Breastfed Babies and Bottle Nipples

I like the Soothie bottles the best. Dr. Brown's are good too.

Soothies I chose because when Porsha was in the hospital they gave her a soothie pacifier. Its the only kind she likes. The bottles are wider than tall. The nipples are just like the pacifiers.

Dr. Brown's bottles are nice because they have an extra tube in them so the baby doesn't egt as much air in her tummy, making for less gas and spit up. Only thing I don't like is that there are 5 pieces for the bottles.

Good luck, I would do some research and take into account all the advice you get.

I use Dr. Brown's. The nipples are the same size as the pacifiers that my son likes (soothies from the hospital)and he has had no trouble at all.

I breastfed my son for almost a full year. We use Avent bottles but we only used the 2 hole nipple as was advised on their website I believe. Never had a bit of problem with him going from bottle to breast.

We used Avent bottles with the clear silicone nipples because, at the time, it was the only nipple on the market that had the wide base to flare out the babies mouth like a breast. But now Playtex (and possibly others) have similar shaped nipples. I wasn't the type of person to try multiple kinds. I just had them and that's what we used without any problems.

The ONLY bottle my breast fed babies would take for the first year are the platex drop in bottles. The nipples are not the silicone kind. I tried the nuk kind because it was shaped like their binkis..didn't work. Tried Advent and a few others, but the playtex nipple is shaped the best. But they don't like the silicone (clear) nipple they like the brownish looking one. They like that texture better I guess. Hope you find what works for you!

Hello Amy,

I used Playtex Vent Air wide nipple bottles for my baby girl. She absolutely loved this bottles. I think the nipple being wide resembles more a natural nipple, also the shape of them seemed to work for her. She was only 5 - 6 months and already holding her own bottle with her own hands. She would push our hands away if we try to hold her bottle. It was soothing to her.

That's what worked for us :)

We tried one type of gerber with a silicone nipple, didnt work... we switched to Avent and it worked like a charm. I breastfed for 10 months while she occassionally took a bottle when we were away or nursing was not an option for one reason or another. I liked the avent system because it offered different flows of nipples. For the most part our daughter was always kept on the newborn or "one hole" flow because I found that if she drank from a higher flow, she thought that she didnt need to suck when she'd be nursing! So, we kept her on a newborn low flow for about 8 months and then when nursings were down to only a few times a day she moved to a higher flow. Good luck.

My baby would only take NUK brand bottle nipples. Mostly because they felt the same as her pacifier. Try that trick... If the baby takes a pacifier ok, match the bottle nipple to the pacifier. Good luck!

My son took a bottle well until he was about 3 months. My mistake was that I quit giving him a bottle for about three weeks. When I tried to give him a bottle after those three weeks he wanted nothing to do with it. I was determined to have a baby who took a bottle (my first son never took a bottle of a binki)so that I could leave him with a sitter. So for two months I offered him a bottle everyday with no sucess. I tried every bottle under the sun. He wouldn't take it until I tried the brand called Nuk. He took it right away! Didn't even try to swat it away. I think its cause its so squishy and seems to be most like moms breast.
I am sure every child is different but my boy liked Nuk the best.

C.

43 yr old mom(16s & 18d) and grandma of 2 yr old boy,with both of mine i breastfeed almost completely but when my husband wanted to feed i used playtex brand, with my grandson i prompted the use of the bottles that had a bend in them,(less bubbles)several brands had them, with the natural shaped nipples
i really did find that any brand that had the natural nipple shape really did seem to be easier for baby to latch on too
just for a bit of a giggle= my son was a premie and had to use kitten bottles for about 10 wks

My daughter was in NICU for the first few days, and was not breastfeeding well. We let the NICU nurses give her formula, as she was jaundiced & really needed to be eating more. We were concerned that she wouldn't take to breasfeeding after being bottle fed only for the first couple fo weeks - but we used the Breastflow bottles from The First Years & she easily could alternate between the two - this was great for pumping. the Breastflow bottle have a double nipple, which simulates teh breast & makes the babay have to "work" a little more for the milk - so th baby is less likely to give up on the brest because it's too difficult. :) OH! and regarding the Avent bottles, we have tose as well- we ran into a problem ,though, because she was so used to working hard at the Breastflow bottles and the breast, that too much milk would come out of teh Avent & she'd gag. We use them now that she's older & not breastfeeding anymore. :)

I have a 2 year old and a 3 month old that I nursed. I also work part time so both had to take a bottle and both did fine with Advent. Their nipples seem very close to the breast with similar latch on. My 2 year old also used the playtex vent-air bottles and nipples and did fine with those too. They are similar.

My husband and I wanted to go on trip when my daughter was 4 months. The only bottle we could get her to take was Adiri. We had tried every bottle. (Playtex, Avent, and gerber)Adiri is truly shaped like a mother's breast. It does not feel like other nipples and does not work like any other bottle. www.adiri.com
I hope this helps!

I use Nuk nipples (slow flow) and avent bottles (because they fit the Nuk nipples!). The shape of the Nuk is the same as the nipple in the mouth. My Le Leche League swears by them. I've also heard some good things about Th First Years Breastflow bottle at Target, but never tried them personally. They are supposed to latch like the nipple and make baby work for the milk.

S., 25, mom of Tyrrone, 4 months- only bottle fed because I was sick and had to take medicine he couldn't get...ugh!

Hi Amy,
I went back to work when my son was 8 weeks old. At around 6 weeks I began to use the Playtex nurser. This system allows you the capability to remove the air from the bottle before giving it to your infant. It worked well for us. When my son reached 5-6 months his appetite increased & we switched to the high flow nipple. That worked really well also. If you try the Playtex nursing system, make sure you read the instructions & follow them. The instructions will teach you how to remove the air from the bottle to decrease the likelyhood of excess air entering your infant's stomach. It worked really well for us.
Take care, M. W.

The little one I nanny uses Avent, however I have heard from several La Leche League mothers that babies who use the Avent bottles tend to wean themselves early because it is so easy to get the milk out of the bottle compared to the breast. They suggested the first years breastfeeder. It has a double nipple so the baby has to compress the outside nipple to get milk from the inside nipple. They are available at some targets and online at target.com Hope this helps!

I tried every kind of nipple that I could find. The only kind of nipple my son would take was the othodontic. I believe that it is because the milk comes out of the top of the nipple instead of the tip, which would make him gag. The mendela bottle that came with my pump also has the milk coming out of the top but it is shaped like the NUK brand pacifier which my son doesn't like. He will only take the MAMS brand pacifier. My sister had the best luck with the cheap bottles with the straight nipple that was similar to the pacifier that came home from the hospital. Neither one of us had luck with the so called "made for breastfeeding babies" brands. Hope this helps
T.

I have turned several of my friends and family on to the Platex VentAir Bottles with the wide breast like nipples. They never tried anything else after my recommendation!!

It has been awhile and I can't remember the name but I think they were playtex? They had the liners. But everychild is different.. I recommend just trying to see what the child prefers.. I preferred playtex as research said contained less air in babies tummy which meant less gas..

I use the NUK Orthodontic bottles and nipples. We've had really good luck with them and it's the only shape of nipple he will take. They also have the escape valve in the nipple so the air can escape as they are drinking. I am having a little bit of trouble though because he seems to prefer the bottle to the breast during the day. I end up pumping for most feedings so my advice may not be quite what you're looking for.

Whichever nipple you decide on, you should look for one that's clear. The brown nipples use ALOT of Sulfites, which are not healthy, clear pacifiers and bottle nipples are much healthier. Also, if you can find glass bottles anymore, that's much better than plastic. Since formula or breastmilk usually get warmed up, it means that plastic is probably leeching chemicals into your babies milk.

Playtex.. but the brown ones that look like squared-off nipples. I was always told that those are most like your own nipple. Both of my children used the Playtex bottles with the drop-in bags. I didn't have any problems transitioning them from nipple to bottle - but I did exclusively breast feed for the first month. Hope that helps! =) ~*A.*~

We waited until around 6 weeks to introduce a bottle, and we started with Avent, which she took fairly well for a few weeks, but she became a little finicky before too long. Then we switched to Platex drop-ins with the latex nipple. Much softer, and she took to them much better. We haven't had any problems since. We still keep her on the low flow nipples, because she tends to gag herself on the ones that have a higher flow.

My daughter took Avent for a few months, until she decided not to take bottles at all anymore. Heard good things about them from friends.
I see you are a lactation consultant and I just have to relay my story, although you are probably more conscientious than the one we worked with. Please do not ever tell someone their milk supply is low without doing the FULL consultation. I had the most terrible experience at a local reputable pediatricians' office. My husband and I had to push to breastfeed and they sent us home with formula and a new feeding regimen everyday. A week later she was successfully on the breast and growing like a weed, no thanks to them! The daily weigh-ins kill new moms, especially when they are all based on incorrect information (low milk supply).

It's really just hit and miss. Pick the one you like, only buy one to start, and then try it on your child. I had one who would only take a Nuk. My others would only take the oldfashioned ones. Regardless, get the silicone nipples, they last longer and are found now in most brands.

I use avent and my baby does just fine switching between bottle and breast.

I used the nipple that most closely resembled his binky...that was for his age group.

I like the Born Free brand. It is chemical free plastic, good nipples that seem to work out well for us.

Well I used the playtex disposable bottles and the nipples that came with them. I like them and so did my daughter. I breastfed for 10 months and then had to switch to bottles and she seemed to take the switch ok. Just look at what size they are with bigger babies they need to have bigger holes in the tops so that it is easier to suck.

Avent - Made for Breast fed babies (Not too easy to get milk from & not so different that the baby becomes disinterested in the breast or won't use the bottle). They have a whole line of products from breast pumps to binkies, bottles to sippy cups.
You can buy it everywhere,like Target, Walmart, etc... but here is a link to a site that shows alot of what they make.(o:~
http://www.babybungalow.com/avent.html

~"Abuelita" Ramos

This sounds weird, but I actually tried out the bottle nipples a little bit! I had some Avent bottles, because they were recommended to me by a lactation consultant, but they were so stiff! I can't imagine that I feel much like that. Then I tried some regular silicone nipples, Munchkin brand, and they were so soft and squishy (like me, I would guess!) that I tried those instead. My son did better latching onto those.

Amy,

I had to start bottle feeding my daughter almost immediatley because she was jaundice and needed the extra nutrients. We used Advent bottles and loved them. My daughter is 9 months old and still breastfeeds whenever I am home but when I am at work or out she uses Advent bottles and nipples. She had no problems adjusting to them and never had a problem latching on either. I did use a nipple shield for the first 4 months of breastfeeding because her suck was wrong but there was never a hard transistion for us.

Good luck!
Maggie

Avent. The nipples are very similar to the breast and have size 1 (slow drip) for newborns, size 2 (3-6), size 3 (6-9), and size 4 (more flow) for 9-12 months. There are 4 oz. and 8 oz. bottles. The Avent system grows w/ your child. There are trainer sippy cups. There is a hand-pump system. Everything is interchangeable so you don't have to buy extra stuff. And it's easy to clean.

I've heard that Dr. Brown is good. Supposedly it decreases gas. But it looks hard to clean and it doesn't come with all of the stuff I mentioned above.

Both of my kids were both breast and bottle babies. I was very lucky to never have any problems. Both times we used the playtex bottles with the disposable liners and the nipples that are round and flat on the top. We tried other 'shapes' but they seemed to prefer this type over the ortho shaped ones.

I use Avent, because someone gave us some and they seemed to be better on my son than the regular gerber ones (that we had). My friend swears by the Playtex air vent. If I were to buy a bottle I would try this one. We both breast feed, she supplements with formula and I have my daughter or husband feed my little one a bottle of pumped milk on occasion. My son is 3 months old and a fast eater so we went to a 3 nipple pretty fast because the one and two were just too slow for him. The three seemed to satisfy him and he would better take close to a normal feeding from the bottle this way.

My first child was lactose intolerant and a lactation consultant told me I was a "bad mom, children need to nurse at least 10 mins each side" well when we finally diagnosed the lactose intolerance and switched her to soy formula I was feeling like a "bad mom" and so rejected... We used regular orange Gerber nipples and bottles for her. Well my son, eats just like my daughter and is FULL at a total of ten mins. He usually only eats about 7. My milk also comes out super fast. Like 6 oz in 7 mins fast (by pumping). He typically only takes 2-3 oz from a bottle. My little boy proves to me my little girl was getting enough... just couldn't tolerate it. He also is healthy, maintaining his growth curve and developing perfectly. Please keep this in mind as you consult.

My baby was picky, but he loves the Gerber NUK bottle. It allows him to breathe through his nose without breaking his suck. Also, I think the shape of this bottle nipple is very much like the shape the nipple of a breast takes when a baby nurses.

I breastfed but also had to pump and give my twins breast milk out of a bottle. I went through a lot of nipples before I found gerber nipples that came in a multi-color pack. They are medium flow. Now that my girls are a little bigger I tried to get faster nipples but the girls really like the gerber ones. Since they are sucking harder I do have to pull the bottle out often because they are collapsing the nipple.

I used the Playtex VentAir Wide bottles for both of my kids. Worked great!

I used the Playtex Nurser bottles.... I tried Avent, but my son did better with Playtex.

A. P here--I'm the one who wrote the original question. My book is published~ Balancing Breast and Bottle: Reaching Your Breastfeeding Goals. It is available on Amazon. My co-author and I have developed the SIMPLE Method, a step-by-step guide for choosing and assessing a bottle nipple for a breastfed baby.

My daughter is exclusively breast fed and she will drink from breast flow only....