Plan "B"

Introducing the Bottle to a Breastfed Baby

By Sharon Waldrop

Humans are creatures of habit. We know what we want, how we want it and when we want it. A breastfed baby knows that she wants to suckle at her mother's breast when she is hungry and will associate her mother with nourishment and a full tummy, among many other things. If a breastfed baby's mother is away at work during mealtime, "plan B" comes into motion. In this case, "B" is for bottle, and not breast.

It is possible for a breastfed baby to accept a bottle from a caregiver, yet eagerly nurse when mom returns from work. Is there a better way for Mom and Baby to reunite at the end of a work day? With a little advance planning, this scenario can become a reality, making the transition back to work smoother for both Mother and Baby.

Timing is the key to ensure that Baby will welcome a bottle into her life while continuing to enjoy a nursing relationship with her mother. iParenting Expert Advisor Melissa Clark Vickers, IBCLC, says that it's best to wait to offer the bottle after breastfeeding is well-established. "Feeding from a bottle requires a totally different approach than feeding from the breast, and some babies have trouble switching back and forth if the bottle is introduced too early," she says. By waiting 4 to 6 weeks, breastfeeding is second nature to baby, and she can handle learning something different.

"Nipple confusion" is the term for what occurs when an infant has trouble adjusting from breast to bottle. Avoiding a premature introduction to the bottle may help keep nipple confusion just a term and not an experience. However, keep in mind that if you wait too long to offer a bottle, a baby may reject it with a closed mind.

Who should offer a baby her first bottle? Not Mom! Many breastfed babies will have no interest in a plastic, fabricated imitation of Mom if the real thing is just a scent away. Nancy Puckett of Southern California is the mother of two girls. When her second daughter was an infant, Puckett couldn't be around when her husband offered their daughter a bottle. She would fight against the bottle and did not like the orthodontic nipple attached to it. She did better with a standard bottle nipple.

Puckett's husband had to feed their baby girl in a different position than Mom nursed her in to get her to take a bottle. She had to be faced outwards, because if she was cradled, she expected to be nursed. It took about 3 months for Baby to take a bottle well. However, Puckett's first daughter took the bottle at 6 weeks. This is just one example of how children have different preferences, temperaments and personalities even when they come from the same family.

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• Talk about it!