I think there are a couple of other things to consider in the
risk/benefit analysis:
1. bottle feeding is often simpler and more familiar than the other
methods, and this can be a *big* disadvantage... with all the messages
about BF being harder than bottle feeding, I think it can be too easy to
make the transition from EBM to AIM in bottles. I don't see this
happening as easily with other methods.
2. the very fact that some methods are more complicated, messy, etc.
means that they can be suggested as transitional methods, and the
temptation to change permanently to these other methods won't be as
strong.
3. if the problem is that the baby won't open his mouth widely enough,
finger-feeding shouldn't be done without finger suck retraining, because
it could just exacerbate the problem
4. cups and (large) spoons don't meet babies' sucking needs, enabling
them to retain their natural eagerness to go to the breast
5. in my experience, cup feeding was fast, so that the whole
breast-cup-pump-breast (please don't forget that last one!) didn't seem
to make me or the baby impatient
6. I know, Jack, that the SNS is best. We'll talk about it later.
Jo-Anne

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