considered bottle-fed children to have less of an advantage in life than
those who were breast-fed. In truth, studies over the last sixty years
which attempted to correlate method of infant feeding with later
emotional development failed to support any of these conclusions. A
mother’s overall attitude toward her child far outweighs any single factor,
including manner of feeding.
Bottle Feeding
Bottle-feeding is not a twentieth-century discovery, but a practice in
existence for thousands of years. Our ancestors made bottles out of wood,
porcelain, pewter, glass, copper, leather, and cow horns. Historically,
unprocessed animal’s milk was the principal nourishment used with
bottle-feeding. Since this milk was easily contaminated, infant mortality
was high.
During the first half of this century, when bottle-feeding was in
vogue, selection was relatively limited. Not so today. Your grocer’s
shelves are filled with options. Besides the standard glass and plastic
bottles, there are those with disposable bags, designer imprints, handles
and animal shapes. All of these come in a clever range of colors and
prints. This perhaps is more for mother’s amusement than baby’s. Adding
to the confusion is a varied selection of supposedly proper nipples. You
can find everything from a nursing nipple that is most like mom to an
orthodontic nipple. There are juice, formula, water and even cereal
nipples, so baby can suckle her table food. With so many choices, don’t
go to the store without adequate rest.
In truth, the most important consideration is making sure you
purchase a nipple with the right-sized hole. That’s it. With too large a
hole, the child drinks too fast. Excessive spitting up and projectile
vomiting can be signs of too-rapid fluid intake. Remembering this simple
tip can save you many a midnight mop-up. Conversely, a hole which is
too small creates a hungry and discontented child. Imagine the
frustration! These simple tips will prevent what could be major feeding
problems for your baby and you.^8