Last updated on December 2nd, 2023 at 05:17 pm
Learn 5 tips for bottle feeding multiples, sponsored by our friends at Dr. Brown’s, makers of the Dr. Brown’s Natural Flow® Options+™ Anti-Colic Wide-Neck Bottles.
Your options have never been better with Dr. Brown’s Natural Flow® Options+™ Wide-Neck Bottle. From nipple to base, the Options+ Wide-Neck Bottle makes for a comfortable feeding experience for baby and eases the transition from breast to bottle and back again. Starting at the top, each nipple is specially engineered to offer the same consistent, natural flow, so you and baby know what to expect in every feeding. The NEW breast-like nipple shape is correctly contoured for a proper latch and a more natural bottle-feeding experience – perfect for switching from breast to bottle and back again! Together with the anti-colic internal vent system, baby feeds without fuss.
But it doesn’t stop there. The anti-colic internal vent system features an enhanced design to improve an already innovative feeding experience:
- Clinically proven to reduce colic
- Decreases spit-up, burping, and gas
- Shown to better preserve nutrients in breast milk and formula
- Aids in digestion for a good night’s sleep
- Offers a flow rate that supports breastfeeding.
Their bottles work best with the vent system in place – but it’s great to have options when baby’s feeding develops. Just remove the vent when you feel it’s time – no need to introduce a different bottle. See, the vent system isn’t the only means of venting in the Options+™ bottle. Their bottle nipples feature their own venting system that offers a feeding experience similar to most nipple-vented bottles.
Options+™ is dishwasher (top rack) and sterilizer safe. BPA free. 0m+.
5 Tips for Bottle Feeding Multiples
If you are bottle feeding your twins, the myriad of choices of both bottles and formula types can be a little daunting. Finding the right tool for the job is the best way to start any enterprise.
1. Finding the Right Bottle for the Right Baby
If your babies are experiencing tummy troubles or volcanic eruption spit-up after feedings, it is a good idea to try some different bottle types. Some bottles force your baby to swallow air bubbles with the milk which can lead to a ton of issues. While some babies have no problems with this, others suffer. Bottles are not really the one-size-fits-all that our mothers believed them to be. When you look at the price of these specialty brand bottles you might cringe, but I can promise you that they will save you an infinite amount of time and stress, avoiding trying to calm a screaming baby for hours, or shampooing the most recent feeding out of your carpet. They are worth it. Ask your pediatrician or mom friends for recommendations based on any issues that you may be experiencing. (Twiniversity Tip: We HIGHLY recommend the Dr. Brown’s bottles which are proven to reduce gas!)
2. Skin-to-Skin
When a woman breastfeeds she is also having valuable skin-to-skin contact with the baby. This creates a special closeness with the baby while at the same time comforting your child. Bottle feeding is a great way for both mom and dad to have this contact with their babies. When at home (especially at night) try removing your top and draping a blanket around you and your baby to keep you both warm. Cuddle them in close while they bottle feed. This is also a great way to calm a crying baby since mom’s heartbeat was the soundtrack of their lives in utero.
3. The Half-Way Burp
It can be easy to zone out or doze a little while feeding a baby in the middle of the night. The half-way burp is extremely important. If you allow your baby to drain the bottle completely without burping you are likely to either get thrown up on when you burp them at the end, or worse — get woken up twenty minutes after you have fallen asleep because they have thrown up in their crib. Even more important than that, the half-way burp allows them to remove that air in their stomach to make room for more food. If they don’t, they are likely to be hungry again soon after. In that first month it is very important that they are getting all of the food and nutrients that their little bodies need to thrive and grow.
4. Sterilization
Many parents hand wash bottles even if they have a dishwasher because it saves time, or because they have a limited bottle supply. No matter how hot the water is when we wash these bottles by hand, they are still not being properly sterilized. What appears clean to us, in fact, could contain harmful bacteria. When I had my first singleton child I would hand-wash all of his bottles because we didn’t normally have enough dishes to run the dishwasher every day. I felt that it was wasteful to run a half-empty dishwasher. A friend suggested that I use a Dr. Brown’s microwave sterilizer to combat any unseen bacteria. It was great, but could only handle so many bottles at one time, so I had to do it a few times a day. When I had my twins we were going through bottles like crazy and I was just too exhausted to wash them by hand. I ended up just running our dishwasher twice a day (morning and night) whether or not we had enough dishes to fill it. Check your dishwasher’s manual to find out if the standard water temperature it uses will be hot enough for sterilizing, or just use the sterilize setting on your dishwasher. Always wash your hands before making a bottle, just like you would when making any other food. Germs on your hands can contaminate a sterilized bottle.
5. Consistency
If you are using formula, consistency is very important. Once you find a formula that works for your baby you need to keep using that formula. All formulas are a little bit different and therefore your baby reacts differently. Often you get free samples from your doctor’s office, the hospital, or even a friend. It can be very tempting to use them (if they are different) because they are free. Or if you are like me and started your baby on an expensive name brand formula, but have since found that places like Costco, Target, and Walmart have their own off-brand selections and offer them at a shocking discount and you want to switch. When we did this cold turkey the consequences were pretty bad. To say that my son “spit up” would be an understatement. It was more like a water cannon. We went immediately back to the old formula and he was fine. Confused as to why it would be happening, I talked to our pediatrician. He explained that babies’ stomachs are very sensitive to any little changes and that the formula switch was the reason for his discomfort. He suggested that we gradually wean him onto it by mixing it with his old formula and placing a greater portion of the new formula in each successive feeding. It worked perfectly.
The bottle feeding stage can be tough for parents of multiples. After all, we only have so many hands! Following these tips can help you save both time and sanity while negotiating these new waters.
Destiny Effertz began following Twiniversity’s Facebook page in 2013. She quickly fell in love with how the page created a feeling of community while at the same time providing support to thousands of parents and soon to be parents of multiples. She began writing for the website in the spring of 2014 carrying on the tradition of providing advice and support to parents. She is a mother of 3 boys; twin 3 year olds and a 5 year old. She worked for many years as a civil litigation paralegal prior to having children. Now she spends her days formulating new pie recipes, throwing epic kid parties, planning family vacations, and planning and executing pirate adventures and trips to far away planets with her boys.
