REVIEW – Nuk For Healthy Oral Development

The product featured was provided free of cost to me for the sole purpose of product testing and review. Please note that any personal opinions reflected in this post are my own and have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.

NUK® & Gerber® Graduates® Help Promote Healthy Oral Development
For over 55 years, NUK® has strived for designing innovative products that have been scientifically proven to promote healthy development of infants and toddlers. NUK® is unveiling its newest 2013 products, complete with breastfeeding products, orthodontic pacifiers, orthodontic bottles, cups, tableware, oral cleaning products, and accessories. NUK® products are designed to support healthy oral care from infancy through toddlerhood. I have personally been one of NUK®’s biggest supporters throughout both of my children’s lives. NUK® is truly a brand I trust and it’s one whose products my children love. With my daughter, I used several breastfeeding products and NUK® Orthodontic Pacifiers (we even called her pacifiers “NUKs”!) NUK®’s Orthodontic Bottles were literally the only ones my son would allow in his mouth as an infant after he switched to bottles from breastfeeding. I love that NUK® consistently comes out with great new products I know I can depend on for my family. Here are some of my favorites from NUK®’s newest line of products:
Breastfeeding
NUK® certainly doesn’t forget about the breastfeeding moms. NUK®’s Expressive™ Manual Breast Pump is budget-friendly ($29.97) and super-easy to use. It’s perfectly sized for moms on-the-go so you can pump when it’s convenient for you. Pair this with NUK®’s Milk Bag Storage Rack and Seal ‘n Go Breast Milk Bags to make storage of breast milk a breeze!

Pacifiers
One of my favorite products from the NUK® line is its orthodontic pacifiers. Aside from being adorably designed, they promote healthy oral development because of the way they are shaped to mirror mom’s nipple. All NUK® pacifiers are BPA-free and have integrated channels to lessen pressure on the palate. NUK®’s newest line of orthodontic pacifiers feature Advanced Newborn, Advanced AirShield, and Tie-Dye pacifiers.

Oral Care
NUK® is introducing an improved line of infant and toddler toothbrushes that are designed specifically for your newborn’s gums and toddler’s developing teeth. These toothbrushes have no bristles; instead they have a soft, rubbery coating with gentle scrubbers and a three-sided design that wraps around gums and teeth. The design helps introduce your baby or toddler to healthy teeth-brushing while thoroughly cleaning the gums and teeth. I tried out the NUK® Infant Toothbrush on my 14-month-old, Trenton, who already has 14 teeth, and I think it’s absolutely brilliant. Trenton likes to chomp on bristles when I brush his teeth with a regular toothbrush, making brushing his teeth a nuisance. This brush eliminates that issue for me and allows me to get the top and sides of his teeth and gums in one motion.
Bottles
NUK®’s line of bottles include the Advanced Orthodontic Bottle and Animal Skins Orthodontic Bottle. The Animal Skins line of bottles is the one previously mentioned that Trenton used. He would not accept any other bottle! This was fine for me because I loved NUK®’s Anti-Colic Air System on these nipples – this air system helps baby swallow less air, preventing gassiness. The nipples, like the pacifiers, are also designed to mimic mom’s breast, so it was easy to switch Trenton from breast to bottle with these orthodontic bottles. I love the designs on them as well; I found them to be more colorful and unique than any other bottles I found in stores.
Cleaning
Before being introduced to NUK®’s cleaning products, I somehow was not aware it existed! Seems like I was missing out on some great products! The NUK® cleaning line includes a No-Scratch Bottle Brush, Bottle Drying Wand, Fast-Dry Bottle Rack, and Dishwasher Basket. I love the idea of the No-Scratch Bottle Brush, with a soft sponge-like material used in place of bristles so it won’t scratch up bottles or cups. The Bottle Drying Wand is one of those “never-knew-you-needed-it-until-you-had-one” kind of products. When you need bottles dried fast, this wand’s chamois dries hard-to-reach places in the bottle. This would’ve been perfect for me to use after sanitizing Trenton’s bottles as an infant – it took hours for them to dry after sanitizing them!
Cups
NUK®’s Learner Cups look just like baby’s NUK® bottle, only with handles and a learning spout. These are perfect for the transition to ‘big kid’ sippy cups! The cups are 10 oz, so they easily hold enough liquid for growing babies. With the easy grip handles, babies can learn to hold the cup on their own. The cups also feature adorable designs, just like the bottles! My son is currently in the bottle-to-cup transition and he took to this cup right away.

Gerber® Graduates® also has introduced a new line of sippy cups, starting from Advance Developmental Cups Soft Silicone Spout for beginners, to Advance Developmental Cups Hard Spout, Advance Developmental Cups Insulated Cup-Like Rim, and Advance Developmental Cups EasyStraw™ for intermediate-advanced cup users. Once Trenton masters his cup drinking, I can’t wait to try out the Hard Spout and Insulated Cup-Like Rim cups! However, we have trained him to use a straw, so he figured out the EasyStraw™ cup right away. These cups are all leak-proof, spill-proof, and break-proof guaranteed, thanks to SealZone™ Technology!

Tableware
Gerber® Graduates® is also introducing its full line of BPA-free tableware that helps parents teach toddlers to feed independently! The Gerber® Graduates® PlateMat™ can be used as either a plate or a placemat for a safe, clean eating surface anytime, anywhere. The mat rolls up for easy transport, but always lays back down flat! The Gerber® Graduates® Toddler Snacker is a wonderful set of three interlocking containers with lids that are perfectly sized for toddler snacks. The containers are spill-proof and easily fit into most cup holders. The set comes with one ice pack that fits into the lids to keep cold snacks like fruits and veggies cold on the go! The ice pack is removable so you don’t need to go without a lid to re-freeze the ice pack. I love the measurements on the outside of the containers so you can portion out the snacks for as much or as little as you want to give your toddler!

As if you needed another reason to LOVE NUK® and its products, here is another one: NUK® has partnered with the National Breast Cancer Foundation and will be donating 1% of all breastfeeding product sales through December 31, 2013, up to $80,000!
MORE INFO
NUK website
NUK on Facebook
Gerber Graduates website