My first night away from my second son was a disaster. He had been nothing but breastfed for the first two months of his life and our family friend struggled to get him to eat the expressed milk I had sent along for him. I ended up coming home right after the concert I’d been attending because he’d been crying for hours.
Had I been aware of some of these strategies on how to get your baby to take a bottle, I would have been more prepared for this tricky scenario!
While these tips came a little late for me, you should know by the end of this article how to get your baby to take their bottle.
Why You Should Train Your Baby to Take a Bottle
Even if you are exclusively breastfeeding, there are a lot of benefits to getting your baby to take a bottle. Feeding is a bonding process that can be enjoyed between babies and their caregivers. This extends beyond the mother-child bond when your baby feeds from a bottle- your baby’s father, grandparents, and other caregivers can bond with your baby as well.
Another benefit of bottle training your baby is that it gives you the opportunity to take some time off. It’s helpful for everyone from mothers who plan to return to work to those who just need a little break. Unless your baby can feed from a bottle, it’s not really realistic for you to have a night out with your hubby or even run to the grocery store on your own.
Finally, training your baby to take a bottle ensures that your ready for any possible situation that might arise. There are a number of reasons that you might end up separated from your baby for a night or have trouble with your milk supply. If any of these scenarios does arise, you can be sure that your baby continues to eat well and get the nutrition he or she needs to thrive.
How to Get Your Baby to Take a Bottle
Step 1: Deciding When to Introduce the Bottle
The easiest way to convince your little one to take a bottle is to start when they are young. However, you should avoid starting too early because it can affect your milk supply and your baby’s ability to latch onto the nipple.
According to the La Leche League, it’s best to wait until your baby is at least three to four weeks old before you try introducing a bottle. This ensures that you have a steady milk supply coming in, even if you start expressing milk to bottle feed your baby. Additionally, it gives your baby time to build the muscles in their face that are required to feed, so they can easily latch to the nipple. Since your baby might resist taking a bottle at first, being able to feed him or her directly from the breast ensures they are getting nutrition while you are trying to train them to take a bottle.
After you’ve decided your baby is old enough, you want to wait until they are in a calm, relaxed mood before introducing a bottle. You should also wait until you are sure they are hungry since your baby might not have enough motivation to try something new if they aren’t actually hungry. Some parents recommend waiting until your baby is waking up from a nap to try bottle feeding for the first time. Usually, your baby is relaxed and ready to eat after waking up.
Step 2: Preparing the Bottle
Once you decide that you’re ready to try bottle feeding your baby, start with a clean, dry bottle. Even if the bottles are new, you’ll want to wash them and sterilize them before feeding your baby. It’s also important to make sure they have been rinsed well- even a little bit of soap can throw off the flavor and put your baby off eating.
Something that might be helpful the first time you feed baby is feeding them immediately after expressing milk from the breast. Sometimes, proteins in the milk break down when it is stored. This might change the flavor or consistency of the milk. Things like the milk being too cold or hot might also affect your baby’s willingness to take a bottle.
Step 3: How to Give Baby a Bottle
When you are trying a bottle the first time, start by propping your baby up so they are sitting upright and you are supporting their head with one arm. You’ll want to offer the bottle with the other, keeping it parallel to the ground.
You should not shove the bottle nipple in your baby’s mouth. Instead, gently touch the bottle nipple to his or her lips and wait for your baby to open up. If they are interested, your baby will put their mouth on the nipple. Once it is in their mouth, wait about 30-60 seconds and tip the bottle so that milk goes in the nipple. This is about how long it takes for a mother’s letdown to kick in after baby is latched, so this similarity might make your baby more willing to take the milk.
Step 4: Gauging Your Baby’s Interest
You should never try to force your baby to feed. You’ll notice signs that they are interested- they may turn their head away, splay out their toes and fingers, or push the milk back out of their mouth. Stop if your baby seems uninterested or uncomfortable.
Something that you can do to try and pique their interest is putting milk on the outside of the bottle nipple. Dip the tip of it in breast milk or put some breast milk in the nipple and gently squirt it into your baby’s mouth. This might help if your baby isn’t making the connection between the bottle and feeding. If this doesn’t work, you can also try some of our suggestions below.
What to Do If Baby Won’t Take a Bottle
Have Someone Else Offer a Bottle
Babies’ senses are still developing, but they always seem to know when their mother is near. You’ll notice the way that newborn babies sometimes root around when they are looking for the nipple. This is because they can smell it.
If you are trying to feed your baby a bottle, they might be less inclined to take it if their usual food source is nearby. It might be helpful to let dad, a grandparent, or another caregiver attempt offering the bottle if your baby won’t take it from you.
Even though letting someone else offer a bottle might be best at first, once your baby has adapted to bottle feeding, they might be more enticed to eat if it smells like mom. Leave behind a shirt or something that smells like you so your baby eats more easily for other people.
Try Different Bottle Nipples
Bottle nipples come in all shapes and sizes. For babies that are breastfed, something that can ease the transition is choosing a bottle more like the breast. Some things to consider are the softness of the nipple and the overall shape of it. Most manufacturers use food-grade silicone to make nipples for younger babies. Their teeth aren’t yet formed, so there’s a low risk of them chewing through them and it offers a more realistic experience while feeding.
Additionally, you’ll want to consider how fast the flow of the nipple is. Something that flows too fast will cause your baby to choke or might make them swallow air, while something that flows too slow might make them frustrated with feeding.
Choosing a bottle nipple isn’t always a one-size-fits-all solution. However, there are some bottles that are better suited to breastfed babies. You can learn more about our recommendations for the best bottles for breastfed babies here. In general, you want to look for a nipple that isn’t too wide at the base, since this can inhibit your baby’s ability to latch on. You should also find a nipple that is long enough that your baby can suck on it easily, but not so long that it causes them to choke.
Create a Feeding Routine
Something else that can help is creating a small routine around when you feed your baby. While most doctors recommend feeding on-demand, you can choose an area of your home to consistently feed your baby in. When your baby starts to show signs of hunger, take him or her to the designated area before feeding. It might be helpful if the area is relaxing- some babies will feed longer if they are distracted.
Once you have a routine in place, your baby is likely to connect going to that area with being fed. This might make them understand what you want them to do when you are offering the bottle. However, keep in mind that not all babies are the same. Some caregivers have also said that it’s easier to get baby to take a bottle when they are up and walking around. Since they are focusing on the bottle so much, they are more likely to eat.
Hold Your Baby a Different Way
There are four different ways that are generally accepted to hold your baby while feeding; the cradle hold, the cross-cradle hold, the football hold, and the side-lying hold.
Chances are, you already use one of these while you breastfeed your baby. In some cases, your baby might prefer to be held the same way that you would while breastfeeding. If this doesn’t work, you can try a different position.
If there are any positions you aren’t familiar with, you can see the baby feeding positions recommended by the Mayo Clinic here.
Alternative Ways to Feed Your Baby
Cup Feeding
After my first baby, I learned about cup feeding. (I was feeling overwhelmed after my delivery and the nurses took my son for the night. He was fed out of a cup, since offering a bottle might affect his ability to latch). When cup-feeding, you need a straight-sided cup that your baby will easily be able to put his or her mouth on. Put the breast milk inside of the cup and tip it back slowly, being sure that your baby can just sip at the mixture.
Breast Milk Slushies
Some parents have also used breast milk slushies. This isn’t an option until your baby is six months old at least, however, it is a good way to ensure your baby is eating if they are resisting a bottle. It’s especially helpful if your baby is resisting feeding because of erupting teeth.
It’s easy to make a breast milk slushie. Put partially frozen breast milk in a cup and use a spoon to feed your baby. This ensures your baby is eating and the cold milk feels good on erupting teeth.
Spoon or Syringe
Another helpful tip from one of our editors is to try spoon-feeding your newborn. This is what happened to her when her third baby was born – he was small and having a hard time latching, so he got spoonfuls of expressed breastmilk to provide nutrition until he could perfect the latch. This method works because babies will slurp the breastmilk out of a spoon and get enough to tide them over until they have a bigger meal.
Similarly, you can use a small medicine syringe to squirt a little formula or breastmilk in baby’s mouth and let them drink it that way.
Both of these ways are difficult to accomplish and only work on newborns with small stomachs. An older baby usually won’t take tiny spoonfuls of milk at a time and be happy about it!
Do I Need to See a Doctor if My Baby Won’t Take a Bottle?
In a very small amount of cases, babies resist feeding from a bottle so much that they aren’t getting the nutrition they need. Approximately 1-5% of babies will struggle with a feeding disorder, which is malnutrition resulting from your baby’s inability to take a bottle. While most babies don’t resist feeding to this point, you should speak to your pediatrician immediately if your baby is struggling to gain weight.
This is especially true when your baby is young. Proper nutrition is essential for healthy development. Nutritional deficiency can cause growth deficits, emotional or behavioral impairment, stunted neurodevelopment, and cognitive functioning problems. It’s also important to consult with your pediatrician if you believe an underlying illness is causing your baby’s eating problems.
Final Word
Teaching your baby to eat from a bottle is important for giving him or her a chance to bond with other caretakers, as well as ensuring he/she gets nutrition when you aren’t available to feed him or her from the breast.
Hopefully, this article has helped you learn how to get your baby to take a bottle.
If you have any other suggestions, feel free to leave a comment below!
