going to wean soon and a few Qs

[danita]

so my DD is nearly 11 months and im going to wean her soon as i only thought id breast feed for 6 weeks and while i do like breast feeding im going to wean her through the day 1st and then slowly wean her at night, i feel that this will help her eat mor solids as she doesnt eat that much now but feeds quite alot still.

im a little sad to wean but she was so slow to start solids due to gag reflex and slight tongue tie....so i have a few Qs as DS never did breast feed he had EBM right from word go then had formula..


so do i give DD a bottle or a sippy cup with milk

do i give her cows milk or formula..

i know at 12 mths cows milk is ok but as she only 11 mths would one month make much difference she was an over due baby. i just as ive never had to do...she is alos very obsessed wit BB
thanks for your help

[AJC]

DS was fully weaned at 14.5 months. Like you I was a little sad but it was just the right time for us. He had already been taking water from a sippy cup so I started giving him organic cows milk from sippy cup (warmed slightly). DS eats extremely well so I am happy that he has sufficient nutrition from his food so not to need toddler forumula. We weaned slowly tho which helped and we left night feed to last. We actually mutually weaned as he started falling asleep before booby. Congrats on your BF journey, 11 months is great! Am sure most of us will have a different story so take it all in and I am sure it will help you make the best decision for you and your DD.

[Arcadia]

Eta:I don't think I answered your questions, yes a sippy cup is fine and I think cows milk would be ok, but not for all feeds at this age, but certainly one 'feed' could be any dairy such as yoghurt.

How many feeds in a 24 hr period is she having?At this age, I think it us fair to offer solids before breast and go from there. She might not need any feed replacements (ie milk or formula) if you can get her to eat more solids. Then if you cut back to only 2-3 feeds a day you might feel happier about breastfeeding for longer or at least long enough for her to go straight onto milk.
The milk/food ratio thing doesn't cease to be an issue when you're offering cows mlk though...even at 2 many people find their toddler drinks more milk than eats food...

I would just concentrate on the solids before feeds and work with that for now...unless you're completely over breastfeeding????

[danita]

i think she is usually having at least 4 feeds in the day and may 2 overnight is that normal for her age?? she does eat solids but not much mayb 1/4 weet bix for breaky wont eat porridge i tried, she has 1/2 sandwhich for lunch and small dinner also snacks on fruit and sultanas etc through the day..

i gave her a 1/2 bottle of cows milk today and she didnt really take to it at 1st then after a while she didnt seem to mind.....maybe ill try it in a sippy cup tomoro see which she prefers, thankyou for your advice xo

[Arcadia]

Her feeds sound perfect for her age, as does her solid intake to be honest. It sounds like you're both doing really well!

I would replace one feed with cow's milk at this age, and then once she is over one, you could replace another and step it up from there. She is still so, so young and should be getting more milk than solids. Its only now at almost 2 that I can honestly say DD has almost all food (and that's because my milk has dried up in pregnancy).

Feeding gets much easier in many ways from now, and any breastmilk is benefitial, so keep up the great work as long as you can.

[MantaRay]

It all sounds very normal to me too hun. You are doing such a great job.

There is no "right" way to go from here. Weaning is best done one feed at a time as this will reduce the risk of mastitis for you and also help your little one adjust. There is no need to replace breastmilk with any other milk if you don't want to, as long as she is having a balanced diet with enough calcium rich foods. However if you do choose to replace with milk, cows' milk should be fine. The official recommendation is to replace with formula until 1 year of age, however if you drop one feed at a time your DD will still be getting bm until 1 year so that should be fine. I always think weaning to a sippy cup is easier at that age, so you don't add a step of having to wean from a bottle later as well, and also as it's better for your DD's teeth. But many people do give bottles at that age also.

In terms of solids, many bf babies don't eat much before 12 months as they are getting the nutrition they need from the bm. Once you reduce and then stop the bfs, the solids will become more important. The latest research shows that meat is a very important early food due to the readily absorbed iron, and also the zinc. These are the critical elements for brain development and the iron in bm and meat is the most easily absorbed. Dairy foods like cheese and yoghurt are also fine and are a great source of calcium. Your DD might take to finger foods better than cereal - often it helps to put food in front of them and let them pick at what they want. Offering a good variety of foods early can help to reduce fussiness.

GL with it all hun.