Planning to BF; talk to me about bottles

[centralsquare]

I'm hoping to BF, but I imagine there will likely be times I need to pump. I can get a pump through my insurance, but what should I have on-hand when the baby arrives in terms of bottles?

[dearprudence]

Don't overstock on bottles - it's one of the things babies are very very particular on. We got lucky he took to the first kind he tried, but one of my friends had to try 5 different brands before her son would take a bottle.

Grab a couple to start off with, and just the small size for at first. Theoretically a breastfed baby won't ever need more than 4oz of breastmilk, however, I personally liked the larger size bottles because I froze breastmilk in sticks so they fit better in the taller bottles.

[estrellita]

We've been using the Avent bottles and he's been just fine with those. I can't pump directly into these bottles but I was planning to just pump into the storage bottles and pour it into a regular bottle as needed. Of course right now we're mostly using formula but that's still my plan..

[Poppy]

We did OK with the Medela bottles initially, they're obviously convenient for pumping into as well. We had LifeFactory glass bottles and those were good except DH got annoyed at how long they took to heat up. Then we found out that daycare won't accept glass in case of shatter. So I scrambled and bought a couple others after reading reviews.

Lansinoh momma natural wave bottles were really well reviewed so we tried those. They worked great, were affordable and were easy to clean. So that's what we're using. I have a random sampling of bottles that have been used 0-1 times if you'd be interested (comotomo, avent plastic and glass, Born Free, and maybe a couple others). I'd be happy to send them along, just let me know.

Also, PP is right that you likely will not need the large size (I did get a couple for storing breastmilk at work) and be careful if you do get them because they usually come with faster flow nipples. A lot of people recommend sticking with the slowest flow to avoid overfeeding and bottle preference.

[centralsquare]

Thanks, this is helpful! I want to go with glass, so I think I'll grab a Life Factory and a Dr Browns and see what s/he likes before buying more.

[Velar Fricative]

Personally I would just have the bottles that go with your pump and maybe one other brand for peace of mind. DD took right to the Medela bottles that came with my pump so I was glad I didn't spend the money on more brands. Worst case, your spouse runs out and grabs a different brand.

We then bought a ton of bottles once she took to Medela consistently since I hated washing them so much.

Some bottles are wider than others so if baby doesn't take to what you have, check out bottles that look different than what you've tried.

[statlerwaldorf]

I wouldn't stock up until you know what kind your baby will take. I like the Munchkin Latch bottles. His latch looks more like a breastfeeding latch. I also use Avent Natural without any problems.

[achi]

I've bought a couple of a few kinds that are supposed to be good for breast fed babies. The medela calma that came with my pump, Tommee Tippee (the closer to nature kind) and Avent. Total we have 5 (only one came with the pump since it's a manual - haven't gotten the electric yet - well it came with two bottles, one calma nipple) so I think we'll try what we have and then add/swap out from there depending on what baby likes.

[imimahoney]

At first we used the medela calma and then Tommee tippee. I HATED the TT bottles. My son had a strong suck and would collapse the entire nipple. We finally settled on the born free reflux bottles and really liked those. We will use them for the baby when I start pumping.

[pooh8402]

I'm registered for the TT, Avent Natural, and Munchkin Latch. I figure I'll get two or three as gifts, and be able to try them out.

[Deleted]

LCs recommended we use Dr Brown's bottles.

I would be sure to get the pump and some storage containers before you give birth. You can then just run and get bottles when needed.

Even without the latch problems my baby has, the nurses told me I needed to pump from day one due to my complications-- it was totally unexpected. I was literally pumping at home within an hour of getting home from the hospital. I was glad I already had supplies.

Be sure to sterilize items ahead too.

Good luck:). Hopefully you won't need to pump for weeks.

[pooh8402]

I'm not sterilizing shit unless I have a NICU baby and the doc tells me to. Boobs aren't sterile, so why should bottles be? But yes, at least put them through the dishwasher.

[rachelgreen]

We have an insane amount of the Medela test tube style (2.5 oz starter bottles) and I would honestly consider selling some super cheap to anyone on here if they wanted to try. You can pump directly into them. I also have a lot of the 5 and 8 oz Medela bottles. In addition to those we use the Tommy Tippee closer to nature for her nighttime formula feed (before bedtime we use a gentle formula for her gas/colic/reflux so she can get a good night sleep in case I ate something that could upset her tummy). For the same reason we have a Playtex drop-in bottle to suck out the air.

[MrsAggie]

We got 1-3 of a bunch of different types. Medela, playtex, dr Browns, TT. DS did terrible with them all. He leaked more than he drank. I bought some Gerber First Essentials based on reviews about messy eaters and those did the trick. They're super cheap and the bottles fit the medela pumps. You can also use those nipples on medela bottles, which is what I do.

[lillaguma]

I took a breast pumping class here recently (at the breastfeeding center and it was free, you might want to look into taking it centralsquare) and she suggested getting preemie sized nipples for the bottles because it supposedly is better for avoiding nipple confusion. Something about the facial muscles not changing as much with that nipple.

[shortstax]

Feb 28, 2015 22:06:43 GMT -5 MrsAggie said:

We got 1-3 of a bunch of different types. Medela, playtex, dr Browns, TT. DS did terrible with them all. He leaked more than he drank. I bought some Gerber First Essentials based on reviews about messy eaters and those did the trick. They're super cheap and the bottles fit the medela pumps. You can also use those nipples on medela bottles, which is what I do.

I just bought some GFE this week as extra pumping/storage bottles since they're cheap and fit the PISA. DD actually liked feeding from them too (which is great) but it pissed me off that I'd spent so much on fancy bottles in the past.