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Weaning
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- 2. 1 Overview Weaning is whena baby transitions from breast milk to other sources of nourishment. When to wean is a personal decision. Moms may be influenced by a return to work, her health or the baby's, or simply a feeling that the time is right. Weaning a baby is a gradual process that calls for patience and understanding from both you and your child.
- 3. 2 Deciding When toWean The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends feeding babies only breast milk for the first 6 months of life. After that, the AAP recommends that a combination of solid foods and breast milk be given until a baby is at least 1 year old.
- 4. 3 Deciding When toWean Some experts say that after the first birthday is the best time to begin weaning because kids are more adaptable to change at that age. A 1-year-old baby is also eating more solid foods and so may naturally lose interest in nursing. Engorgement will also become less of a problem for moms around this time because as the demand for breast milk decreases, so does milk production.
- 5. 4 Deciding When toWean Weaning does not have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. Some women choose to wean during the day and breastfeed at night, depending on their work situation and their schedules. Some children wean themselves earlier than the mother had intended and some babies are resistant to weaning when the mother is ready.
- 6. 5 Deciding When toWean Weaning is easier if a child has also taken milk from another source. So try giving an occasional bottle of breast milk to your little one once breastfeeding is well-established — even if you plan to continue breastfeeding, this can facilitate weaning later. This also allows other family members to feed the baby and also makes it possible to leave your child with a caregiver.
- 7. 6 Deciding When toWean If you decide to wean before 1 year or find that you're not making enough milk, you will need to give your child an iron-fortified formula. Check with the doctor to see what formula is right for your child. If your child is near the first birthday, consider placing formula in a cup instead of a bottle.
- 8. 7 Deciding When toWean Although some kids are content to nurse indefinitely and will wait for their mothers to initiate weaning, others will give clues that they're ready to wean. They may express indifference or crankiness when nursed or may nurse in shorter sessions than they did before.
- 9. 8 How to Wean Toallow both mother and baby to adjust physically and emotionally to the change, weaning should be a gradual process.
- 10. 9 How to Wean Oneapproach is to drop one feeding session a week until the child is taking all of the feeds from a bottle or cup. If you are planning to continue to give your child pumped breast milk, you will need to pump in order to keep up your milk supply. If you are weaning your child off breast milk, gradually dropping feeds can help avoid engorgement. You might want to start by eliminating the midday feeding because it's usually the smallest and most inconvenient — especially for working moms. Many m
- 11. 10 How to Wean Anotherapproach is to leave the decision of when to wean completely up to a child. Once they're eating three meals of solid food a day (plus snacks in between), kids often breastfeed less and less. In this situation, you may find that your milk will dry up from lack of demand, and pumping may be necessary if you want to keep the milk flowing.
- 12. 11 How to Wean Ifyour child is breastfeeding less, make sure he or she is getting enough formula or milk. Check with the doctor about the amount your child should be having.