The First Years Breastflow Starter Set
by Learning Curve
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List Price: Our Price: $17.52 You Save: $2.47 (12%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of The First Years Breastflow Starter Set
Customer Review: Amazing bottles
Summary: 5 Stars
I got the Soothie bottles from this company with my last son, and wasn't too happy with them, so initially I was a little skeptical about buying the Breastflow bottles. Especially after reading some of the negative reviews they have. But we got them anyway, and honestly I have no idea what any of these people are talking about. These bottles rock. Our son was born a week or so early, and now he's only four days old. He had some problem latching onto the breast, and it made me all the more worried that if we introduced a bottle, he'd never get the hang of breastfeeding. But we really wanted daddy to be able to participate (not to mention sometimes it's more convenient to use the bottle), so we caved and tried the bottles.
They're pretty awesome, in my opinion. Some people mention leaking, but that only happens if you have the cap screwed on wrong. Also mentioned is how much of a waste it is that the milk (or formula) will stay in the nipple and they have to dump it out. Which is totally wrong. All you have to do is tip the bottle upright and squeeze the nipple a few times and all of the milk drains back down into the bottle (and if you'd read the box or the instruction sheet, you'd know that). People mention that the nipple caves in. I have not yet had that problem, and I doubt we will. The nipple does give in a little, but it's SUPPOSED to, as it simulates a real breast. ALSO, I really wonder if people realize the starter set comes with both slow- and medium-flow nipples. Maybe THAT's why your newborn is drowning in milk. You think?
We started using these bottles once a night for special Daddy feedings. Our son took to the bottle immediately. As I mentioned, he had problems latching onto the breast, and I actually think these helped him learn to do that better. We started exclusively bottle-feeding at around 6 weeks, and he still did great on them. Now, he's almost three months old, and we're easing him into the stage 2 nipples. He's still taking it extremely well, and we all still absolutely adore these bottles.
I would recommend them to anyone I knew who was having a baby (in fact, already have been). If you use them right, these bottles are life-savers.
So basically, if you're too lazy to read the instructions and use the bottles correctly, these bottles are NOT for you. If you're worried that there will be ONE WHOLE extra piece you have to wash, again, not for you.
If you aren't either of those, then you should probably check these bottles out. The starter set is pretty darn cheap, and the bottles, as I've stated, rock.
Customer Review: Love these!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've purchased 2 bpa-free starter sets already and have just purchased another! My son had refused to latch-on since he was primarily bottle-fed while we were in the hospital (I was running a fever for a few days and didn't breastfeed consistently). I tried these when we initially came home but he didn't like them (maybe because using these were more work than the Evenflo nipples we got from the lactation consultant) so I stopped trying. Then after he turned a month old, I decided to try them again since my son was still not breastfeeding and I wasn't ready to give up. This time he was more willing to try the nipples and we started using the stage 1 nipples with the 5-oz bottles exclusively. I'm happy to say now that my son is now breastfeeding easily with every feeding (although I still have to supplement with formula).
One of the reasons I'm buying another starter kit is that I was sterilizing two of the 5-oz bottles in the microwave and unfortunately I had put an eyedropper in the sterilizer and when the top melted, it melted against two of the bottles and ruined them (they melted at the point of contact). So I need to replace the 5-oz bottles and I figured it couldn't hurt to have more of the 9-oz bottles so decided to buy another starter kit vs just three more 5-oz bottles.
Yes, because of the non-standard wide mouth size, I have to transfer my pumped breastmilk from Medela storage bottles because I can't attach these bottles to the Medela Freestyle pump that I use, but I like the wide mouth - it's great for adding in scoops of formula easily in the middle of the night.
I also like the little storage container that comes with the starter kit - I'd buy them if they were sold individually (but haven't found anywhere that I can buy them alone). They're really convenient for storing individual servings of formula and they snap onto the bottoms of bottles. The fact that the sides are flexible mean you can squeeze the container to form a sort of pour spout when adding the formula to the water in the bottle.
All in all, I'm really happy that I purchased these although they are pricey comparatively speaking. I think it's well worth the cost though!
Customer Review: Works Great with Breastfeeding
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a strong advocate of breastfeeding if at all possible. But whether you are going back to work or need to leave the baby with a sitter on the occasion, you will need a bottle that allows you to go back and forth between the bottle and breast without difficulty. I just happened to choose this bottle because it worked with the pumping system I had been given (The First Years miPump Double Electric Breast Pump).
At first, I had a little difficulty with these bottles. The shape was good, and my baby would latch well, but it seemed like too much was coming out and my milk ended up spilling all over the place. I tried several other bottles but none of the others had the same shape and my baby wouldn't take them at all... just more spilled milk. So I decided to go back to these bottles. I ended up taking out the blue inner nipple and it made all the difference. She latched on well and drank the entire bottle without hardly spilling any. I have been able to feed her 3 oz with the bottle and then switch to the breast to finish feeding her till she was full. She has no trouble going from breast to bottle.
The only downside to these bottles is that the venting is not fast enough to balance how fast my baby eats. I have to pull the bottle out to let some air back in the bottle every so often or else the nipple dents in or collapses. Not too bad of a trade off for how well the bottle mimics the breast though.
These bottles are also very easy to clean. I just wash with warm water and soap. The starter set includes a bottle brush which is nice for when I don't clean the bottle right away and want to scrub out the dried milk. It's not necessary to scrub out the nipples every time though unless they have been sitting long enough. If you do use these bottles with the inner blue nipple, you can drain the milk back into the bottle by squeezing the sides. This makes cleanup a whole lot easier.
There is no bottle that works for every baby, but if you're looking for a system that best mimics breastfeeding, I would suggest giving this bottle a try.
Customer Review: A necessity for breastfeeding moms!
Summary: 5 Stars
Before my son was born, I spent 6 hours researching baby bottles to determine the best kind. I chose the Born Free bottles. When my son was 9 days old we needed to begin supplementing with formula at every feeding, so I used the Born Free bottles I had been given. He had a terrible time with frequent colic and began to have nipple confusion. One night it took him 45 minutes just to figure out how to nurse! I then tried Avent and had the same struggles. Out of desperation, we switched to the Breastflow bottles and it has been a wonderful experience. He has received both breast and the Breastflow bottle at every feeding for 5 months and we have never had another problem with nipple confusion. His colic has also decreased because he is able to control the flow. I love the fact I can tip a full bottle upside down and nothing comes out.
For the people who are concerned about the lids leaking it's a simple fact of having two nipples together and if one slips down of course milk is going to come out. I simply make sure it's intact before shaking and if I want to empty the liquid between the nipples first I can do that as well. It's not a flaw with the product.
These bottles are a necessity for any mom who is both breast feeding and bottle feeding. I cannot recommend them enough!
Customer Review: A rip-off!!!!
Summary: 1 Stars
[...].
As for the bottles themselves, they are great. My baby had problems latching on after birth, so I had to use a nipple shield. During the day, I would nurse. At night or on outings, I would use a bottle. I have used Avent, Medela and Parent's Choice. Avent has a larger nipple, so it gets her to open her mouth wider (good for nursing). But the milk always dribbled into her mouth so she didn't have to do any work. Medela and Parent's Choice have small nipples. I found that she would suck on me like a straw when nursing, after using the smaller nipples. She finally figured out how to nurse correctly right before these bottles came in. BUT I love these bottles because they encourage her to use the same sucking and compression as nursing on the breast. She even makes the same noises! It is great.
The only thing I don't like is that they is so large in diameter. It makes it hard to find a bottle bag that will fit them. I heard Playtex Drop-ins are the same diameter, though, so you might try Playtex bottle bags. Also for cleaning, there are 2 nipples so it takes more room on your cleaning rack. But I would recommend these to anyone who has a baby with nipple confusion or trouble latching on. [...].