But are you worried that your little one wont take to the bottle easily?
Heard one too many nipple confusion sagas from friends and lactation specialists?
Or has that theory been discounted by the pediatrician and your mother-in-law, leaving you more confused than ever?
Heres the straight scoop.
What is nipple confusion?
They may may protest the different size or texture of a moms nipple.
Is nipple confusion real?
A baby who seems more accepting of bottle-feeding than breastfeeding isnt confused.
Shes simply showing her inclination for drinking from the bottle.
So the baby suffering from nipple confusion may not be befuddled so much as opinionated.
She prefers the bottle.
And why wouldnt she?
Its the quicker, easier route to a full belly.
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Bottle preference is far from guaranteed though.
Introduce the bottle at the right time.
Wait to offer the bottle to your breastfed baby until about three weeks after birth.
Use the right nipple.
Whats right ultimately depends on your babys preferences,so be willing to experimentwith a few different options.
These tend to slow the pace of feeding, so its a little more like nursing.
How can you tell if milk is flowing from the bottle at a good speed?
The milk is likely coming out too fast if your baby is making gulping or sputtering sounds.
And if shes becoming excessively frustrated or seems like shes straining, its probably coming out too slow.
Dont make it effortless.
you might slow the flow byholding the bottleat a tilt instead of vertically.
Take frequent breaks to stretch out the length of the meal overall too.
Will using a pacifier lead to a bottle preference?
The key is introducing the pacifier after youve both gotten the hang of breastfeeding.
Newborns whove taken to the bottle but are still struggling with nursing often have troublelatching on properly.
Some tips:
Let someone else do the honors.
Try different nipple types.
If one bottle nipple doesnt succeed, try, try another one.
Just watch the flow rate.
A drop a second when you turn the bottle upside-down is just right.
Make bottle-feeding as much like breastfeeding as you might.
Interact with your baby.
Switch arms halfway through so she has something different to look at.
So if thats the case with yours, try a different location or even a different position.
