Milk is an important source of nutrients that you and your family shouldn’t miss out on. If someone in your family has lactose intolerance and the rest of the family still want to enjoy the taste of real milk, try Lactofree - the UK’s first virtually lactose-free dairy drink.
I am completey confused - are we not to use microwave sterilisers now? Don't put boiling water in your bottle - ok, can do that. I have googled and cannot find a list of 'safe' bottles to use (unless i go on some eco-website and buy expensive new bottles) - are there not any available in the supermarkets/boots today??
but it says its a common chemical found in plastic so that would mean its probably in toddler cups,plates bowls,spoons etc. Lots of toys are made of plastic too and you cant stop babies chewing on them.
you can get glass ones at a zillion pounds each but I'm just banging head on wall. everything is dangerous and will change the sex of your fish so I give up.
i cant believe that so many people featured had not a clue, there has been so much publicity on this issue previously but until now no scientific backing (and atm it is still a bit wishy washy).
The man on the news said it is to do with flexible versus hard plastic one doesnt contain the chemical. Missed which way round thanks to dd.
With all these concerns i think that a new set of guidelines should be produced as to exactly how to prepare bottles as combined with the advice not to pre mix formula many people must be confused.
Did anyone else notice the bf/iq story slotted in just before this one on news 24? 'Im sure that research was very old and had been featured ages ago, or do i just have deja vu?
Cazwa, lots of brands are apparently but bbc is advertising ASDA atm as they will have a special rangew as they are part of Walmart which is taking all bpa bottles of the shelves.
he said that glass bottles were safe, and squeezy plastic bottles were safe, but hard plastic probably contains bpa - and then he said that it leaches into your milk when the bottle is hot and theres milk/formula touching it... well excuse me but even if i make up formula cold, i still heat it to give to my baby?? then he said that you shouldn't use a microwave but that steam sterlisers are ok - but my m-wave sterliser uses STEAM!!! aaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
apparently asda will be brinign out bpa - free bottles but there are already bpa free bottles out there - they just didn't say WHICH ONES!!!! sorry for caps - am frustrated!
Flexible plastic shouldn't have it, according to guy on tv. Also any plastic with the 7 on it definitely has it. Any scratched or damaged bottles should be tossed.
Think this means avent, dr browns etc are more likely to have it but couldn't see 7 on avent bottle. Nuby or tommee tippee colored ones less likely. Very confusing indeed.
The story has been generated by NCT, who as an organisation are not pro-bottle feeding anyway. If their intention was to scare and confuse the bottle feeders amongst us then they've probably succeeded, whilst also increasing their profile on national TV this morning.
Might help with few places where you can get There were a few threads on this a while back . But if you google Bishpenol A ( Uk ) you get more info. Also if you go onto your brands web site they might give this info out. Tommy Tipee sippy cups yes have them in.
Um I wouldn't rush out to buy flexible plastics. I know someone who is working on flexible plastics (esp the type used to deliver drips etc in hospital) because there are believed to be the same sorts of problems (and they're interested in the dose preemie babies are getting).
Think the hormonal effects are a problem with plastic tbh- and just the amount used now.
georgiegal, this has been rumbling in Canada and US for a while so it isn't just NCT anti-formula propaganda. Canada, for example, are on the verge of banning the sale of bpa bottles but it has to be said the research it is based upon is sporadic and flawed, hence the NCT appealing for more research to establish the risks. atm it seems any risks are low and this is being hyped by media and manufactureres of non bpa bottles.
my dr.browns bottles have no 7 on them or any recycle sign.... this bbc news story, every time they run it, they are telling us conflicting info.... now they are saying don't keep your bottles more than six months.
I think plastics in general are going to feature more over the next few years. probably because they're used so widely now and are beginning to show effects. Certainly the research the person I know is doing is not NCT funded, nor anything to do with the NCT.
This realy pi55es me off The media in this country is hell bent on sensationalising health scare story after health scare story. Why can't these stories be featured when they have proper information relating to the 'scare'. You've got the BBC changing their advice avery 15 minutes at the moment causing parents everywhere to panic and become severely confused.
It would seem that there is no actual concrete proof that there is any risk at the moment (just like all the health scare stories).
I'm sat here looking at my sons Tommee Tippee bottles wondering what you class as scratched? There are scratches all over the bottle (minute ones) are they a concern? Can I no longer heat them in the microwave? What about steam sterilising? That's temperatures of nearly boiling. I really don't want to replace the 8 bottles we already own only to spend a fortune on replacements and find that this was yet another scare story based on misinterpreted research.
If this is a non-story then our media is behaving irresponsibly.
I'm not saying that NCT have invented this story. I know it is founded in fact and that concerns have been raised in the US and Canada. I simply think that the way it has been reported is alarmist and not at all helpful to mothers. I agree that more research is needed to establish the risks but let's not scare people until we know what these risks are. At the moment, healthcare professionals in the UK are telling us there's absolutely no risk at all. It's been mentioned that this chemical is to be found everywhere in plastics, including sippy cups, tableware and toys so I do wonder why bottles are the focus of NCT's campaign.
I think bottles are the focus of the NCT's campaign because they are the only ones likely to have boiling water in them which appears to encourage release of this chemical. However, more research is needed - I think the experiments which led Canada to ban it were based on rats being fed Bisphenol A while pregnant (and in huge quantities) which caused these changes.
Can anyone clarify whether the chemical will leach out every time the bottle is used or whether it will only happen once or twice. Logically, if there is a chemical there which is released by heat, there will be a large dose first time of heating and then smaller and smaller doses so new bottles are not the answer. Does this sound right?
Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature bottles are not BPA free but the sippy cups are, according to the person I just spoke to on the careline.
A quick google search suggests that MAM bottles are BPA free, as are glass ones, obviously. Any with a 5 in the recycling triangle ok as they are polypropylene. There also seems to be some issue concerning teats though, saying that silicone is best, whereas latex or plastic not so good. So not sure about dummies...
i read (skimmed) a book years ago about the effects of hormone changing chemicals. Will look up title.
Checked out all teh references at the time and rather got the impression that glass was better, but it really wasn't that conclusive about whether much would leach out of baby bottles.
The book basically said that 'we were living in a sea' of these chemicals. They are basically impossible to avoid. I for one decided not to worry overmuch about thhe bottles, but I try not to use plastic to store food in in general, and don't let my 2 chew on plastic.
I'm sorry but the story clearly has come from NCT. It's a PR generated story from them. There's a press release launching the campaign on the NCT website. I'm probably coming across as anti-breastfeeding, anti NCT. Certainly not the case - breastfeeding my 8 month old and believe the NCT does great work. Just a bit irked by the scaremongering and confusion this particular story has caused. Guess the BBC could have reported it more responsibly. Right, off to enjoy the sunshine with my little boy now
people were smirking at 'lentil weavers' blah blah, not so long ago on Mn when this topic came up.
it was one of the things i asked Vicki Scott, at christmas time about the AVENT bottles. She knew nothing about them eventhough she was supposed to be Avent's Feeding Expert on MN. She sent me to Avent's ass covering partyline on their website.
Last month, all baby bottles and feeding cups, bowls etc with BPA were banned in Canada. It has been banned in Japan for 10 years now including its use in water bottles (some Evian, anyone?)
this chemical mimics oestrogen. In fact, it was created for use as an oestrogen replacement but they found out that it hardens plastic into a glasslike state so it became used for that.
It readily leaches into fluids whether hot or cold.
georgie, the campaign is about ensuring parents see what it is in the plastic use for the bottles - what on earth is wrong with that?
The original story is not from NCT. The original story - about the risks of some constituents in bottles - comes from all over the world. NCT's response is to call for clear labelling.
And, actually, the NCT is one of the few bodies that can voice this concern.
You won't find this story in any of the parenting mags, for example, because none of them will run it for fear of losing bottle manufacturers as advertisers.
It is massively old news - and welldone to the NCT for getting the news out there as there didn't seem to be any coverage at all up till now. it is an important story - why criticise the NCT for getting it out there? I don't understand.
lol at blaming the NCT really! how could one miss the point of this story more widely, I don't know..... I do some work for them and lord knows they are not perfect but comeon why on earth wouldn't parents want to hear about this story? it is really appallingly sloppy thinking (paranoia) to equate health risk of plastics for babies = anti-formula feeding because only ff babies have bottles
mind you it could provide most entertaining to rib MIl about her sonds man breasts being her fault for forcing him to take a bottle and not the fact he swigs beer and eats pork scratchings at all, oh no no no
Oyster pots have just rescued my Tommy Tipee beaker ( with rubber spout that you can change ) from the bin and it for sure has a 7 on it. Also a pink one still Tommy Tipee with piglet on it has 7 clear as day . They have gone back in the bin ! ( they were both used anyway ) But will be more careful when purchasing replacements.
I had no idea this was 'old' news... I like to think I keep very up to date with current affairs etc but this one clearly passed me by.
I use Tesco's own brand bottles which do not have any markings to indicate what they might be made of, so I have emailed to ask them. Will post details if I get a reply.
i would be very dubious of any baby bottle which is hard like glass to the touch but are really plastic. So that is 99% of bottles out there, tbh.
the only ones sold fairly widely in the UK that I would use are the MAM Ultivent and Born Free ones.
Born Free is made from a plastic that looks and feels like the Avent ones, et al but is actually a fairly new plastic. see the link on my first link below.
I'm a bit out of touch at the moment, but I think the Friend's of the Earth website or Greenpeace may have links about these chemicals. BPA is not the only chemical of concern, BTW, there are others such as pthalates, and I think a few others. (BPA is often found in tinned foods as it is used in the resin they coat the inside of the tin with. Some foods seem to absorb more than others as far as I remember.)
As they are everywhere it might be worth a leeter to MP or FoE or Greenpeace membership if anyone really wants to make a difference.
I also boycott PVC products where possible as their manufacture releases lots of these type of chemicals into the environment.
The only ones I could find were Born Free and MAM. I got a pack of 3 MAM ones but there are so many bits to them and they leak so badly I don't want to use them for long. I don't want to buy flexible bottles because I'm trying to avoid pthalates too.
I'd certainly prefer to buy a supermarket's own brand of bottles. I bought a full new set of Avent bottles for my DS, and when I looked in Asda this morning I couldn't believe the price difference.
I'm not the sort of person who worries much about health scares but I use BPA and pthalate free drinking bottles for me, and I'm making a real effort to avoid flexible plastic bottles so I feel I ought to do the same for my child.
i used the MAM ones initially by happenstance rather than research on my part. They leaked on me on occasion as yeti said because sometimes you weren't paying enough attention when assembling them. But I got better at assembling them with time. It was worth the faff to me.
There is a different type of MAM bottle on their website which doesn't have the little rubbery ring and the screw off bottom so I am going to order them if Asda isn't going to bring these bottles out soon.
I have emailed Asda this morning to ask when the bottles will be available. I saw two types of Asda own bottles today - one was polycarbonate and one was flexible. What concerns me is that they might just rebrand the flexible one as BPA free and I expect it contains pthalates.
OK this may be an old story but it's new to me - us new mums come to the table all the time! After DS's night feeds I was my usual bleary eyed self and found the report confusing.
Like many others I BF but my son also gets a bottle of EBM or formula. I use the Tommeee Tippee closer to nature bottles. Since these have PC written on the bottle I assume they have BPA in it.
If using formula I pour the water into the bottle when still quite hot, and usually add the formula when the water has cooled. Now I hear the formula is supposed to added when the water is still 70 degrees? But that we are not to bring water at 70 degrees in contact with the bottle. Now that is confusing???
They said not to use a microwave to sterilise - but is a microwave steam steriliser OK? To be honest I can't reaslly afford to go and get a new set of bottles and steriliser, and thousands of other wome in same boat I assume. So for me it's not a question of anti-FF or BF, we need to assume that most mums do both at some stage, so it's a question of getting the right information about what to do with our existing equipment. Can anyone clarify?
BPA is in polycarbonate which is clear, lightweight and hard. It isn't likely to be in ice cube trays or things like tupperware which are slightly flexible. These items may contain pthalates though.
The NCT seemed to be saying that the microwave created hotspots within the polycarbonate causing increased leaching from those areas. On the BBC it was suggested that using an electric steam steriliser was better than a microwave one. They also suggested not heating bottles in the microwave.
If you are worried switching to cold water sterilising seems to be the cheapest option.
ofgs, how anyone could try to turn this story round into an anti nct rant is beyond me at least a few more people seem to have picked up on the actual issue, one of the last few threads on here about it took the 'you are all so anti ff' line for some totally bizarre reason, along with the 'weirdy lentil weavers rambling on again' lalalala fingers in ears response
i've started giving ds1 and ds2 all drinks in glass beakers but dd is still using a bottle for juices etc, have ditched but not chucked away the avent bottles, but not sure what to replace them with really. this soooo goes beyond bf/ff
I'm concerned that Tommee Tippee told me that the sippy cups are ok when they're not. Will call them again and ask for a definitive list of their products which don't contain BPA...
the TT sippy cups are ok as they are not clear hard plastic like the bottles. you will find the opaque/coloured cups are less likely to contain BPA. The website I linked to earlier even says they are BPA free too. This is from that website:
BPA-FreeProducts* *Bottles: Easyflow Bottle to Cup Cups: First Cup, Tip It Up Cup, Easiflow Cup, Easiflow Insulated Cup, Easiflow Open Cup
ProductsContainingBPA Bottles: Closer to Nature, Closer to Nature Anti-Colic Plus Bottle, Health Check Anti-Colic Bottle (discontinued) Cups: None
Anyone just feel like they are penalising the bottle feeders?!?!
This is simply ridiculous, why start a raging campaign like this when people have been bottle feeding for HOW long?
I had to give up breastfeeding, I was going to be put in the loony bin had I carried on, plus, who the hell do you know that ia happy to feed her baby in public and not give a toss about getting boobs out for all to see?!
Sorry rant over, feel it is scaremongering on large scale..
wurly, why should babies not have bottles made of the safest plastic available? It is not about expense, or the lack of technology. I can't see why we expect improvements in safety in cars and gas fires for examples but not for something so much less complicated as a feeding bottle.
BTW, i don't mind getting my boobs out in public. I fed dd anywhere she asked for it. When my baby was hungry, my preoccupations and everyone elses came second. That is just how I see it.
oh, she was bottlefed expressed milk at nursery too and by her dad when i was away so it is not just bottlefeeders as i think you meant formula feeders who this issue touches.
I completly agree that they ahould the problem, in my view is that the way they go about delivering the information to us. I just feel things get out of hand a little and we mums end up rushing out getting the newest things and feeling bad because we have been using something not recommended etc, you get the picture.
Btw I wasn't being offensive in any way re: b/f well done for b/f in public I couldnt do it and It was one of the reasons I stopped. If there wasnt this big taboo about b/f in public then I would have carried on but being a new mum I just couldnt face the stares and gave up and now, I feel so stupid and guilty and to a degree I hate myself for not giving my daughter the best.
Hope this doesnt put me in a bad light now - kiskideesameanoldmother
Why do you expect a stranger on the net to view you in any kind of light? I know nothing about you. I was responding to what i saw were unintentional misconceptions you may have had or were unwittingly giving to other readers of this thread. I am too 'old' at this thing to view any response I read in a bf vs ff light. I have bigger fish to fry.
I can't see what you mean about 'the way [the news about bpa plastics] is delivered to us'. On this site i have only seen informative and factual links about bpa in bottles and feeding bowls and cups. It is a different thing to feel scared from by the news than it is to say that scare tactics are encouraging mothers to go out and buy new things.
Milk is an important source of nutrients that you and your family shouldn’t miss out on. If someone in your family has lactose intolerance and the rest of the family still want to enjoy the taste of real milk, try Lactofree - the UK’s first virtually lactose-free dairy drink.
