Breast feeding and weaning

[liams mum]

my baby is 6 months one week old and i have been giving him solids since 5
and a half months, my problem is that he is still breast feeding on demand
and also breast feeds to sleep, i give him solids for lunch (3 cubes of
veg) and dinner (50ml breast milk with baby rice and one cube of fruit
puree), can you please let me know how to cut down on his bresat feeding,
should i introduce a breakfast, give him more solids and maybe formula? He sleeps between 5-6 hours at night before he wakes up for a feed.

[jane lc]

Hi my son will be 6 months on sunday and we have been weaning since he was about 16 weeks, you seem to be doing the same as me, this is my routine. Toby also breast feeds on demand.

Wakes up for Breast milk 6.00-6.30
Breakfast 8.00- 8.30 rusk then fruit with natural yog. ( banana and avocado etc)
Milk in mid morning 10-11
Lunch 12.00 of a mixture of different veg and fruit.
Tea 5-5.30 veg, mash potato and some meat or fish. pudding of natural yog or my own rice pudding with apricot puree.
Bath at 7.00
Breast milk and bed at 8.00, he will sleep only 5-6 hours so up for breast milk at 1-2 up again at 4.45 and up agin at 6.00. all for the breast.

Maybe you should introduce breakfast.
A lot of my friends babies which are breast fed seem to wake at night. maybe if you want you could try his last feed before bed as formula instead of BM as this may help him go longer.
This however did not work for me.
Hope this is of some help. Jane ..

[cathyg]

think Ladybug will defo have the answer for you. i introduced formulas feeds during the day & eventually BFing gradually died down. x

[jen w]

i breastfeed 5 sometimes 6 times a day and she has 3 meals and sleeps through for 10 or 11 sometimes even 12 hours each night.think making sure she has enough in the day helps with the night as i notice she wakes a little on the earlier side if she hasnt had enough in the day.also as hard as it is in the beginning i really advise putting her in cot awake.when we changed the habit of feeding her to sleep after a few nights of unsettled sleep she began to sleep through as she when she used to fall asleep in my arms she was waking wondering where i was. hope that helps, hugs x

[liams mum]

Originally Posted by jen w

i breastfeed 5 sometimes 6 times a day and she has 3 meals and sleeps through for 10 or 11 sometimes even 12 hours each night.think making sure she has enough in the day helps with the night as i notice she wakes a little on the earlier side if she hasnt had enough in the day.also as hard as it is in the beginning i really advise putting her in cot awake.when we changed the habit of feeding her to sleep after a few nights of unsettled sleep she began to sleep through as she when she used to fall asleep in my arms she was waking wondering where i was. hope that helps, hugs x

Hi Jen

Thank you for your comments, it is really helpfull. I let him feed till he sleeps on my breast as that way I know he has had enough. How would I know if he had enough if I take him of the breast and put him into bed awake? If he is not tired he pulls off when he has had enough. He is a very hungry baby, he breast feeds about 8 times during the day and once or twice during the night.

Thanks for your help

[isabellasmum]

I breastfed Isabella on demand until she stopped wanting it. This meant feeding up to 8 times per day which looking back was loads! At about 8/9 months she stopped wanting bfing in the day (just used to refuse it) so now she just has one am and one bedtime bf.

If you introduce a cup of water after each meal then you will find your lo starts cutting down on the amount of bfing as they only need so much fluids.

I really wouldn't try to reduce milk intake at six months as milk is still the main source of nutrition at this age.

[jen w]

i know shes had enough when shes fed off both sides and starts to fidgit or pull off i give her the dummy for a few moments then offer the same breast again and again and again for about another 5mins alternating between the breast and dummy i then offer her the first breast again as since she was last on that side she would of had let down again and there is milk ready for her.i always feed her the bedtime feed with the lights down in her own room and let her get a bit drowsy and tired then gently put her without any sudden movements walk out the room .once shes had a little chat or a moan to her teddies she gets herself comfy and falls asleep. sometime she will have a cry but doesnt wake in the night now. im sure youll be fine and once your lo sleeps though once you will know then that its possible and that the night feeds arnt needed. let us know how you get on. your doing a great job.... well done for breastfeeding so long, keep up the good work x

[ladybug]

Don't try to cut down the milk feeds. Your baby needs the milk and that's why on demand feeding is so great! It's a little hard to accept, your baby not sleeping thrugh the night, and seeming to demand so much milk, but it is COMPLETELY normal. It's very easy to expect that your baby will sleep through and go for four hours etc between milk feeds, but those really are the habits of a FF (formula fed) baby.

All babies wean themselves off at different times - it's very unusual for a child not to have weaned themselves off the breast completetely by 18 months (it's still great for babies to feed beyond this - but I think there is often strong encouragement from the mum to continute this long and beyond btw I would feed til 2 if I could be a SAHM).

Katie was off daytime feeds by around 10 months. After that it was a bedtime feed (fed her to sleep) a 3/4am feed and an early mornin feed. Othr than that she just had solids and water/juice throughout the day. I was wishing I had introduced cow's milk in a sippy cup from 6 months - as she hates it now and won't drink milk at all!

So I am afraid I am not much help in response to your OP - don't cut down the feeds. I totally understand you expecting that you would though. If you want you could try 'dream feed' which is when you lift the baby while they are sleeping, at say midnight? And offer them the breast - they usually naturally latch on and take a nice feed and keep sleeping throughout, then go back in the cot and sleep for a good bit longer. Katie was a monster and woke up at her usual time anyways..... grrrrr but worth a try as all bubbas are different.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx good luck xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[ladybug]

Update...

Introducing solids to a breastfed baby.

Weaning a breastfed baby is different to weaning a formula fed baby. I'm starting this thread just to inform folks.

Human milk is recommended as the primary food for the baby's first year. Since solid foods displace human milk in a baby's diet, suggest the mother breastfeed first, before offering solids, until the baby is nine to twelve months old. She can gradually increase the amount of solids she offers her baby.

In one study, researchers observed one hundred and forty-one mother baby couples. The mothers exclusively breastfed their babies until solid foods were introduced at no earlier than four months of age. They found that the energy value of the human milk the baby consumed when he was exclusively breastfeeding matched closely combined energy value of human milk plus solid foods he took later. The researchers concluded that, rather than increasing the intake of calories when solid foods were started, the babies balanced their mother's milk and solid foods intake to maintain a stable intake of calories. The volume of the mother's milk dropped when solids were introduced.

By breastfeeding the baby before offering solids until he is about a year old, the mother can be sure that he is receiving the milk he needs for growth. At one year of age, it is appropriate to offer solids first.

If solids are introduced too quickly and replace many nursings during the baby's first year, he may not get enough fluids, causing constipation. In the breastfeeding baby, constipation means hard, dry stools. Going for several days without a bowel movement or straining while passing a bowel movement are within the range of normal behaviour and are not considered signs of constipation. If other fluids, such as juice or water, are given instead of human milk or formula the baby may not have his nutritional needs met.

If the baby is constipated, suggest the mother nurse her baby more often. When the baby is nursing more, he will have softer stools.


From The Breastfeeding Answer Book published by La Leche League International. Pg 51

[ladybug]

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