REVIEW: AVENT PC, PP and PES baby bottles

I’m busy with the kids, errands and counting down to Christmas but many readers asked me about polycarbonate (PC), Polyether Sulphone (PES) and polypropylene (PP) baby bottles…

With Christmas sales everywhere, I totally understand it that many mommies to be and Moms (including myself!) are busy reading reviews and such!

Thus, I hope this “community service” will be helpful

Question: What are PC bottles?
PC are polycarbonate bottles, which MOST baby bottles are made of. PC bottles are what most of us grew up with (unless your Mom or granny gave you glass bottles).

Recently, PC baby bottles are not encouraged because BPA, which is a chemical used to harden the plastic has been scientifically found to leach into baby’s milk or baby’s water at boiling temperatures i.e. 100 deg C.

(Read: US FDA Issues Warning about BPA Exposure)

Many of our kids’ water bottles are also made of PC and you will see many of these bottles going on sale at supermarkets everywhere.

PLEASE ONLY USE PC BOTTLES TO STORE COOL WATER. PC BOTTLES SHOULD NOT BE KEPT IN THE CAR.

Breastfeeding Moms who used the AVENT Isis Manual breastpump would have kids drinking milk or water with AVENT PC baby bottles.

AVENT PC bottles are:
a) clear or transparent and
b) made of a “hard” plastic

If you drop a PC baby bottle on the floor, it will make a noisy klonk! klonk! klonk! sound.

We loved the original AVENT PC bottles because:
a) they fit into AVENT Isis breastpumps
b) they don’t leak and
c) they don’t crack!

However, with the BPA issue in baby bottles, many of us have switched from PC bottles to BPA-free bottles.

AVENT PC bottles are about 50% cheaper than AVENT BPA-free bottles. I understand if budget makes you buy these PC bottles. Please read this guide on washing and using PC bottles safely.

Question: What are PP bottles?
PP or polypropylene bottles are a type of plastic, which is naturally BPA-free. If you look at the photo below, you will see that the MAM and Tommee Tippee bottles are NOT transparent.

Also, if you drop PP bottles on the floor, they don’t crack and neither are they that noisy.

Most of us would be familiar with PP if your Mom used “white” or “colored” plastic water jugs, plastic food containers. I think ice cube trays are also made of PP.

Since I don’t like AVENT PES bottles (read more below), I was happy to find AVENT PP bottles on sale. They are slightly cheaper than AVENT PES bottles and are perfect for my boy because his bottles roll off the bed, the chair and everywhere!

However, AVENT PP bottles come with an extra light blue ring to prevent leaks – it’s quite a pain to clean as milk gets trapped there. Older people and less meticulous people may miss these milk spots – I give it a thorough cleaning once every few days.

Question: What are PES bottles?
When more and more Moms became more aware of the BPA issue in baby bottles, AVENT came up with PES bottles. According to AVENT, PES (Polyether Sulphone is a BPA Free material with a natural honey-colored tint.

Here’s what AVENT’s BPA-free bottles look like:

If you’d like to buy PES bottles, you can buy them from Amazon:

Personally, I don’t like AVENT BPA-free PES bottles because:

a) they are expensive,
b) they leak and
c) they crack easily!

However, many Moms like AVENT PES bottles. Whatever your choice (or your child’s preference), look around and ask around before you decide. Happy shopping!

Similar Posts:

• REVIEW: Medela Harmony Breastpump
• MAM or Doctor Brown BPA-free baby bottles?
• REVIEW: AVENT Breast Shells
• Choosing a Breastpump: AVENT vs Medela SoftFit breastshield
• REVIEW: Avent ISIS Manual Pump set