Nipple Confusion

My baby needs to take a bottle when I return to work six weeks after delivery. How soon should I introduce a bottle?

This is a common question, and timing plays a key role in bottle-feeding success. Introducing a bottle at the right time helps ensure that (1) your baby doesn’t develop a bottle preference and refuse the breast, and (2) your baby doesn’t reject the bottle because they only want to nurse.

The recommendation is to wait about three weeks after birth to introduce a bottle. This gives time for your baby to master breastfeeding, allows your body to establish a good milk supply, and reduces the risk of a strong preference for either the bottle or the breast. 

Click here for more information on preparing for your return to work.

Learning to Breastfeed

It may take time for your baby to learn to latch correctly. Achieving a good, deep latch is vital to ensuring your baby removes all the milk they need to grow and helps build a healthy milk supply. 

Introducing a bottle before breastfeeding is well established may lead to nipple confusion—or more accurately, a preference for the bottle nipple. 

Establishing Milk Supply

It takes about 2–4 weeks for your milk supply to be established and regulated. These first few weeks set the stage for long-term milk production. Breastfeeding your baby on demand (about 8–12 times in 24 hours) is the best way to ensure your body makes the right amount of milk. 

After this time, your milk supply will go up and down based on how much your baby needs and how much milk they take out. That’s completely normal! When your baby is going through a growth spurt and nurses more often, milk supply increases. When your baby starts sleeping through the night or formula is introduced, supply decreases. Milk supply is meant to change again and again—it adjusts to your baby’s needs.

Pumping early on (so your baby can get a bottle of breast milk), in addition to nursing, signals your body to produce more milk. This can lead to an oversupply, which may cause discomfort and feeding challenges.

On the other hand, replacing breastfeeding sessions with formula bottles signals your body to slow down milk production.

Smooth Transitioning 

Babies use their muscles differently when drinking from a bottle versus nursing at the breast. Let’s face it—no matter what advertisements claim, no artificial nipple is exactly like yours. 

Waiting about three weeks to introduce a bottle ensures your baby has developed a preference for your breast (which is ideal), but they should still be able to accept a bottle and return to breastfeeding without issue. If your baby is older, it may take some patience and experimentation.

Using a slow-flow nipple, and the paced bottle-feeding method, can also help make the transition from breast to bottle smoother.

Your baby can successfully breastfeed and take bottles of breast milk or formula. Paying attention to your body and watching for signs that your baby is ready for bottle introduction will greatly increase success!

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