Any Advice on breaking the bottle habit?

Question

My son is 10 months old, I'm trying to get him weaned from the bottle and formula by the time he is 12 months old, any advice on how I can do this effectively?

Answer 1

cold turkey. i did it with both of my sons(2 and 5) they were both on a sippy cup by 11 months, i think it took about a week. i gave the bottles to a new mother who lived near me so that i knew they went to good use and i wouldn't be tempted to take one out and use it. if you're ok with it try putting a little chocolate, strawberry or vanilla(powder mix made by nesquick) mix in his formula/milk, you just need a little like maybe a drop or 2. i did it with both of my boys and they still love plain milk. i did cold turkey going from sippy to real cup my first son was 2 1/2 and my second son was 2. when your child is 1 1/2 to 2 years old switch from a regular sippy cup to the munchkin brand that has a half rim spout that resembles a real cup and don't use the plug to keep it from leaking. this will get him use to the drink falling out to him instead of him sucking it out. i know this is more than you asked for, but the info might be useful in the future.

Answer 2

Ten months is a little too young to wean off the bottle. If you force the issue before the child is ready, you are going to end up with a thumb sucker. Usually at a year old you introduce them to the cup. Milk/formula or water only in the bottle at that point. Juices etc in cup only.

If your son is very advanced, you can start with the above now, but do not force the issue let him do it at his own rate. You want to first get him to the point where he is taking a cup by day, and bottle only at night. Then you begin the night weaning, once again taking your cue from him.

Answer 3

Keep in mind that your baby should be on formula until he's at least 12 months old, there are a lot of nutrients that the baby still needs to digest that milk can't give him yet. Talk to your baby's pediatrician at his 12 month check as to when to you can give whole milk
As for weaning from the bottle, I would wait until at least 12 months old, having said that , if your son is already drinking juice from a sippy cup, try giving him his milk in the sippy cup, keep in mind that he may not be ready to get rid of the bottle
Good luck

Answer 4

well with my youngest son, I had to resort to drastic measures. He LOVED his bottle and it had to go, so I started putting juices that he didn't really like in the bottle and the juices that he loved in his sippy cup. Eventually he knew that the bottle didn't hold anything he wanted, and the sippy cup was where the good stuff was. All I know was that it worked, and he didn't cry all the time cause the bottle was suddenly gone and I didn't have a stressful time of breaking him. I let him slowly do away with the bottle on his own, by his making the choice of what he wanted to drink-the yucky stuff in the bottle he loved, or the good stuff in the sippy cup he wasn't used to.

Answer 5

Honey, I'm an old grandpa with six children and thirteen grandchildren.

This will sound harsh, but it will not hurt you or your son.

First of all, he is only ten months old. What's the hurry?

When you think that he should get off the bottle just start putting a little bit of watered down vinegar in his mouth just before you give him the bottle. He won't want it much after he associates the nipple with a sour taste.

Answer 6

omg he is still very much a baby! A girl I babysit, Daphni, is 2 and she wasn't weaned off the bottle until right after turning 2! Well I say do whatever you think is right. You can switch him to bottle-like sipper cups with a rubber top so they seem like a bottle, then switch to regular sipper cups. That is how Daphni got trained.

Answer 7

I agree with the cold turkey method. We used "sippy cups" with one way valves (available at K-mart and Wal-Mart) and added lots of positive reinforcement and praise. "You want to be a big boy/girl, don't you?" "Aren't you such a big boy/girl now!" After a couple of days, they won't even want the bottle anymore. We also waited until they were a year old to start.

One more thing, bottles in bed are a hazard. Lids pop off and nipples tend to drip and leak, especially if your little one is an active sleeper. By now, I wouldn't let them keep one in bed. Give them one to go to sleep with and later, slip in and take it out of the bed.

Best wishes from a former stay-at-home daddy,
BillyT

Answer 8

Start giving him a cup during the day...only a cup, no bottles at all during the day...then eventually take away the night bottles too. Best wishes

Answer 9

I agree, the finest, yet toughest for you, will be to in person-friendly words eliminate the bottles. My in demand sippie cups weren't round (that I knew of besides) even as i became transitioning. they are observed as Tummy Ticklers. they are not like absolutely sippie cups, yet they are somewhat the in person-friendly words element I truly have got here across that really doesnt leak. that is going to if my youthful ones are squeezing and shaking jointly, yet even then that is in person-friendly words sprinkles. besides, they contain juice in them already and also you'll discover them contained in the juice aisle, no longer with the sippie cups. those would grant you with the outcomes you want because they are extra like a events bottle. the right isn't delicate like a bottle nipple, yet they are formed similar adequate that per chance your toddler isn't stricken by utilizing it. strong success in spite of you eventually end up doing!!

Answer 10

try sippy cups: put whole milk in the cups for night-time and water during the day. When he finds the sippy cup is it, you'll see the change. Yes, he might cry and whine for the bottle, but you have to ignore that; he can't get his way.