Weaning: should my 10 month old be having less bottles?

**giggleandhoot** · 01-04-2012 18:53

Hello everyone

Just hoping I can get some advice about how much food my 10 month old is eating and how many bottles she is having.

DD has never changed the amount of formula she is drinks even after increasing meals to 3 per day. She drinks 6-7 bottles (120ml) in 24 hours. That probably doesn't sound like much but she is on Neocate (a special formula I get on script) which seems to prescribe a lesser amount than over the counter formulas. However she still drinks less than what is recommended for her age (5x 240ml). She always has drunk less. I haven't weighed her recently but last time she was on the 75th percentile for both height and weight. She still looks pretty healthy.

As far as solid foods go I have been doing a combination of BLW and spoon feeding. I let her choose how much she wants to eat and never force feed her with the spoon. Sometimes she eats all her mushy food. Other times she won't eat any of it. Until recently I didn't think she swallowed any of the chunky foods she was given to suck on but thought it was important for her to have so she could play with it and feel the different textures. I also wanted to make meal times a fun time for her. She has about 3 meals a day sometimes with snacks. She also always has a formula bottle on the go. I offer her water in a sippy cup at meal times.

How do I get her to eat more food and drink less bottles?

**headoverfeet** · 01-04-2012 19:08

Food before 1 is just for fun, regardless of how they get their milk

**Elijahs Mum** · 01-04-2012 20:06

At ten months I started offering food before his lunch bottle, are you offering food or bottle first?

**giggleandhoot** · 01-04-2012 22:54

Originally Posted by Elijahs Mum

At ten months I started offering food before his lunch bottle, are you offering food or bottle first?

She has breakfast first and then a bottle. She usually has 1 and a half during the morning and I always give her a bottle after her meals. She does drink 2-3 bottles during the night though and the last one is often around 5 or 6 in the morning. If she has one at that time she'll go back to sleep til 7/7.30. I am hoping if she eats more during the day I'll be able to get rid of the night bottles (which is another problem all together)

**larazie** · 03-04-2012 11:46

maybe u might have to cut her bottle feeds down...u could try cutting 1 bottle down by half the amount so she only getting half the amount in that 1 bottle just to give her something but not filling her right up (if that make sense) & that way she shouldnt be starving hungry either & do that for a week then cut the other half of the bottle out & see how u go from there. Hopefully she will want to eat some more solids then even if its just that 1 more spoon full at the start.

**captainscaptain** · 03-04-2012 15:01

I wouldn't, as a PP said "food before 1 is just for fun." At 10months, she should preferably be having more milk than solids.

**larazie** · 03-04-2012 17:21

Originally Posted by captainscaptain

I wouldn't, as a PP said "food before 1 is just for fun." At 10months, she should preferably be having more milk than solids.

when i was weaning my DS (will be 3 in few weeks) the Doctor told me to get him off the bottle by 12months. I wasn't saying cut out 2 or more bottles just a little bit even if cutting out half a bottle fora month or so then the other half bottle the next month or so.

**captainscaptain** · 03-04-2012 20:14

Originally Posted by larazie

when i was weaning my DS (will be 3 in few weeks) the Doctor told me to get him off the bottle by 12months. I wasn't saying cut out 2 or more bottles just a little bit even if cutting out half a bottle fora month or so then the other half bottle the next month or so.

Yeah I getcha. There isn't anything wrong with that - I'm trying to reduce my nearly 1yo's breastfeeds so that he's on more solids sometime in the near furture....but 12 months is certainly not the age to cut milk out completely! And at 10months his diet was probably 99% milk, haha.

**giggleandhoot** · 04-04-2012 00:55

Originally Posted by larazie

when i was weaning my DS (will be 3 in few weeks) the Doctor told me to get him off the bottle by 12months. I wasn't saying cut out 2 or more bottles just a little bit even if cutting out half a bottle fora month or so then the other half bottle the next month or so.

Thanks Larazie. I'm definitely going to try that. The dr wants her off the Neocate by 12 months but I think I'm then meant to put her onto a over the counter formula which are all cows milk based. Once she does that I font really want her having too many bottles

**giggleandhoot** · 04-04-2012 01:00

Originally Posted by Kimberleygal1

He did get into the habit of waking through the night sometimes twice for a bottle but I now don't give him milk through the night, I keep a bottle of water in his cot instead which he can reach if he wants. He grizzled the first few nights I didn't give him a bottle but soon settled when he knew he wasn't going to get his way. He sleeps much better now.

This is a great idea. I have tried to give her water in the past but she just continues to scream with her eyes closed as though she is still asleep until I replace it with milk. If I leave it long enough she wakes up completely. But if I brace myself for a few sleepless nights I might be able to get her to take it instead of the milk. She may even sleep through again and eat more during the day