Best bottle for NB?

[MooMe]

Hi all,
I'm prg with no2..
bf with my 1st (LONG time ago...) was a catastrophic flop so want to prepare in advance for the possibility of no2 not succeeding too. I'm preparing myself, getting a bf consultant and so on, but don't want to be caught in the middle of the night with a hungry baby that won't bf and nothing to give him (a sadly familiar scenario )

Can't remember whether the AVENT bottles we used were good for DC as a nb, so would appreciate your input- which bottle is best? What should I look for when choosing a bottle? And which formula is now considered best?

Thanks everyone.

I used Avent bottles and teats & Aptimil formula with DD from day 3, never felt the need to change - at 9m she's on teat 4 and Aptimil 3 .
People in my ante-natal group chopped and changed the formula if their babies reacted badly to the one they were on, some are better for reflux etc.

Tommy tippee 'closer to nature' bottles are supposed to be the most similar to a real boob in terms of shape/feel etc for DC...so might be a good plan in case you end up mix feeding? And if BF goes well this time you could use them for DH to give some expressed milk then your DC is a few weeks old?

We used mam bottles and aptamil formula for dd1. Found them both very good. Aptamil was the third formula I'd tried the other two didn't agree.

Used mam again with dd2. Hit then too.

My DS arrived a bit early and is only little - he started on donor breast milk/my expressed milk in the hospital and has fed really well on the nuk teats/bottles. He wouldn't take a straight teat at all and we are now managing to breast feed which may or may not be helped by the fact that the nuk is supposed to be more like a nipple than other teats.

We mix feed and DD took to the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature teats really well.

We used Tommee Tippee bottles and Cow & Gate formula. The bottles are great for mix feeding because of the teat shape. We tried Avent bottles but was too much hassle with the extra 'ring' around the lid when washing, sterilising, etc.

I use the avent bottles. We started with the small avent natural bottles with breast like teats and she took to them fine after I breast fed for 5 days, we now use a mix of natural and classic bottles (the classics were on offer) I prefer the natural ones and use them for last feed of the day and the one feed in the night.

Congratulations on being pg and sorry to hear that you had a rough time last time. Not really sure on the bottles, think that different bottles seem to suit different babies and there isn't a best formula, they are all different but there's not one that is better. If you are looking for a formula try to pick one that is available from your local shops. You don't want to be snowed in and the formula you are using is only available from a shop 10 miles away. A BFC will be able to talk to you about the different formulas.

You may want to get a cup instead though. If you do want to bf but think that you may struggle in the night, cup feeding wouldn't interfere with bfing and you may feel better seeing lo feed. Have a look at alternative feeding methods. The reason I'm suggesting this is the research shows that if you have bottles and formula in the house, you are more likely to give up on bfing.

Like grapes says, going along to a bfing support group while you are pg can be really helpful too and you are more likely to be succesful if you do go to one. Are there any near to you?

Another thing you can do to help you prepare is to put the bfing helpline numbers in your phone, some are 24 hours. It might be a good idea to give one a call and talk through your last experience and your concerns over this time.

Thought you might also like preparing to bf.

Good luck too