European Commission (2011) Bisphenol A: EU ban on baby bottles to enter into force tomorrow. Available at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_11_664 [Accessed 3 December 2021] 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?

Size: Bottles almost always come in more than one size. While the smallest size might look most appropriate for a newborn, it’s actually the teat flow that matters most. We’d recommend buying the next bottle size up because your baby will be drinking more milk before you know it, and you don’t want to have to replace the bottles too soon. Plus, it’s important to be sure that your baby is feeding till they’re properly full. 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. As well as your bottle of choice, you’ll need a way to sterilise the bottles – this is easily done with a standalone steam steriliser, a sterilising box placed in the microwave or sterilising tablets in cold water. If you’re making up a lot of formula, an automatic formula prep machine can save you a lot of time and fiddling about. 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.x

They’re designed to help the baby drink while being as upright as possible as there’s some evidence that pressure in the bottle creates negative pressure in the mouth, causing fluid build-up in the middle ear when lying flat. This could potentially lead to ear infections. 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. Slow flow is generally preferable for newborns, while you’re both learning how to feed. If the flow rate is too fast it makes paced feeding more difficult. In which case babies would have very little control over how they feed: milk would flow into their mouth faster than they can swallow it. This might make your baby cough or splutter, or struggle to keep up with the flow of milk so it dribbles to the side of their mouth. This could also mean they feel upset, get indigestion and bring up lots of milk.

Since 2011, the European Commission has banned the use of Bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles. This was due to concerns that the chemical could leach out of the plastic and be absorbed by babies. None of the bottles for sale in the UK should have BPA (NCT, 2011).

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There’s no official guidance about this, though manufacturers might advise how often to replace teats – usually every three months or so. NUK’s First Choice+ baby bottles come with a choice of teats with a natural shape, soft orthodontic tip and anti-colic air system to prevent your bub from swallowing bubbles. If your young baby doesn’t seem to enjoy latching on to slightly stiffer silicone, a latex teat such as this one may be the answer. BabyCentre parents would tend to agree. Most said they try a lot of brands and bottles before finding the one that works for them.