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Family Forum / Parenting / Parenting / November 2003Weaning a toddler off a bottle
My toddler son is 33 months old and is still taking milk from the bottle in the morning and before bed. We have tried (not very hard) in the past year to get him to take milk from the same cup from which he takes his juice. But when he sees that the cup contains milk, he will not touch the cup. He seems to be unwilling to take milk from anything but his trusted bottle. We have also changed the teat on the bottle to the sip attachment, with the same result. This is worrying me. I have concerned that continuous use of the bottle may affect his teeth alignment, and I have also read somewhere that this may also affect his speech, but I am not sure how. I am also not sure if there may be potential psychological problems with him continuing to take milk like this. Another question - how much milk should a toddler of 33 months be taking? My son takes 5 ounces and in the evening 12 before bed (soya milk, as cow's milk made him constipated, as do other dairy products). Thanks. > My toddler son is 33 months old and is still taking milk from the > bottle in the morning and before bed. [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > > Thanks. I never tried it, but I've heard that progressively watering down the milk or juice until it becomes less desireable works. Only offer the "full strength" stuff in a cup. Leigh in raLeigh > My toddler son is 33 months old and is still taking milk from the > bottle in the morning and before bed. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > not sure if there may be potential psychological problems with him > continuing to take milk like this. I doubt it's a psychological problem. I think he's just got a comfort habit, and those are darned hard to break. I would suggest helping him develop *other* comfort habits as a backup (blanky? other lovey? some other ritual?). If he doesn't have a backup, ripping away his current comfort habit is likely to be met with great resistance. This tends to be a longish process, where you pair the two things for a while (e.g., he has *both* the bottle *and* the blanky for a while until he associates the two, and then you can start taking away the bottle). Next, you can do things that make the bottle less attrac For instance, as someone else mentioned, you can start watering down the milk. Finally, you can disrupt his routines. This often provides an opportunity for change that is difficult to accomplish with the status quo. Go on vacation. Visit the grandparents sans bottles. Invite the whole extended family over for the holidays. > Another question - how much milk should a toddler of 33 months be > taking? My son takes 5 ounces and in the evening 12 before bed (soya > milk, as cow's milk made him constipated, as do other dairy products). He doesn't need *any* milk. He just needs the calcium and protein it provides. As part of shaking up his routine, you could actually go *without* milk for a while, rather than trying to replace his bottle with something else. Once he's used to going without, it will be much easier to reintroduce milk in a cup. Meanwhile, just make sure he has alternate sources of calcium and protein. Oh, and as part of shaking up the routine, you could offer him something else he *really* likes morning and evening--maybe even something like a cookie. Just don't do the same thing every day unless you want it to become the new routine. Good luck, Ericka >My toddler son is 33 months old and is still taking milk from the >bottle in the morning and before bed. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] >not sure if there may be potential psychological problems with him >continuing to take milk like this. I can't see that there would be any psychological problems with this. That said, my dd was over 36 months when we finally stopped her morning and evening bottles. At this age, it very much becomes a comfort habit, and takes special consideration as opposed to just stopping the bottles at a much younger age. We coupled an impending trip to see the grands (grandma and grandpa will get to see their Big Girl), as well as getting her a new comfort item. We let her pick the item out at the store with the understanding she had to give the bottles up for it. She made the transition very well. >Another question - how much milk should a toddler of 33 months be >taking? My son takes 5 ounces and in the evening 12 before bed (soya >milk, as cow's milk made him constipated, as do other dairy products). He doesn't need the milk, but the calcium and vitamins. Milk can be a handy way to deliver those nutrients, though. He really sounds fine with the amounts, imo. You're likely to see less intake once he's off the bottles, though. Nan > This is worrying me. I have concerned that continuous use of the > bottle may affect his teeth alignment, and I have also read somewhere > that this may also affect his speech, but I am not sure how. I am also > not sure if there may be potential psychological problems with him > continuing to take milk like this. Continuous use of a bottle after the teeth have come in would affect teeth alignment. But he's only having two bottles per day. The few minutes he spends sucking down a couple of bottles of soy milk aren't going to harm his teeth or his speech. Psychological problems? Let me ask you this - do you think you'd be scarred for life if you sucked down two cokes a day with a straw? Plenty of adults do, and aren't scarred by it. The only psychological problems that might occur is if you turn this into a power struggle. Don't worry about it - he'll give it up when he's ready. Cathy Weeks Mommy to Kivi Alexis 12/01 > > This is worrying me. I have concerned that continuous use of the > > bottle may affect his teeth alignment, and I have also read somewhere [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > problems that might occur is if you turn this into a power struggle. > Don't worry about it - he'll give it up when he's ready. My son's a lot younger, but older than the magic 12 months when current advice says to lose the bottles, and still getting two bottles a day. I agree with Cathy Weeks; I think the tooth alignment/decay problems happen in kids who are carrying around a bottle and sucking on it all the time. I can't believe that if a child spends twenty minutes a day using a bottle that it's going to cause some sort of permanent harm, either physical or mental, so I'm not making any effort to get my son to give them up. Beth >But when he sees that >the cup contains milk, he will not touch the cup. This is how my 17m old daughter is. She will drink ONLY water from a sippy cup, and ONLY her formula from a bottle. I am also trying to get her off the bottle. I feel for you.. i really do. >This is worrying me. I have concerned that continuous use of the >bottle may affect his teeth alignment, and I have also read somewhere >that this may also affect his speech, but I am not sure how. I understand your concerns. My 3yr old was weaned off the bottle at a year, but *still* has a pacifier. I have tried very hard to get her off of it. I suppose the fact that my 17m old is still using hers, doesn't help. Her teeth are becoming affected by it. She now has an "open bite"~~ often seen in thumb suckers. Her back teeth align, but her front teeth don't touch. I have seen this a lot( I worked in the dental field many years). Her speech has not been affected. I would discuss your concerns with your pedi. Good luck to you. Jolinda |
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