to query the suggestion that breast milk should be the main part of DS's diet from 6-12 months?

[FionaSH]

to query the suggestion that breast milk should be the main part of DS's diet from 6-12 months?

no yanbu to question anything!
As far as I understand it, bm should make up most of the calories until they are 1,

Not at all - query away!

You're not unreasonable at all ... (but shhh.. round here you'd probably better keep that kind of heretical thought to yourself LOL )

It certainly was with both my dc. But noone can make you do anything can they? It's a suggestion not an order.

query away

what is your basis for doing so?

if a baby is formula fed that too is meant to make up the bulk of the diet till a year old, with solid foods as a complement - aren't they meant to be having 20 oz or something?

food is meant to very gradually become more important over the second 6 months of life

You are perfectly entitled to query anything you wish. Do you have a reason for this query or are you looking for yet another breastfeeding argument debate?

It is a gradual thing though, by the time you get to 11 months they are drinking less/eating more than when they were 6 months. At least that's what my son is doing, and he did it by himself. I followed his lead.

Come on then, query away.

there's no 'should' but don't be anxious if they don't eat much as long as they're having enough milk. That's all really.

Why you asking?

Well did depends by what is meant by "main part".

Calorie wise, breastmilk may still provide the bulk of calorie intake? DS2 is now 10 months and while he's eating solids and has regular and varied meals, he still feeds about 3 times per day. At some point the pendulum will swing towards the solids, but at the moment I suspect he gets most of his calories from breastmilk.

brosette no I'm not looking for another bf argument/debate - if you're bored, don't read the thread.

chil1234 sadly I did wonder whether I should post this, but I am actually in a quandary over it, so thought I'd risk the flaying I'm sure will ensue...

shaz10 agree with this. Certainly my DS is tailing the milk off himself, as are my friends DCs of 6-12 month age. I can't force feed him the milk! (Can I?! I sneak it in his food already...)

chibi my basis for doing so is the fact that I've read is on this site several times, and I think I saw it on Kellymom too. nd I panicked!

I want to know (here comes the bit you'll shoot me down in flames for) whether its actually a biased pro-bf stance, or actual fact....

OK, shoot me.

I'm sure as long as you keep up the butter and dairy he'll be fine.

Fiona - I think it's fact - doesn't matter whether it's breast or formula

is ds your first?

i don't mean this is a patronising way, but in a reassuring way

when i started weaning dd i thought 'how the heck am i meant to do this, how do i drop feeds etc'

just follow his lead, i think they pretty much all get there in the end

by the time dd was a year she was having 3 bf in a 24 hour period

ds is a year now and will have 2-4 depending on whether i am working or not that day

even if you aren't feeding frequently you'd be surprised at how much they get, and it is v calorific, so i suppose it all works out

If your child is a good eater, then great but they need a lot of milk at this stage. If your DC doesn't want to drink it could you make sure they're getting the calcium in other ways?

I think they say it because lots of people deliberately restrict the milk to encourage their baby to eat more solid food.

So surely it would make more sense to start weaning later? I mean, say you start at 6 months, by 8 months they're on 3 meals a day.... how much milk would they then need to be more in calories than the milk they're taking?? Surely they'd all be the size of Mr Staypuft?!

they will let you know if they want milk or not

both dd and ds wouldn't latch on if they didn't fancy it, this is how we lost the midmorning feed

shaz10 ooooooo I see....Well I offer boob all the time, but he'd rather have cheesy bacon pasta in all honesty...
chibi yes he is my first, I want to do the "right" thing, the best thing for him, but it is very difficult to know what that it.
He's down to one feed now, and then at bedtime I offer him a cup of milk. He just doesn't want anymore, and eats the most ridiculous volume of solids in a day. I'd say the ratio is more like 80%:20%

But WHY do they need a lot of milk? Why should bm or fm make up most calories? What is so magic about milk that can't be found in a varied diet??

"I am actually in a quandary over it"

Like all parenting decisions, go with what feels right for you and your baby. There are no hard and fast rules about feeding and you'll find that milk (any type) goes from being their main food to becoming a drink between meals or a night-time settler on a gradual sliding scale as they get into solid food. Some children move from one to the other a little quicker than others.

Trust your own judgement and you won't go far wrong.