Baby Bottles

A baby bottle is a bottle with a teat to drink directly from. It is typically used if someone can not (as conveniently) drink from a cup, for feeding oneself or being fed. more...

In particular it is used to feed an infant with infant formula, expressed breast milk or pediatric electrolyte solution.

Dimensions and design

A large-sized bottle typically holds 270 ml; the small size 150 ml. It is composed of a bottle itself, a teat (or nipple), a ring to seal the teat to the bottle, a cap to cover the teat and optionally a disposable liner.

The height-to-width ratio of bottles is high (relative to adult cups) because it is needed to ensure the contents flood the teat when used at normal angles; otherwise the baby will drink air. However, if the bottle is too tall, it easily tips. There are asymmetric bottles that ensure the contents flood the teat if the bottle is held at a certain direction.

Teats (or nipples)

The teat itself is typically slimmer and more flexible than the mother's nipple. Babies can find feeding from the bottle easier than breastfeeding. Specialized teats that mimic the shape of the breast exist to allow babies to switch back and forth between bottle feeding and breast feeding for cases where "teat confusion" occurs. Teats come in a selection of flow rates. Different flow rate teats either have more holes or larger holes. The correct flow rate needs to selected based on the age of the infant. Variable flow rate teats are available for older infants. The hole is asymmetric so that by turning the bottle/teat, different flows can occur. Specialized teats are available for infants with cleft palate (see also Haberman feed).

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