Buying the Right Baby Bottles

BABY BOTTLES

There is no doubt that breast milk is the best milk for your baby. It is sterile, always available, you don't need any thing else to feed your baby. You don't need a whole lot of bottles, nipples, sterilizers and all the other paraphernalia associated with bottle feeding. It also helps you lose weight, since breast milk uses up calories.

However, there may be many reasons why you may opt to bottle feed. You may not be getting enough milk or your baby may not be satisfied. You don't want to be on call to your baby 10-20 times a day. You are working and need to be away. Or you just need a break. Of course, you can always express breast milk and your baby can be bottle fed with it. Or you have an adopted baby. You may be on medications which prevent you from breast-feeding. Or your baby may be lactose intolerant and cannot digest milk, in which case you would have to give soy milk or a lactose free formula. You don't have to feel guilty if you have to bottle feed, whatever your reason for doing so. Sometimes it is a boon to be able to bottle feed, otherwise you are constantly tied down and it seems that you do little else, but feed your baby.

If you use bottles, then other people can take care of the feedings, whether it is your husband or partner, baby's siblings, grandparents or a care-giver. This gives you valuable time off - you realize the importance and quality of me-time only after you have a new baby.

Apart from that there are some benefits of bottle feeding. Firstly, you know exactly how much formula a baby takes in each feed every day, so you can monitor his or her intake. As formula stays in the stomach longer, baby is satisfied for a longer period of time. There is no doubt that bottle feeding is easier in public places, whether it is in a restaurant, while traveling or anywhere else for that matter. You need not curtail any activities just because you are tied down to feeding baby.

There is a whole range of baby bottles available in the market. There are straight bottles, curved bottles, wide-necked bottles, angle-necked bottles, bottles which open at both ends for easier cleaning, and even breast shaped bottles. And they are made in a wide variety of materials: glass, plastic, polycarbonate, polypropylene. They are plain or colored, opaque or clear, with colorful baby designs, in different types and sizes. You can buy bottles which are reusable, bottles with liners which can be disposed off after one use, ready to use bottles which come with formula already in them so again, you don't have to clean/sterilize them and can throw them away after use.

As there is such a wide variety of bottles to choose from, which one should you buy? You can buy something that appeals to you, which seems right to you, but eventually it will be your baby who decides which bottle you will use. If he is happy with what he is given, it is better to stick to that. Otherwise, you will have to keep trying till baby (and you) are happy with the bottle. Sometimes, some kind of bottles may cause problems to baby if they take in too much air, or sometimes they suffer from colic or spit-ups, which may be not just due to the formula but due to the bottle as the newer bottles are supposed to help prevent such problems.

When you go to buy bottles, you may notice that some of them are certified as BPA free. What is BPA and why is it important? Bisphenol-A is a chemical which is found in plastic/polycarbonate bottles. It specially leaches out when hot milk or formula is poured into the bottles, when milk or formula is heated in bottles, when bottles are washed in hot water very often or sterilized.

It is a toxic chemical and has been linked to early onset of puberty, obesity, diabetes, hyperactivity, increase in aggression, changes in response to painful or fear-provoking stimuli, impaired learning and memory, reversal of normal sex differences in the brain structure, elimination of sex differences in behavior, decreased maternal behavior, impaired immune function, breast cancer, prostate disease and cancer, sperm defects, impaired female reproductive development, miscarriage. So, yes, you do need to be concerned about this toxic chemical.

Thankfully, there is a whole range of BPA-free bottles available in the market now. If you are still concerned or not convinced of their safety, then it is better to go in for glass bottles. Glass bottles are easier to clean and keep clean, do not retain odors, but may be heavy and, of course, they are breakable. They are also somewhat more expensive, but then if baby's safety is your concern, then the extra money is worth it. Generally hard, clear plastic will probably contain BPA, but there are bottles out there without BPA and you should buy them rather than those you are unsure about. PVC is another risky substance, again found in plastics, and you are better off avoiding bottles which are made of PVC or contain PVC or any other suspect substance.

As far as bottle feeding is concerned, you can use breast milk or you can use a formula which is suitable for your baby. You can get different types of formula as well, powder, concentrated liquid and ready to feed liquid. Of these, powder formula works out the most economical and easy to use. You can even put formula in a dry bottle and take it with you wherever you go, adding water when necessary to feed baby. Once made and used for feeding, extra formula is best discarded, especially if you are out, within an hour or so.

A new feeding technique has been patented by scientists in Israel lead by led by biochemist Prof. Michael Inbar of M.L.I.S. Projects Ltd. in Tel Aviv. The "Twist 'N Feed" bottle is a one piece bottle with two compartments, separated by strong cellophane. One compartment can store the dry formula and the other water, both pre-measured. When needed, you will just have to twist the bottle which will open the internal septum and shake the two together to make formula. This will make it easy to use and the unused bottle will have a shelf life of between two and a half and five years. It will be of great use in hospitals, in neonatal units and other high-risk environments. As many ready to use liquid formulae contain preservatives and other chemicals, this will negate the use of such products, thus keeping baby away from these potentially harmful chemicals.

Since your baby is precious to you, you don't want to put him or her at any risk, especially one which is avoidable. Whichever bottle you finally choose, whichever bottle your baby feels comfortable with, there are a few pointers which you must keep in mind. If you live an area where water is safe for drinking, then you probably don't need to boil the water or sterilize the bottles. Follow your doctor's advice about this. If you need to sterilized bottles, you can either boil them or use a special sterilizer. Otherwise cleaning with hot soapy water and air drying is good enough. Some bottles can be cleaned in a dishwasher - check label instructions.

Avoid using the microwave for warming formula and microwave will not sterilize bottles, unless you get a special microwave sterilization kit. It can be dangerous to heat formula as it heats unevenly and can cause heat spots in the formula, which can scald his mouth. Most times formula can be given at room temperature, or you can use tepid water to mix formula. Remember bottles can be used not only to give formula but also to give water (if required); medicines can be mixed in the water if necessary. When baby is little older, clear soups and juices can also be given in a bottle.

While there is concern about using glass in bottles because glass can break, especially if baby throws it down or it falls by accident, do keep in mind that you should never leave a baby alone propped with formula. He or she can choke on it. Always hold your baby when feeding, whether you do it yourself or somebody else does it. So using glass should not be a problem. Glass is also environmentally friendly and recyclable. But then again, it is your call, whether you are comfortable using bottles made of glass or another material.

In the beginning you may want to use the smaller sized bottles because baby can take in only a little formula at a time. Later you can switch to bigger bottles which will last as long as baby is bottle-fed. The new bottles have different vent systems which prevent ingestion of air by the baby along with the milk and thus reduce gas and colic.

Whether you use bottles exclusively or give baby both breast milk and bottle milk, the important thing is that both you and baby should be happy and healthy. If you, as a mother, are happy with the way things are going, then your baby, too, will be happier.

Smiti Munwani has been writing for a very long time. She is a journalist, book author, content writer and dietitian. She has had two books published, The Snack-Time Cookbook and Count Your Calories to Slim and Stay Slim. She also has two books ready to be published, one on party menus and another on cooking for a healthy heart.

She can be contacted via email: smitimunwani@gmail.com if anybody is interested in re-publishing the books (she has the copyright) or requires any articles. She has also owned and run a pizza parlour and a catering business. She has written extensively for the print media and done web content writing.

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