Can you "over breastfeed" at 13 months?

[poppynic]

Hi, I'm a very enthusiastic breastfeeder (you could also intrepret that as lazy mother ). I just find it so easy to bf dd to cover all manner of situations.

She's quite a little eater (in fact I always thought she was even when just on bm).

I'm getting a bit worried that I should try and give her less boob so she will eat more solids? What do you think.

[lackaDAISYcal]

No expert, but you say she is a good eater. If she is growing well and obvioulsy getting all the nutrition she needs to do so, then I don't see any reason to cut down. She is only 13 mo and WHO say BFing exclusively for 6mo, then in addition to food preferably up to two years.

[EffiePerine]

Hmm, DS def ate more food when I cut down on bfs (mainly at night, more because I wanted to sleep!). That was at 15 mo. I think bfing lots and eating little is pretty common at this age.

[FrannyandZooey]

at one year you can offer food first before milk if it suits you both

however milk is still a great food for her and it is not lazy to frequently give her something that is good for both of you!

do you eat with her and show enthusiasm about trying new foods?

actually rereading I am not sure whether ' a little eater' means she only eats a little, or whether you mean she eats a LOT, ie 'she is quite the little gourmet' !

[BabiesEverywhere]

No idea to the question.

My DD has always been a boob monster and nursed a lot. She routinely nursed 5/6 times a day when we were home all day until she was 16 months old !!! She has cut down a bit more recently (2/3 nurses a day) but that might be due to my pregnany rather than her.

[poppynic]

Yes, I see how that reads both ways. What I meant by little eater was "small" eater, i.e., not much.

I do eat with her and she is very good at trying things but will often just have a nibble and then not want any more.

She lifts her arms up to get out of her highchair and I take her out almost immediately but when she has been left in she will often go on to eat a bit more. I want to do the baby-led thing - not sure if I should give her an extra push or just take her initial refusal as being the real one.

Also, Franny, are you vegetarian (I have this idea from a previous thread)? We are and I'm a bit concerned about the whole iron thing. I try and give her some iron-type food (beans or tofu) twice a day but she will often only eat, say five beans, or one cube of tofu - can you reassure me ?

[lackaDAISYcal]

oh, sorry, I thought you meant little as in "quite the little eater"

Visit Aitch's blog for BLW ideas, but in the meantime, maybe if you offered solid food before a BF she might get more interested in it?

[FrannyandZooey]

yes we are veggie
I worried about it too when ds was this age - the reassurance I wish i had had was that breastmilk has PLENTY of iron in it - formula has lots more because it is not easily absorbed - bmilk has a tiny amount, all of which is absorbed, and provides a good nutritional base for your dd

small amounts of tofu and beans are useful at this age - she is getting the taste for them
offer 2 or 3 times a day as you are doing

I think as she reaches the toddler stage a good thing to try is leaving a snack plate of food around while she is playing, rather than insisting meals are eaten at the table. She can have a nibble and then come back to it later. Dr Sears' books and websites are useful and reassuring about things like this, and he recommends the snack plate idea.

[FrannyandZooey]

have you tried scrambled tofu btw? really tasty
fry an onion and then add mashed tofu and some turmeric (tiny bit to get the nice yellow colour) and fry a bit longer
it looks like scrambled egg and ds was very fond of it. I used to give it on toast for breakfast when he was little and wouldn't eat cereal

[poppynic]

I wish, lackadisycal - I do try to offer solids first but it all gets a bit mixed up.

Thanks FZ -she is very much a toddler already - in fact runs most of the time. My concern with the snack plate (which I'm sure she would like) is the choking thing. That said, I have been much slacker about allowing her, as No. 2, to wander around with food than I was with No. 1.

I will try Dr Sears.

[poppynic]

Is that the standard firmish-type tofu?

[FrannyandZooey]

yes eg cauldron foods type
I think as long as you are there, and the food is not an obvious choking risk anyway, it should be ok. Use your judgement though

[lackaDAISYcal]

ikwym poppynic, there aren't enough hours in the day for all the BFs and meals/snacks are there?

I tend to offer a feed whenever she is hungry as it's easier than having her scream in hunger while I prepare something.

Can't offer any advice on the vegetarian thing, other than make sure she gets plenty of leafy green veg. Have you tried her with homemade soups etc? watercress is loaded with iron, and makes lovely creamed soup (It's a bit on the peppery side if it isn't cooked)

[laura032004]

I don't know the answer to your question OP, but if you can, then I am too DS2 is now 20m old, and probably feeds 12 times in the 12 hours he is awake. Possibly more. It was more like 24 times, but I've stopped night feeding now (surprisingly easily ). Since then his appetite has increased. His weight's always been fine throughout. Like you, I'm a bit of a 'lazy' feeder - if he cries, I tend to stick a boob in his mouth. It always does the trick. However, it does mean that it's now v.difficult to settle him in any other way. I've no idea if/when/how we'll ever stop this feeding. DS1 was on 1 or 2 feeds per day at this age.

[poppynic]

Laura - congratulations on cutting, no re-read that "stopping!!!!" the night feeds.

[laura032004]

Thanks! I thought it would be awful, but actually DS2 was fine about it, and went from waking 5 times a night, to once, or not at all in just three nights.

[Tapster]

DD now 16 months and BFs 5-6 times a day and doesnt eat that much solids compared to her peers however she looks very healthy and a good weight and tall for her age. Drives me to distraction but she is fine. She has another tummy bug and so feeding all the time but at least I know she is getting lots of fluids. Have tried to cut down on her feeds to 2/3 a day but one of us always gets ill. I would suggest having her sit at the table for longer and not get her down when she firsts asks my DDs lunch can last 30-40mins and actually often eats more when I hide from her! BF babies often like finger foods much more than mixed up spooon foods - veggie rissoles, fish fingers, pasta that you can eat with a fork or hands. I usually eat the same as her for lunch even if its not normally what I choose to eat.

[puffylovett]

agree with tapster, my ds (1 on fri - yikes !!) has recently increased his bfeeds, having dropped his daytime ones a couple of months ago.
BUT i do find that if i step away from the table and wash up / hang washing out etc and giv e him lots of time to eat, he eats a lot more than if i was sitting next to him.
glad i read this thread, cos i've been wondering the same thing !!