How Old Is to Old for a Bottle?

Hi A..

I have a very sweet 17 month old son who is still on a bottle. He only takes one before nap and bed time. His DR. said that by 18 months he should be weaned. He drinks out of a sippy cup all day, and I think the bottle is more of a security thing. He never liked a pacifier so I think his bottle may have taken its place. A friend of mine has a 19 month old and they got rid of her bottle cold turkey at around 14 months. Her sweet little one went on strike and has refused to drink milk since! I just started putting my son in his bed without giving him his bottle at nap time. I tell him Mommies going to get his milk, and then I wait 15 minutes before going back up there. Everytime I go up there, he is already asleep. I lucked out with a baby that likes to sleep, so hopefully it will be an easy transition. Good luck!

Kids should be off the bottle by 12 months old.

I am not sure there is a majic number. my son was also a preemie. one way to get him off the bottle, we switched him to sippy cups. not sure everyone would agree. but it worked for us. they have them now with the soft tips so it is easier for them to get used too. If you want to stop the breast milk, start mixing it with reg. milk and it helps them to transform weening them.. good luck and best wishes to you.

Here's my feeling on this one.... If you were still breastfeeding, which basically you are, would you be asking this question? Or would you continue until your son no longer wishes to breastfeed? I nursed my daughter until she was 19 months and she quit on her own. It was a good experience for both of us and I would do it all over if given the chance.

My only suggestion is that you only give him the bottle while holding him on your lap. Never in a highchair, walking around, or Heaven forbid, in bed. I have three other children and made this mistake with one of them. He fought giving up the bottle and really made it difficult. My oldest we only let have the bottle on our laps, and he willingly gave it up when he started walking all the time and didn't want to be tied to our laps.

For me personally, my kids aren't allowed a bottle after a year old. But definately keep up with the breastmilk as long as you can, it's just as good in a sippy cup. :-)

Some say 1 year they should be off the bottle. My daughter is 2 1/2 years old and she still takes a bottles at night night time. She uses it for a security thing more than anything. I have read and I'm trying this myself, give them water in the bottle for a week or 2 then if that don't work try switching the nipple to a stage 1(very slow) and put water it. Eventually they won't want to suck on it anymore. Try that and let me know if it works.

Hi, A..
I have a 15 month old son. At 14 months (or so) we went cold turkey. He was down to one bottle at night by then. It took 2-3 nights but he took right to the new routine. As far as the bottles during the day, I would put whatever he drinks in a sippy cup. As far as when a bottle is no longer aprropriate, I would say the sooner you get him weaned the better. That will reduce the chances of tooth decay. Good luck to you. T.

I have always gotten rid of my children's bottles (I have 4) at exactly 12 months. They don't get attached before then. I would start offering the breast milk in a sippy cup...first thing in the morning and mid evening. You can give him a sippy cup with water to take to bed. It is much more pleasing to see a child lugging a sippy cup than a bottle at 2 or 3 :) You just have to find the right cup. My 12 month old has several different cups with different styles of spouts. Her favorite is a Clifford cup that has a hard round spout. I bought her a Gerber one that has a soft "nipple type" spout and she doesn't like that one at all! There are also Nubby cups that are soft. My 4 year old wouldn't take anything but Avent...and my 13 year old only got a Playtex cup because that is all they had at the time! I think cold turkey is the way to go, but it may be a slow adjustment if you can't find the right cup! You could always start with giving him water at night and see if that works!

Hi A.,
What a wonderful mother you are! I am so proud of you and happy for your son that you have taken breast milk so seriously - facts would suggest you have made him a much healthier little boy!!

I nursed my daughter until she was 33 months (1 time a day at that point). She weaned herself and it was a good and beneficial experience for both of us. And, she's been healthy as a horse and smart as a tack :-) Your milk changes as your child changes and there is always benefit to it. I think you have made a great plan to continue through this coming winter as that seems when germs are worse AND your baby will get that many more months of perfect liquid for him.

My daughter started reaching for my water glass at about 5 months. So, with advice of the lactation consultant, I started letting her sip out of it. She was delighted! So, I gave her a sippy cup right from the start. I think I would try that! I started with the kind from Tupperware, they aren't spill proof and don't require sucking to get it out. For my daughter, all along, "big girl", etc has been a big motivator for her - so you might make a big deal out of that.

I don't know that there is a perfect age to be done with a bottle, but I do think that the sooner your progress towards something you don't have to take away, the better. I think the cup would help with that.

You can't give him too much breastmilk, so if it's 4 times a day, wonderful! When my daugher was that age, I still nursed her probably 4-6 times a day. What I did at night was when she was finished, I would read her a book, then go to sleep. That way, it helped not to have her "fall asleep" nursing. I didn't wash her mouth out with water or anything at that point and she had no problem with the breastmilk causing mouth rot or anything :-).

I didn't and still don't do much juice for her, there is so much sugar in it! She now drinks milk and water and is perfectly happy with it!

Best of luck to you, you are making good decisions and your son is the one who is benefiting! Keep up the great work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok A...... I have a fourteen month old little girl and we are beginning to get off the bottle now. This is what I am doing. I went to BabieRUs and bought nipples called Nuby they are shaped more like the sippie cup lid but go on the bottle. In my opinion this is helping her adjust better. I offer a sippie cup during the day and when she gets tired she get her "big girl" bottle. I know all the artilcles say that babies are supposed to be off the bottle by 15 mo. You are the best person to say when your child is ready. Your little guy has had enough to deal with so far in his life being born early if he is not ready to leave his bottle for the big boy cup then let him stay on the bottle a little bit longer. Who cares if someone doesnt like it he is your little guy do what is best for him, but only what feels right to you. Good luck!

Good for you for breast feeding for so long! Yippee! I had problems with my milk supply, so I was only able to breastfeed for 4 months, and even then it was supplemented w/ formula the whole time.
About the bottle: Everyone is different and it is personal choice for what is best for you and baby. We started weaning our daughter off the pacifier at 6 months, and started moving her to a soft sippy cup at 8 months. By her 1st b-day she was on sippy cups full time (some soft, some harder). She was drinking out of a open cup by her 2nd b-day. For us the transition to a soft sippy cup worked (Nuby brand). We would offer it a couple times a day and slowly decrease the bottle offerings. Finally we told her that all the bottles went to the new baby that was born (my cousin had a kid), for them to use. Now....I don't recommend putting a kid to bed w/ a bottle or sippy cup. You don't want that milk sitting on their teeth, it can lead to future cavities and dental problems. I would nip that habit in the bud first before trying to wean off the bottle. You might want to take him out to pick out a new "bedtime buddy" to replace going to bed w/ a bottle. Then just stay firm. Set a rule that there is no bottle or sippy cup in bed. They sleep in the kitchen.
Good luck! Don't worry, it will come in time and when he is ready.

I remember hearing that once a baby is a year old, it's a good idea to have them off the bottle. We did it by introducing the sippy cup fairly early, maybe once a day, and then gradually using it more until the bottle was just for bedtime. By the time she was used to the sippy cup all day, it was pretty easy to give it to her at bedtime too. She was pretty adaptable about it. I think it's great that you're still giving him breast milk. I nursed my daughter until she was 13 months old, and then switched her to whole milk. Whichever route you go with that, whether continuing breast milk or switching, either can be put in a sippy cup (I nursed and had her taking a sippy cup rather than a bottle at the same time, and she didn't have a problem with it). I don't think you need to make a sudden change, but starting now to make a gradual change is probably a good idea.
T.

Start offering him a sippy cup with juices or water during the day. I don't know that I would go cold turkey. That would be bad. When my daughters were old enough to hold a sippy cup (with or without handles) we were giving it to her. She never took a bottle to bed with her so the bottle at bedtime was never an issue. I would probably make that your last hurdle. Get rid of the morning and in between bottles first. Good Luck.

Sounds like you are already doing a wonderful job! I also had a little boy at 30 weeks...he is almost 14 years old now...but he was also sick over and over for the first 2 years. Every child is different so follow his cues especially when he is not well. Try phasing out the bottles in favor of the cup. The most important one is that you never want to put him to bed with a bottle of milk because of tooth decay. Try switching that one to a bottle of water instead of just completely stealing his bottles away. With being a working mom he probably enjoys the comfort of his milk bottles when he is with you. Try having his daycare provider phasing out the bottles during the day for you. I did this for the children i take care of in my home. Children are so much different for others than they are their own parents so it seems much easier for me to get rid of the bottle instead of the parents. If you get it phased out by the time he is two i think that is just fine. I don't think it is necessary to force it on him at the precise 12 month deadline. It is so hard not to get caught up in the business of life when you have little ones, just try to enjoy him all that you can while he is so young...i was always so excited to see mine grow, but so sad to see it go. I wish i had learned not to sweat the small stuff when my son was younger. Good Luck!

A.,

It sounds as if the breast feeding was a good idea to continue. Personally, both of my boys were weaned from the bottle at 12 months. I started integrating sippy cups and food instead of the bottle for about a month. (Put breastmilk in a sippy cup) I still gave them a bottle at naptimes and then switched with a pacifier. After the weaning period I took it away during naps and a week later, took it away completely. The pacifier stayed for two weeks after the bottle left.

Hope this helps a bit.......

Remember, every child is different and should be weaned differently. Check with your doctor to see if a supplemental drink could help after breastfeeding, especially if your child is prone to bouts of sickness.

Christine

Hi A.,

I completely understand your situation. I have a 2 year old who had a heart transplant when she was 2 months. She had a difficult time gaining weight and she too had several bouts of illness. She was not your typical kid and be sick for 1-2 days with a virus, hers would last 5-7 days. I only recently took her bottle away. I poked holes in the nipple and then held the bottle upside down and showed it to my little girl and told her it was "broken and needed to be thrown away". She said, I'll do it. She threw the bottle away and that was the end of that. She had a couple of times when she asked for the bottle, but quickly adapted to a cup. She was not a good eater and this is why we kept her on the bottle so long, thinking she would lose weight if she did not get her bottle. We were wrong! Since throwing the bottle away she has become "Miss Piggy". She has gained weight and enjoys her food now. Hopefully this helps. Good Luck!

A.,

I was very apprehensive and nervous about weaning my son from the bottle. I breast fed until he was 11 months old and then weaned him from the bottle at 13 months. I decided to do it during a week of vacation. It was ALOT smoother than I expected. Most pediatricians suggest going "cold turkey" so that is what I did. On Sunday evening Benjamin had his last bottle. Monday when his first nap came around I gave him a sippy cup of whole milk. For a couple of days he would drink some of the milk but by the end of the week he was off of drinking milk to fall asleep. We would sit in the rocking chair and I would read him a book and then rock and sing to him. It was a very smooth transition and he has been bottle free ever since. I would try the sippy cup and divert your child's attention by reading or singing. Hope this helps! Good Luck!

You have probably saved your son even more sickness by providing breastmilk, so good for you! Given your sons history, the longer you can offer him breastmilk the better. Sometimes kids that have so many illnesses will have even bigger problems and allergic reactions to foods once breastmilk is gone. You can see this in the form of upper respiratory problems, dark under eye circles indicating the small intestine has been effected, ear/sinus infections, etc. It takes up to a year for most parents to even catch on as their child becomes weaker before their eyes. So if you can stick with breastmilk that would be best.

That being said, I would be very cautious of bottles too. My SIL is a dentist and after 18 months of age with a bottle or thumb sucking or any object that pushes up on the roof of the mouth, this permanently changes the shape of the childs bone structure. It will mean you can pretty well guarantee either hundreds of dollars in orthodontic devices at the age of 5 that have to be worn 6 hrs a day, or thousands of dollars of dental work as a teen.

I would alternate to a sippy cup if you can try this method. Another thing I did when weaning from the night feeding (I did all this with nursing), but I offered a sippy cup of water for thirst to be left in my kids beds. I would explain to them this was their drink and we were all done with nursing. I also prepared them days in advance that it was coming. I did a 3 day countdown. My kids KNEW what I meant as far as soon it was ending because they more vigorously sucked at nursing time and wanted to do so longer.

It is hard to break habits like that. I would bet that if you explained to your child that he needs to brush his teeth before bed and letting milk sit in his mouth can make his teeth get germ bugs on them would help. Educate along the way, be consistant, be firm yet loving and you can accomplish this! Remember it only takes about 3 days to establish a pattern if you stick with it. Good luck and God Bless!

B. :)

Hi A. - and congratulations on your little miracle. My niece was born at 27 weeks this spring, so our family knows the worries that go with preemies.

Might I suggest a gentle transition to a cup? I assume your little guy is eating table food by now, so what about a sippy of breast milk with it if you're pumping? I wonder if you incorporated a cup into his bottle routine if you couldn't slowly start replacing bottles with cups altogether eventually. The only thing our doctor warned us about was the tooth damage kids can get from sucking on sippy cups and bottles for too long. Depending on your little man's motor skills, see if you can start with a cup 1/4 full of water or breastmilk and have him try using a regular cup for starters. That's how I trained my daycare kids when I ran a home daycare. It takes about a week, but they get it.

As for the bedtime routine, you might want to read up on what Dr. Sears suggests. We also did the "inch your way out of the bedroom routine" where we started the first night right next to our son's bed, soothing him. The next night we sat next to his bed silently, making no eye contact or speaking. The next night we were in the middle of his room, etc...until we were in the doorway a few nights later. The 5th or 6th night we laid him down and he went to sleep! He was terrified of going to sleep on his own before we tried this technique and we couldn't believe that it worked in less than a week! We bought a new stuffed animal for him and talked to it, loved on it, etc. The trick was getting him away from ME being his lovey and transitioning him to using his animal as a lovey. He's almost 5 now and still sleeps with it, but we've had little trouble with him since 18 months old.

Good luck and I hope this helps!
A.

Our doctor advised us to ween our kids off the bottle by 18 months. We started them on sippy cups for meal times and still allowed the bottle at night from. My daughter was the first - and we didn't take her off the bottle completely until 15 months. My son started on the sippy cups earlier and we were able to get rid of the bottle by 13 months (he also went to bed at 7:30) We didn't make a big deal about it - one night the bottles just disappeared and we made sure they didn't come back into site. If they saw other kids with bottles, we'd give them their sippy cup right away - they didn't make a big deal about it