When shopping for bottles to feed your newborn, you have probably heard of Dr. Brown and Phillips Avent. They’re both hugely popular brands for their high quality equipment and bottle designs that aim to reduce the amount of gas that your baby intakes from a feeding.
This aims to achieve the goal of preventing colic, spit up and other awful problems that come with feeding.
If your baby is prone to colic or gas issues, or if you would just prefer to avoid those problems altogether, it’s worth looking into the Dr Brown vs Avent bottles debate to see if one brand is worth buying over the other.
Dr Brown vs Avent Bottles: Similarities
The similarities between Dr Brown and Phillips Avent bottles are many, as both brands are trying to achieve comparable goals and solve the similar problems that come with bottle feeding. They go about this by having unique designs to their bottles which are not seen in standard baby bottles.
They both also have many favourable features that show that they are high quality products, making it difficult to determine the better brand.
Preventing Feeding Problems
Standard baby bottles can cause discomfort in infants, especially if they are prone to being affected by gas build up and colic. It is a result of air and gas within the bottle being swallowed and remaining in the poor baby’s stomach as a bubble.
The discomfort caused by the gas bubbles can be painful and it results in your baby having an awful time and crying out. Both Dr Brown and Avent bottles have a simple yet genious design to prevent colic from occurring.
They have special valves built into the nipples which lets air into the bottle, eliminating the creation of vacuums and vents the air to the back of the bottle, behind the milk.
Not only is this design clinically proven to prevent colic but also reduces spit up, burping and gas, making these bottles fantastic for those with particularly colicky or gassy babies.
Convenience
When considering the Dr Brown Vs Avent Bottles ease of use they are both relatively easy to clean. If you are cleaning them by hand, Dr Brown can be slightly more difficult requiring a special brush to get into the vent system.
Otherwise, they are both dishwasher safe and also microwave safe and so it’s no hassle to clean and disinfect them at all.
Most standard baby bottles struggle to maintain their shape when disinfected using a microwave. Even in the heat of a dishwasher can be bad due to the plastic materials used in their design melting, deforming or cracking.
BPA, PVC, Lead and Phthalate Free!
All of these plastic substances have been commonly used in plastic produxt up until recent times where they have been discovered to have detrimental effects on human health. For example: BPA (bisphenol A) has been linked to developmental issues in children and babies.
When it comes to freedom from these harmful materials, both brands win the Dr Brown vs Avent bottles argument for leaving these ingredients out of the construction of their bottles with your child’s safety at the forefront of the products design.
Preventing Leaks
Leaking is a common problem when it comes to baby bottles, particularly the cheaper ones you can get which don’t have a durable or secure design. The leak prevention of Dr Brown vs Avent bottles are in place for both brands, but it has been reported that Avent leaks a lot less often than Dr Brown.
Having milk leaking from the bottle is not the end of the world, as it only means cleaning up after your baby, which is normal anyway. It does mean that some milk is wasted though which, when added up at the end of the year, is a waste of money.
Natural Nipple Design
They both designs the nipples of the bottles to be as natural as possible which is great for moms who are supplementing breastfeeding with formula milk. Those who have busy lifestyles or who have low milk supply may find that they need to do this.
The baby enjoys a natural feel as it’s more familiar to them and makes them feel more comfortable and secure when being fed formula milk from a synthetic nipple.
Dr Brown vs Avent Bottles: Key Differences
There are not many differences between these bottles other the design of their mechanism and your ability to personalize. With that being said, this can make the decision one way or the other for some people, depending on your preferences.
Dr Brown Vs Avent Bottles Ventilation System
The Avent ventilation system is not noticeable and resides within the connection point between the nipple and the bottle but the Dr Brown ventilation system is a separate component altogether which you can see inside the bottle.
There is an upside and a downside to this. The upside being that you can remove it, and you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to. The downside is that this separate piece needs to be cleaned which requires a small brush to do so.
Color Options
The Dr Brown bottles do not give you the option to choose the bottle coloration, and always come as clear. There are some options you can buy with pictures on them though which are quite pretty.
Some may not mind about this, but those that like to choose the colors, Avent gives you three options: blue, pink and clear. For some, this makes Avent the clear winner of the Dr Brown vs Avent bottles debate.
In Summary
By looking at our contribution to the Dr Brown vs Avent bottles argument you may find that the best choice is obviously Avent, because their bottles have been reported to leak less frequently, have less parts to clean and give you color options but there is one thing we haven’t yet mentioned.
Price!
And this is where the Dr Brown vs Avent bottles debate hangs in the balance. Even though the Avent bottles are a bit more expensive than the Dr Brown ones, you may find that those extra features give you more value for your money, and I would agree.
But Dr Brown bottles are still a great option for high quality, anti-colic baby bottles and so if you prefer affordability, then Mr Brown wins the debate for you!
If you have had experience with any of bottles by these brands, let us know in the comments below, we would love to hear your opinion!