Closer to Nature® Bottle Teats

Thanks for purchasing our Closer to Nature® teats.

To help you get started and to keep your teats working effectively, we’ve added all the guidance you should need to this page, as well as some handy hints and tips and troubleshooting advice.

Parts Guide

Getting Started

Before you use your bottles for the first time, please…

• Disassemble all parts and place in boiling water for five minutes, this is to ensure good hygiene.
• Wash all parts in warm soapy water.
• Rinse using clean water and sterilise.
• Assemble your bottle as per the diagram.
• When assembling your bottle, it’s important that you check the valve (C), holding it to the light to check that the slit in the silicone hasn’t sealed closed. If it has, pinch it gently between your fingers to re-open. If the valve has sealed closed, your bottle won’t vent properly.
• After use, wash all parts in warm soapy water, rinse in clean water, ready to sterilise again.

How to use your Closer to Nature® Teats

1. Before use, wash all parts in warm soapy water, rinse in clean water and sterilise.
2. Assemble your bottle as per the above diagram.
3. When assembling your bottle, it is important that you check the valve (C) by holding it to the light to check that the slit in the silicone has not sealed closed. If it has sealed closed, pinch it gently between your fingers to re-open. If the valve has sealed closed your bottle will not vent properly.
4. Make up your feed.
5. Serve.
6. After use, wash all parts in warm soapy water, rinse in clean water, ready to sterilise once more.

When using your teats, do…

• Inspect before each use and pull the feeding teat in all directions. Throw away at the first signs of damage or weakness.
• Keep all components not in use out of reach of children.
• For safety and hygiene reasons it is recommended that the feeding teat is replaced every two months.

Please note…

• Do not store or leave in direct sunlight or near a source of heat or leave in disinfectant (“Sterilising Solution”) for longer than recommended, as this may weaken the teat.
• Do not store with or allow to come into contact with solvents or harsh chemicals.
• Not suitable for use in a conventional oven or a combination microwave oven with the grill feature switched on.
• Do not heat in a microwave with bottle sealed. Remove teat, locking ring and dome cap.
• Never use feeding teats as a soother.
• Continuous and prolonged sucking of fluids will cause tooth decay. Tooth decay in young children can occur even when non-sweetened fluids are used. This can occur if the baby is allowed to use the bottle for long periods through the day and particularly through the night, when saliva flow is reduced or if it is used as a soother.

Cleaning and sterilising your Closer to Nature® Teats

• Always wash the product immediately after use and clean and sterilise before each use.
• Wash in warm soapy water and rinse in clean water or use a dish washer (top shelf only).
• For cleaning other bottle parts, use a Closer to Nature® brush.
• Once you have cleaned your bottles, they’re ready to sterilise.
• All bottle components should be sterilised.
• All bottle components are suitable for sterilisation by steam using either a Microwave or Electric Steriliser

Please note…

• Do not clean with harsh chemicals.
• Do not allow product to come into contact with oil based foods (e.g. oil / tomato based sauces) as staining will occur.
• Do not turn the teat inside out for cleaning. Damage could result.
• Do not use a teat brush or any other implement to clean the feeding hole in the end of the teat or valve as damage such as splits and tears may occur.

Closer to Nature® Teats FAQs & Troubleshooting

Where should the valve be when I’m feeding my baby?

The valve will work wherever it’s positioned but the best place for the valve is at the top, near your baby’s nose.

Closer to Nature® teats look the same, can I use them on Advanced Anti-Colic bottles?

No, you can’t use Closer to Nature teats on Advanced Anti-Colic bottles. Closer to Nature teats have a built-in air valve, and don’t work with our Advanced Anti Colic bottles. The valve in your Advanced Anti Colic bottles is situated inside the bottle, attached to the end of the venting tube and is shaped like a star. It’s important that you make sure you match the right teat to the right bottle.

How long do teats last?

Teats take quite a lot of hammering from little gums and teeth, so they need to be changed regularly. We recommend replacing teats every 2-months or at the first sign of any damage or weakness.

Can I buy bottles with faster flowing teats?

All our bottles except the 340ml version currently come with slow flow teats as standard, as they’re best for newborns and most parents generally stock up on bottles before baby arrives. Our 340ml bottle comes with a medium flow teat.

As your baby grows and can feed more quickly, you can buy faster flowing replacement teats.

We have medium flow teats, which most babies are ready for at around 3 months, and a fast flow teat which is best from around 6 months. The ages are only guides though – you know your baby better than anyone and will be able to tell when they’re ready for a faster flow.

The teat is collapsing during a feed – why?

There are two reasons why a teat will collapse, one is an indication that your baby is ready for a faster flowing teat, or that the valve has reformed within the teat.

Our Closer to Nature® teats are made from a very sensitive soft silicone, therefore they may reform when not in use for long periods of time, for example, when in storage.

You will have noticed a small tent like vent on the inside of the teat; this should have a small slit along it, which allows the air to flow through the bottle.  If this valve reseals, it will cause the teat to collapse during a feed.

Please gently rub the end of the valve inside the teat to allow this to pop open.

If the problem continues after the valve has been opened, it takes longer than 20 minutes for baby to finish a bottle, or if baby tugs at the teat or baby falls asleep mid-bottle, you may need to increase the teat flow rate.

Please note that the ages on the teat packaging are purely a guideline and some babies will require a faster flowing teat quicker than others.

My teats looks stained. What’s happened and are they safe?

As with other things around the kitchen, they can get a bit stained and yucky looking in the dishwasher or even when you hand wash them (blame that Bolognese sauce or carrot soup you had last night).

Cloudy looking teats generally occur as a result of strong cold-water sterilisation. Cold water sterilisation is perfectly fine, but if you’ve gone a bit over the top with the sterilisation solution (it’s easily done!), it can impact the colour.

Don’t worry though, as the teats are still perfectly safe to use, they just look a little different to the norm.

Why don’t my teats last very long?

Teats take quite a lot of hammering from little gums and teeth, so they need to be changed regularly. We recommend replacing teats every 2-months or at the first sign of any damage or weakness.