What are Dr Brown’s Bottles?

Dr Brown’s bottles are used in place of regular feeding bottles to reduce wind and colic. When babies drink milk from traditional baby bottles, air enters through the vent in the teat to replace the milk that has been drunk. This air mixes with the milk and is ingested by babies. This, in turn, causes upset tummies, sleepless nights and colic.

The Dr Brown’s Natural Flow feeding bottle was the first to incorporate an internal venting system. The vent separates the air from the milk, by directing it to the top of the bottle. This minimises the amount of air that is ingested and hence, reduces the risk of colic from feeding.

Dr Brown’s bottles are named after the inventor.

Pros

• The bottles reduce wind and colic

Cons

• The bottles are bulky
• There are two internal parts to the vent which are fiddly to clean and sterilise
• The bottles tend to leak quite easily

Why do Dr Brown’s Bottles leak?

Under certain circumstances, the vent in the bottle, which allows air in, can also allow the milk to escape. This tends to happen if:

• The bottle is not held properly
• The milk in the bottle is too hot
• The bottle is shaken to mix formula milk

This means that making formula milk, directly in the bottles, can be a little tricky.  If the water is too hot, the milk will rise up through the vent and you are liable to burn yourself. The only way around this is to leave the venting system out of the bottle and use bottle sealing discs, which can be purchased separately. When the feed is ready, just remove the disc, insert the venting system and screw on the top.

These bottles don’t travel well and tend to leak. This is probably due to one of the reasons above. So, make sure that the bottles are upright and cannot tip. Ideally, use a bottle sealing disc when out and about.

You can buy Dr BROWN’S BOTTLES from Amazon

Dr Brown’s Bottles Review

Although the Dr Brown’s Natural Flow bottles have an Amazon customer feedback rating of 4.4, it appears that you will either love them or hate them. Firstly, there is the bulkiness of the bottle and also, the additional vent to clean. The blue reservoir has a narrow tube and you need a special small vent brush to be able to clean this thoroughly.

You also have to handle the two-piece venting system in order to place it in the bottle. This may compromise the sterilisation process.

If you have been using other bottles and teats, then baby will need to adjust to the new teats on the Dr Brown’s bottles. In my experience, this was not a problem.

In addition to the original Natural Flow bottles, you can also buy wide necked bottles, as shown on the left. As the shape of the bottle is different, the venting system from the original bottles will not fit. The teats are interchangeable however. There are mixed reviews about these new shaped bottles with many saying that they prefer the original bottles. The main advantage appears to be that these bottles can be used with or without the venting system.