How many BFs does my 10-month old need?

[OooohWhatIfItHurts]

I have a happy, healthy 10-month old DS who takes breastmilk and a varied diet of solids (eats pretty much everything with gusto, 3 meals a day plus snacks). He's on the 99.6th centile for weight and 98th for height and doing everything he ought to.

Currently I give him a morning and evening feed but am a bit at sea about what I ought to be doing during the day. I used to just feed on demand but I am going back to work next month and so need to drop the daytime BM feeds.

DS is happy with a snack (eg a banana) instead of a feed during the day, which I do from time to time when we're out and about.

I guess my question is whether I can just swap milk feeds for snacks + drinks at 11 months? Or cow's milk (he isn't dairy intolerant).

Or do I need to start formula? If that's the case, what does he need to have - I am a complete novice on that score.

Thanks

Carry on doing as you are, water with meals and snacks. By 1 year babies need for health about 20oz of milk per day including that in sauces, custard, rice pud etc. If he is having all that food he only needs (health wise, bonding aside) morning and evening. HTH

Wait until 12months for cows milk as a drink because it doesn't have enough iron to use for drinks before then.

Can you express for a few weeks at the midmorning feed if you can't feed am/pm and swap it for a snack, use the expressed for breakfast/bedtime?

If you want to use formula just go for follow on milk, then cows. Not powder if its just for a month. Also go straight to cups not bottles at this age.

Thanks captaincroc. I haven't expressed for months and months, nor has DS taken a bottle. And it wouldn't really work at work (serious/stressful City environment). And I think DH has just put the pump in the loft!

So if he does need formula, I'm ok with that at this point. Would he need a cup of that once or twice a day? Instead of or in addition to snacks?

my bottlefed ds only had 2 milk feeds by 10 1/2 months and did occasionally have a drink of cows milk. He doesnt really need daytime milk at 11 months but you could try him with a drink of cows milk from a cup along with a snack if you wished. I wouldnt bother with formula at 11 months especially if you will still be giving breastfeeds am and pm too.

At this stage it was just morning and evening feeds for mine. Snacks and water between meals. Yoghurts, milky puddings, cheese, cheese sauce etc in the diet will provide enough dairy.

You don't need to introduce formula at this stage - waste of money. Carry on as you are doing now.

as long as you are including other foods with iron thing, you don't need to worry too much about it. milk isn't a source of iron so giving your DC follow on milk because of its iron content is a complete misnomer so you don't need to give him formula at all. you can swap BM feeds for cubes of cheese/apple or a yoghurt or fruit. and just make sure you are including a variety of healthy foods in his diet that include the range of vitamins and minerals he needs.

Ruby milk is not a source of iron which is precisely why follow on milk (fortified with iron) is recommended until 1 year. Not powder, just the toddler milk in a cup at breakfast and bed time. Water for all other drinks and snacks instead of milk between meals.

Captaincroc - this is a breastfed baby. Follow-on milk is preferable to cow's milk until a year but that's more to do with a baby's ability to digest the cow's milk. As Ruby says, iron can be got from other sources. Babies which are breastfed do not need follow-on milk.

but she is going to bf at morning and bedtime so no need for formula (and no need for follow on milk, which comes in both powder and liquid form). If her lo is getting enough iron, vitamins through food then there will be even less need for introducing formula - at 11 months I would use cows milk.

In the first instance I wasn't sure if she could do the morning and evening. Obviously if she still can (not starting work or getting in at ridiculous times, as I used to) then no need for formula. That was said if she didn't want to continue at all.

Longtalljosie - it is about iron not digestion at that age. At 6 months its about bacteria and digestion.

Croc - I don't understand what you're suggesting. Are you saying that this breastfed baby needs formula to get enough iron? Because that absolutely is not the case.

Oooh - how many feeds would you be able to give when you go back to work? Could you still do two? Because I reckon that would be enough. Once he gets to 12 months you can see how you go with cow's milk

Long if you read my first post I said carry on, just substitue middle of day feeds for snacks and water. If she wants to stop breastfeeding then give follow on milk for am/pm.

'Currently I give him a morning and evening feed but am a bit at sea about what I ought to be doing during the day. I used to just feed on demand but I am going back to work next month and so need to drop the daytime BM feeds.' is the ops opening question.

I replied.
'Carry on doing as you are, water with meals and snacks. By 1 year babies need for health about 20oz of milk per day including that in sauces, custard, rice pud etc. If he is having all that food he only needs (health wise, bonding aside) morning and evening. HTH'

Oh fair enough. Clearly can't read (long day)

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