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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

who even does this?!

51 replies

spillyobeans · 30/10/2015 06:04

Got the strangest parenting 'advice' from the mil the other day...to mix coke a cola or pepsi in with formula/expressed breastmilk in the bottle so 'it tastes nice for him', WTF! who does that?!

I love my mil and shes a massive help- i vouldnt be without her, but sometimes i do wonder how dh survived childhood

OP posts:
miaowroar · 30/10/2015 10:10

Sorry - that should be "had me sucking a liquorice stick".

Sagethyme · 30/10/2015 10:39

Hmmm, well this is an old book my DM was giving when she had me and perhaps it explains a bit!! There is a lot of 'advice' in this book which is really Shock....although i quite like the advice advocating G&T for nursing mothers Grin

who even does this?!
Sagethyme · 30/10/2015 10:41

Ooh picture a bit small but it is bottle feeding ribena...just incase you can't see what it says!

coolaschmoola · 30/10/2015 10:47

My child is four and I gave her alcohol and Lidocaine for teething....

It's called ANBESOL.

CheesyNachos · 30/10/2015 11:03

My DM is (was) a nurse and she told me to feed my newborn Ribena as he needed the extra Vitamin c and glucose apparently. Hmm

She went on and on and on about it for months.

ILiveAtTheBeach · 30/10/2015 11:18

Wow, I thought she was maybe in her 70's when I read this. My parents and grandparents put weird stuff in baby bottles. But I'm 45, and nobody was doing this when we had babies. It's a ludicrous idea. Coke is full of caffeine FFS. Can you be sure she won't do something silly when she's babysitting? My Dad (in his 70's) keeps trying to give my sisters toddler high calorie/high sugar loaded milkshake, even tho she likes normal milk just fine. Why? Makes no sense to me or my sister and the answer is No.

spillyobeans · 30/10/2015 11:55

Well shes pretty good when i say i want to do such and such and not blah blah she does follow what i want even though she did alot differently, which is great. I really dont think she would do anything i specifically say no to. My ds is 4 month and she was very happy and she could give him baby juice and 'chips to suck on' lol that did not happen

OP posts:
spillyobeans · 30/10/2015 12:01

And yes, if kids like non sugary things why try and push unhealthy things? A treat or whatever is fine but at such a young age theres no need!

OP posts:
SolidGoldBrass · 30/10/2015 12:01

Well, people did routinely give babies whisky, brandy or gin in small doses a few decades ago, if the baby was restless or miserable. Even now, some mums give toddlers, at least, fizzy drinks in their bottles.
It's not great, but there's no need to shit yourself in terror over the prospect.

spillyobeans · 30/10/2015 12:03

A toddler maybe but a newborn baby having coke a cola? Yeah totally reasonable...Hmm

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ShowYourSeams · 30/10/2015 12:04

My MIL told me to give DS sherry to get him to sleep through. She said she did it with all 4 of hers and it works a treat! Hmm it does explain a lot though

Xenadog · 30/10/2015 12:24

About ten years ago a friend told me how a relative advised them to melt a milky bar and put the chocolate into the baby's formula. She was astounded as was I. That has stuck with me for some reason but I can honestly say I was never tempted to do it with my own DD!

fuzzpig · 30/10/2015 12:44

Just what every parent needs. A caffeinated baby :o

BlackeyedSusan · 30/10/2015 12:54

fucks sake. perhaps her parents employed some of these ideas which would explain a lot!

Silvergran68 · 30/10/2015 13:23

My doctor advised brandy for a non-sleeping baby. 'A teaspoon for the baby and a glass for you'. That was 35 years ago and no, I didn't try it. Don't like brandy.

Silvergran68 · 30/10/2015 13:26

My mother also said that in her parents' generation leaving the unlit gas tap on in the bedroom
was sometimes used to get babies to sleep!

myotherusernameisbetter · 30/10/2015 13:33

My mum (in her 80s now) told me to stick a dummy in some jam or wet it and dip it in sugar to get the baby to take it.

This was after she wondered why DSs didn't have a dummy. The didn't have one as they didn't really need one and on the very rare occasion that I did try one neither DS was interested.

myotherusernameisbetter · 30/10/2015 13:35

I did see someone filling up a baby bottle (not a sippy cup) from the coke dispenser in Nandos a few weeks ago. Didn't see the child so no idea what age it was for. There was a tap for just water but they weren't using that unless the water in Manchester is brown.

waitingforcalpoltowork · 30/10/2015 13:52

isn't coke used for constipation?

i was advised flat guinness for low iron when i was pregnant

spillyobeans · 30/10/2015 17:02

Myother - my dhs gran said to stick a dummy in honey to take it as mine wont take a dummy, not that im bothered!

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myotherusernameisbetter · 30/10/2015 17:14

I'm not anti dummy btw - just mine were neither interested or really needed one - DS1 had a short fling with his thumb and DS2 liked to suck on his sheets. :)

biggles50 · 31/10/2015 09:39

My ex grandmother in law suggested letting babies cry and cry and go hungry as it taught them discipline. Very odd.

laffymeal · 31/10/2015 13:15

Never heard that one before.

I was told to put whisky in the bottle when DD was having trouble sleeping, someone else told me to put a rusk in there as well incase she was hungry.

Needless to say I ignored the stupid twats.

SplatterMustard · 31/10/2015 13:21

I'm the same age, roughly, as your MIL and it's the strangest advice I've ever heard in years. The HV suggested a drop of brandy in DS's milk to help him sleep, even she wouldn't have suggested coke as she was strongly against babies having juice in bottles.

SplatterMustard · 31/10/2015 13:23

fuzzpig like Ben on Outnumbered after a double espresso but much, much worse.