Hi all, just wondering if any MAM users LO are still on teat size 2 this old? I tried her with size 3 about a month ago and it was still too fast.....

It’s also recommended that babies stop drinking from bottles with teats by the time they are one year old as drinking through a teat leaves the teeth coated in milk and can lead to tooth decay (NHS Choices, 2015; Oral Health Foundation, 2017). Read more about this here. Kimata, H. (2004), Latex allergy in infants younger than 1 year. Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 34: 1910-1915. Available at doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2004.02128.xNHS (2019b) Sterilising Baby Bottles, Available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/breastfeeding-and-bottle-feeding/bottle-feeding/sterilising-baby-bottles/ [Accessed 3 December 2021]

If they can't control the rate of feeding, they are more likely to over-feed. Non-responsive feeding has been associated with discomfort and fussiness in the short term (NHS 2021) and linked to obesity in the longer term (Hurley, 2011; Watchmaker 2020).

Consider using a teat that is more suited to paced bottle feeding. This means it will hold enough milk when held in a horizontal position, rather than have to be tipped up so your baby can access the milk.

Ready-to-feed bottles can be a convenient short-term solution if parents have been advised to give their baby formula on medical advice. They’re more expensive and not great for the environment though (NHS, 2018; Unicef, 2019). If you’re planning to breastfeed it isn't necessary to buy bottles ‘just in case’. Over 90% of maternity units in the UK are now Baby Friendly Accredited, which means a midwife on the infant feeding team should be able to support you if you do have any difficulties with breastfeeding straight after birth (UNICEF 2017). They’ll help you with hand-expressing your colostrum and feeding it to your baby using a spoon, syringe or feeding cup (Unicef 2017). Find out whether your maternity unit is accredited here.

When should I throw away my baby’s bottle?

Appropriate if your child has shown consistent feeding with no difficulties and is taking larger amounts at the breast and bottle. Comfort for your baby is vital, and our baby feeding bottles feature the MAM SkinSoft teat, which has a 94% acceptance rate*. If you are mixed feeding (feeding from both bottle and breast) it may help to choose a teat that will encourage your baby to open their mouth wide and take in the whole teat rather than just the tip. Those with a medium wide base and a short to medium nipple length encourage babies to open their mouth wide and cup their tongue around the teat (Pearson-Glaze 2019, Bahr 2010). This article describes it well. When should I change bottle teat size?