Choosing the right baby gear for your infant involves observation and a lot of research. As a parent, it’s not only the price point that matters but also the quality of the materials. It should be safe to use and durable. Raising a child is expensive, so it’s important that their many needs are all worth your money.
In this blog post, we’ll help you out with choosing your child’s first baby feeding bottle set. It’s difficult to pick out the best one when you have so many options to choose from. We’ll break down some of the essential features of a feeding bottle so you can make the right choice for your baby’s needs. Continue reading below to know more.
Everything You Need Know About Feeding Bottles
When you go shopping for baby needs, you’ll be surprised by the endless baby bottle choices available in the market. Feeding bottles vary in shape, size, design, and materials used. But which one is perfect for your newborn? Here are a few things you should consider when buying infant feeding bottles.
Nipples
The nipple of your feeding bottle may vary depending on your baby’s needs. It would be best to get the nipple with the smallest hole for newborns because it allows the slowest liquid flow. It’s always safest to start with the smallest hole to ensure that your child does not choke.
After a while, if your baby starts sucking aggressively or is constantly irritated by the slow milk flow coming out of the bottle, you can change it to a bigger one.
Just make sure to start slow when introducing your infants to new nipple sizes to avoid accidents and complications. The nipple material can also vary but the most common in the market are silicone and latex. Silicone is more durable and firm, while latex is softer but more susceptible to tears. Additionally, some babies are allergic to latex, so make sure it’s safe for your baby before you use it.
Shape and size
In the early months, choosing the appropriate shape of the bottle is to your advantage. Since your baby cannot hold their own bottles yet, you can choose the feeding bottle most comfortable for you to use. When your baby can hold it on their own, you can choose a more angular bottle so that they can hold it properly, or better yet you can choose bottles with handles that help your babies practice their grip. In addition, it’s also convenient to choose a bottle with a wider neck for easy cleaning.
There are different bottle sizes available for your child. It is usual to start with small bottles that carry 4 ounces of liquid. Bigger bottles can go up to 8 or even 16 ounces. The older your babies get, the more food they consume, so getting big ones from the start will save you money. But, you can also go with smaller ones to help your baby train its grip.
Material
Choosing the material for your feeding bottles comes with advantages and disadvantages. Let’s look at each one so you can decide which baby bottle you should get for your newborn.
- Plastic baby bottles are the most common choice for parents because they’re affordable. Although plastic feeding bottles are shatterproof, you need to replace these bottles more often compared to other materials. After some use, plastic bottles can show signs of yellowish color and dents, which means it’s close to breakage. In addition, some plastic bottles contain the substance BPA, which is harmful to a newborn and can affect their growth and development. If you’re looking for affordable bottles, always make sure that the FDA approves the ones you buy.
- Stainless steel baby bottles are not very common but can be excellent in specific circumstances. If you’re looking for a bottle that you’re sure is toxin-free, stainless steel is the safest choice. These bottles are extremely durable but can be too heavy for your child to hold on their own. Additionally, stainless bottles are not transparent, so you can’t accurately measure the milk you put inside. This bottle is better used for drinking water.
- Silicone baby bottles are the ones recommended by physicians worldwide. These baby bottles are made from food-grade silicone and are BPA-free, so they are guaranteed safe for your little ones. In addition, these bottles are durable, flexible, lightweight, and dishwasher-safe. Silicone bottles are a bit pricier compared to other materials, but you won’t need to replace them very often, which gives you significant savings in the long run.
- Glass baby bottles are on the fancier side of things, but they are durable and long-lasting, making them worth investing in. However, they are expensive and prone to breakage. So keep an eye on your child when you let them use glass bottles to avoid accidents. You can also consider buying silicone sleeves for your bottle to protect it from shattering.
- Disposable baby bottles are best for on-the-go situations. If you’re on a trip, it will be convenient for parents to bring some. These bottles are made from plastic liners and are good for one-time use, and not recommended for repeated and everyday use.
These are the most common baby bottles available on the market. Make sure to pick the one most suited for you and your baby’s needs. It’s also helpful to look for baby feeding bottle kits that include the formula scooper, storage bags, and cleaning material for better value.
Make Feeding Time a Happy Time with Ashtonbee’s Baby Fruit Feeder Pacifier
At some point, within the first year of your infant, you will have to introduce solid food slowly. Know that even a little chunk of solid food can be a choking hazard for your kids. So you must be careful what food to give and which feeding gear to use. Pair your best baby feeding bottle with Ashtonbee’s baby pacifier to make mealtimes fun and safe. Here are some of the baby pacifier’s highlights:
- The feeder is made from high-quality food-grade silicone. In addition, the product is lead, BPA-, PVC-, and phthalates-free, ensuring that this is the safest feeder you can get for your little ones.
- The design of the pacifier eliminates choking hazards for your infants. The small holes on the feeder ensure that only small bits of food can pass through to prevent accidents.
- Your babies will enjoy mealtime with this feeder because you can use different ingredients and flavors. For example, you can use vegetables, frozen fruits like bananas or berries, and even use your breastmilk to make tasty, healthy treats.
- This pacifier also doubles as a teether. You can put this in the freezer or make a baby-friendly popsicle. The coldness of the product and the chewiness of the pops can help relieve the pain of teething.
- The feeder comes with an easy-grip handle perfect for your babies. It’s also dishwasher-safe and stain-proof for easy storage and cleaning, allowing you to use it for a long time.
Happy Tummy, Happy Baby
Feeding time is essential for your baby’s proper growth and development. It’s important to take note of not only the food that we give to our children but also the tools we use to feed them. We hope this article on baby feeding bottles helps you make a better choice for your little one’s mealtimes.
Try our fruit feeder now for painless meal times! For more high-quality baby needs, you can visit Ashtonbee and browse our catalog for the best baby gear available in the market.
