Almost every breastfed baby will encounter the situation of not accepting the feed bottle. So, is there any way to make the baby fall in love with the bottle quickly? To solve this problem, you must first find out why your child refuses the bottle.
Pacifiers are different from nipples
Even the most realistic pacifier cannot compare to a mother’s nipple. Babies who are breastfed for a long time have a sense of dependence on their mother and a certain attachment to the nipple. As the baby grows older, the baby’s nervous system develops more and more complete. They will be sensitive to the difference between the mother’s nipple and the pacifier. If they cannot adapt, they will selectively reject it.
Don’t like the taste of milk powder
There are natural differences between formula milk and breast milk. Babies with sensitive taste buds may not be able to adapt to it, and thus dislike formula milk and reject the bottle.
The nipple hole is not the right size
Some parents do not pay attention to the problem of the nipple hole. If the nipple hole is too big, the milk will flow quickly and the baby may choke. If the nipple hole is small, the baby will become anxious and angry because the milk cannot be sucked out smoothly, and thus refuse the bottle.
Improper feeding posture or method
Some mothers feed their babies by having them lie flat on their legs or sit upright at 90 degrees, which makes it difficult for the baby to drink milk. In addition, the different angles of the bottle will make the baby anxious because he cannot drink milk. Especially when the baby is hungry, the fussing will make the baby refuse the bottle even more.
Now that we understand the reasons, we can help our baby accept the bottle faster by doing the following 4 things.
Start gradually and let your child get familiar with the bottle first
It takes time to let your child adapt to the bottle. You can first express the breast milk and put it in the bottle to feed the child. In this way, even if the child is resistant to the bottle, the taste of the milk has not changed, and the child will slowly adapt to it. At the beginning, you don’t need to worry too much about how much the child eats. The most important thing is to let the child get used to it. You can do it in small amounts and multiple times.
Choosing the right pacifier
Nowadays, many pacifiers use simulated designs and are very soft. Of course, they are still not the same as a mother’s breast, but they are still more comfortable than ordinary pacifiers and can help children adapt faster. At the same time, pay attention to the flow rate of the pacifier and choose it according to the child’s age. It should not be too big or too small.
Pay attention to feeding posture
Hold the baby in your arms with one hand, let the baby lean in the crook of your elbow with the whole body tilted 45 degrees, and use the other hand to feed the baby with a bottle. This will allow the baby to suck milk more smoothly and accept the bottle more easily.
What should I do if my baby still refuses to take the bottle?
Remember not to force the bottle into your baby’s mouth, as this will make the baby completely reject the bottle.
If the baby still refuses to accept the bottle, you can also use a straw or spoon to transition directly to cup feeding. Anyway, the goal is to get the baby to drink milk.
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