both are firmer and will last longer, while latex is softer, more malleable, and may wear out a bit quicker.

In addition to material there are also varies nipple shapes, sizes, and flow rates.

Nipple Shapes:

Traditional: Is your standard nipple.

Orthodontic: Produced by companies such as Nuk, these nipples are designed to fit the shape of your child’s palate.

Nipple Sizes and Flow Rates:

Nipples come in varying sizes based on the bottle type. Typically wider nipples are better for breast fed babies or babies that are being switched between bottle and breast as the wider nipple is closer to the feel of a breast, but some babies prefer the narrower nipples anyway. You can also find bottles with varying nipple length. Some feel a long nipple a nice alternative to the wide-style for breast-fed babies.

baby bottle flow rate

Flow rate is determined by age, though some babies drink faster or slower than their age determined nipple. When buying a bottle it should indicate a flow rate and age range. Flow rate is determined by the size and number of holes in the nipple.

Once you have your bottle it needs to be prepared for use and filled.

How to sterilize baby bottles:

Once upon a time it was suggested that all nipples and bottles be sterilized. Today it’s believed that a good hot washing with soap and water is sufficient.

None the less, if you wish to sterilize, this can be done by boiling water and placing the items in them for at least 5 minutes. There are also many bottle sterilizing systems out on the market today. As a mid-point many parents sterilize new bottles and nipples once before use. Be sure to let the items air dry before using.

The final step in how to bottle feed is to fill the bottle and feed your baby. You can use formula or breast milk.

How to Heat the Milk:

Formula can be made with warm water to avoid the need for heating. If the formula has been refrigerated or you are serving pumped or stored breast milk you can heat it by placing the bottle in a pan of warm water on the stove or simply by running hot water over it. Never use boiling water or actually heat formula or breast milk in a pan on the stove. Bottles also should not be microwaved as this may cause heat spots which can burn your baby. In cases other than cow’s milk, it also leads to a reduction in nutrients. Today there are also specialized bottle warmers you can buy to keep bottles toasty and ready if you prefer.

How to Bottle Feed:

Avoid propping a bottle or leaving your baby unattended while bottle feeding as this can result in choking. Once your baby falls asleep and stops eating, you should remove the bottle. Even if your baby is not actively feeding, sleeping with a bottle can cause tooth decay. Its recommended you hold your baby during feedings, but you can opt for any position that feels comfortable so long as your baby is not lying flat on his/her back. A forty-five degree angle should be kept to prevent milk from entering the delicate tubes of the inner ear which can cause ear infections.

Finally, be sure that the nipple of the bottle is always full. Failing to do so will cause your baby to swallow air and lead to uncomfortable gas. You can remedy an empty nipple by increasing the tilt at which you are holding the bottle.

Beyond that, your baby will do what comes natural–eat.

We hope this guide on how to bottle feed a baby has helped you. If not, why not? We always love hearing suggestions for page additions.