Last Reviewed: September 2011
Your Questions Answered
Questions about your baby
Bottle feeding
Can I breastfeed and bottle feed?
Giving bottles on a regular basis will interfere with breastfeeding. The natural balance of supply and demand that is established by breastfeeding when your baby is hungry can be disrupted when bottles are given. Your breasts may become overly full with milk because they have produced milk for that feeding time. This can lead to problems with engorgement, blocked milk ducts or a breast infection (mastitis). In time, this can lead to a decrease in milk supply. See Exclusive Breastfeeding: Isn’t Some Breastfeeding Good Enough? (
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My baby won't take a bottle. What can I do?
Some mothers are concerned when their baby won’t take a bottle. Drinking from a bottle is not something that breastfed children need to do. It is not a developmental milestone like sitting or walking. Many breastfed babies never drink from a bottle. Breastfeeding helps develop good oral motor skills, facial muscles, and teeth alignment.
Some mothers feel that it is important to start giving bottles at an early age so the baby will take a bottle later on. Giving a bottle to your baby in the early weeks does not guarantee that he will take it later. Around six to eight months, you can try offering your baby a cup or a sipper cup. Most breastfed babies will drink from a cup with a little practice.
If a mother chooses to give a bottle once in a while, it is recommended to wait until your baby is at least six weeks old. Giving bottles (or soothers) before this time is likely to interfere with breastfeeding because the way a baby sucks from a bottle (or pacifier) is very different from how the baby sucks from the breast. After six weeks, this is less likely to happen. However, too many bottles or pacifiers at any age can cause breastfeeding problems such as poor latch, sore nipples and low milk supply. If a mother chooses to give bottles, giving expressed breast milk rather than a breast milk substitute (formula) is preferred.
| “The Canadian Paediatric Society recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life for healthy, term infants. Breast milk is the optimal food for infants, and breastfeeding may continue for up to two years and beyond. Canadian Paediatric Society. CPS97-01 Nutrition for healthy term infants: Updated recommendations on the duration of exclusive Breastfeeding. Paediatrics & Child Health 2005;10(3):148 http://www.cps.ca/english/statements/N/BreastfeedingMar05.htm |
My baby doesn’t sleep through the night yet, should I give her a bottle or start cereal?
| Many babies wake up through the night when they are teething, having growth spurts, or when they are not feeling well. Often breastfeeding is the easiest way for baby and parents to get back to sleep. |
Most parents want to know when their baby will sleep through the night. There truly is no way to predict when this will occur. Each baby is different. Many parents are told to give their baby a bottle at bedtime (or throughout the night) as this may help her to sleep longer. This can lead to more breastfeeding problems as over feeding your baby may cause an upset stomach and fussiness in your baby. Most babies do not sleep for several hours at a time until they are several months old and even then it may not happen every night.
Some parents are told to give their baby other food at an early age (before six months) to help their baby sleep longer. Giving other food before your baby is ready can be harmful to her digestive system and can lead to problems like: weight loss, asthma, allergies, eczema, ear infections, iron deficiency (anemia), constipation or diarrhea, and weaning before your baby is ready.
For more information see the section on How long should I breastfeed?
Questions about your baby
