Talking With...
Kevin Brodwick

hinkbaby™ bottles: safe for babies… safe for the environment. The Cradle caught up with founder Kevin Brodwick:

The Cradle: What was the motivation behind creating thinkbaby bottles?

Kevin: Researchers around the globe have linked commonly used chemicals to myriad startling health effects in laboratory animals. One of the chemicals of particular concern is Bisphenol-A, which is used to produce polycarbonate. Studies have shown that these chemicals have the ability to leach from plastic products such as baby bottles and sports bottles. Moreover, exposures in the womb work through fetal programming, where epigenetic factors control genetic development and the risk of health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and cancers can be increased.

A baby’s development process works like a well-timed orchestra, with each musician playing an important part in making music from notes on a page. The science is still emerging in this area, but just as removing a musician or playing a note out of order produces different sounds, there are factors (like exposures to toxic chemicals) that can alter how genes are expressed.

With the scientific picture and governmental regulations mounting worldwide, we set out to create a new kind of company - a company that is focused on the development of alternative products, born through the use of the latest scientific tests available.

The Cradle: What makes thinkbaby™ bottles different from other baby bottles?

Kevin: Rather than commenting on another company’s products, I'd like to share the features we incorporated in the design and packaging of our own.

To start, we have specifically formulated our products to be free of toxic chemicals. The net that we cast is far greater than the chemicals that have reached the mainstream media like Bisphenol-A, PVC, lead, phthalates, nitrosamines, and cadmium. thinkbaby™ bottles also feature a simple one piece venting system. The purpose of venting systems is to allow air to continuously fill the bottle to reduce vacuum pressure. As vacuum pressure increases, babies nurse harder, which has been shown to increase risk for middle ear infections, gas, and spit up. This feature has received high marks with customers and independent reviewers.

Simple conveniences like interchangeable system of parts, no spill cap, and ability to go in the dishwasher make thinkbaby™ products economic and very user-friendly, in addition to eco-friendly. Our desire to be a different type of company extends to our packaging, which is made from recycled materials. People sometimes ask why we don't have clear windows into our products. Most of the clear plastic windows we reviewed were made from the same PVC material that we avoid using in our products.