I fail at baby bottles...

[Smucks]

I bought a few bottles from bambino. They are, afaik, supposed to have nipples that breathe. Every time I try them they just form a suction that I then have to physically squeeze out with my lips. If I loosen the cap even the slightest, the bottle leaks. 

 

Am I missing something? Do I need to poke a hole in the side of the nipple so it lets out the air?

 

It's not a very fun experience to have an unusable bottle. 

 

/First time poster long time abdl 

[AbabeBill]

Maybe you could enlarge the hole in the nipple, at the top. Not real sure it will help, but it could.

[Little Sherri]

I've never tried the Bambino ones but I have one from Rearz with an adult-sized nipple and one from Gerber or another of the baby gear companies, with the biggest kid-sized nipple they offer (I think it was 24-36 months). In the case of the Rearz baby bottle, the "adult-sized" nipple was obviously designed for adult-sized mouths, so the hole in the top of the bottle is quite large. As a result, when suckling, a vacuum quickly develops in the bottle that results in air "burping" inward at a point along the periphery of the base of the nipple which has a tiny one-way valve pressed into it - it's not a device, but merely a perforation in the silicon that, by its shape, only opens one way. So, the bottle works quite well - it arguably allows for too much flow, because I have to work to keep up with it if it's held upside-down, swallowing continually, and the bottle drains quickly, which makes for a wet diaper in short order. 

The toddler baby bottle allows for the same burping action, but around the edge of the seal, where the nipple is held against the flange of the bottle by the lid. However, when I first tried to feed from it, I could barely get it to work, because the hole in the nipple was too small. I enlarged it carefully with a sharp blade, taking it from invisible, to maybe 1/8th of an inch, and at that point, liquid flowed fast enough to generate a decent vacuum in the bottle and cause it to ingest air without leaking. So, I think that @AbabeBillis on the right track - maybe try enlarging the hole a bit. Do it in small increments. 

[Smucks]

4 hours ago, Little Sherri said:

I've never tried the Bambino ones but I have one from Rearz with an adult-sized nipple and one from Gerber or another of the baby gear companies, with the biggest kid-sized nipple they offer (I think it was 24-36 months). In the case of the Rearz baby bottle, the "adult-sized" nipple was obviously designed for adult-sized mouths, so the hole in the top of the bottle is quite large. As a result, when suckling, a vacuum quickly develops in the bottle that results in air "burping" inward at a point along the periphery of the base of the nipple which has a tiny one-way valve pressed into it - it's not a device, but merely a perforation in the silicon that, by its shape, only opens one way. So, the bottle works quite well - it arguably allows for too much flow, because I have to work to keep up with it if it's held upside-down, swallowing continually, and the bottle drains quickly, which makes for a wet diaper in short order. 

The toddler baby bottle allows for the same burping action, but around the edge of the seal, where the nipple is held against the flange of the bottle by the lid. However, when I first tried to feed from it, I could barely get it to work, because the hole in the nipple was too small. I enlarged it carefully with a sharp blade, taking it from invisible, to maybe 1/8th of an inch, and at that point, liquid flowed fast enough to generate a decent vacuum in the bottle and cause it to ingest air without leaking. So, I think that @AbabeBillis on the right track - maybe try enlarging the hole a bit. Do it in small increments. 

That's the type of nipple on my bottles. They don't seem to work though. The perforation never releases any suction.aybe I left them dry for too long? I bought them well before I used them. 

 

Thanks for your reply. 

[Little Sherri]

15 minutes ago, Smucks said:

The perforation never releases any suction

Maybe try gently poking through the valve with a needle - maybe it's just adhered to itself and needs a nudge. 

[Babygeebee]

10 hours ago, AbabeBill said:

Maybe you could enlarge the hole in the nipple, at the top. Not real sure it will help, but it could.

Enlarging the hole slightly works great. 

[dlsafrica]

I thought it was just me

[babykeiff]

Most adults forget how to suck from a baby bottle / nipple due to

1. learning to drink from a cup
2. lack of practice / use of the muscles of the tounge etc.

To reuse a baby bottle / pacifier / breast nipple as you did as a baby needs remembering how to suckle. This is mainly done with the tounge and the top lip and not done with any vacuum.

1. Open mouth with the tounge just touching your bottom lip while sitting on your bottom teeth / gum.
2. Place the back of the nipple of the breast / pacifier / bottle on the tounge. With a baby bottle / pacifier, this is the fat bit just past the screw connection of the nipple. With a breast, this is the smooth skin area slightly past the nipple.
3. Close the top lip down on the nipple without squasing it.
4. Using the tip of the tounge, press the bottom of the nipple as you move the tounge deeper into your mouth. This causes the similar action a milkmaid uses to milk a cow etc, ie rolling the thumb from the top of the cows tet downwards.
5. The more you practice this with your tounge, your mind will recall the actual process you used as a baby which will improve your yeild and increase your ability to empty the bottle etc.

A baby doesn't suck a breast nipple / pacifier / bottle but due to the process of suckling, does create a light vacuum to keep 'latched on' until it is sated. The vacuum is created by the movement of the liquid, and not by ones lungs sucking.

As others have stated, if not enough liquid is coming out in each suckle, increase the hole size in the bottle. With a breast nipple, practice to get better.