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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

What age do you think toddlers should stop having a bottle.....

74 replies

HRHQoQ · 16/11/2005 17:25

for their milk??

I'm not really fussy - but a friend of mine commented the other day that she though I'd be stopping DS2's bottle soon (if hadn't already) because he's nearly 2.

He only has one bottle a day - just before he goes to bed, other drinks (squash, hot chocolate no sugar added and the dregs of my decaf coffee ) he has from a proper tumbler/mug without a lid or spout.

I've never really thought about 'stopping' his bottle - given that he only has it once a day - and he enjoys it.

What age did yours stop having a bottle?
or what age do you think they should stop?

OP posts:
pashmina · 16/11/2005 17:59

just read other posts left whilst I typed mine and s[oke to dh on phone, why do people (chavs mostly )allow their kids of 3/4 wander around with a bottle of juice? and why do people allow bottles left alone in bed? seen this a lot on house of tiny tearaways??

Original poster
HRHQoQ · 16/11/2005 18:01

a few minutes............DS2 hasn't "got" beakers either (and he was bottlefed from tiny) altough he's better than DS1 ever was....and have a small tumbler of juice can take 15-20minutes.........boy am I glad he holds it himself now LOL.

OP posts:
pashmina · 16/11/2005 18:01

HRHQoQ Know what you mean - I meant younger babies not toddlers with a mind of their own!!

Original poster
HRHQoQ · 16/11/2005 18:02

phew pashmina - didn't want you to think I was neglecting him...........

Which I am actualy - just seen the time - they usually eat about erm.........between 6 and 6.30.....it's supposed to be spaghetti and meatballs (made from scratch.........) and I haven't even started......guess it'll be spag bol again tonight

OP posts:
misdee · 16/11/2005 18:03

i stopped dd2 bottle of milk at around 2years old. she didnt touch milk for almost a year, she only started drinking it again just as she turned 3. source of much panic over her calcium intake, as she doesnt each much dairy at all. she would take juice, water etc from cups, but not milk.

LIZS · 16/11/2005 18:05

pashmina , for a quiet(er) life.

18 months - 2 years for mine. ds was breastfed until 17 months so didn't have many bottles after 1 so I switched to Avent old style spouts. dd had them longer as was bfed until 13 months,then went through a phase of drinking loads of milk during the day and not really eating so had mix of spouts and the odd teat(when spouts bitten through or all dirty) but by 2ish she was on a mug.

BudaBabe · 16/11/2005 18:07

We had this a while ago!
My DS ws 4 in August and still has a bottle! Not every day but most evenings before bed. He enjoys it and doens't have any other comforters. Sits with his bottle in one hand and a particular cushion in the other.

I'm not worried. DH is more concerned but if he wants to take it to uni I will do something!!!

Original poster
HRHQoQ · 16/11/2005 18:08

buda - he'll probably still have a bottle at Uni.

of beer

now I MUSt go and feed my children

OP posts:
BudaBabe · 16/11/2005 18:11

Has been known to have beer now!!

If I go out at night leaving DH to babysit they each have their respective bottles!!

pashmina · 16/11/2005 18:11

agree with anything for a quiet life!

i get stick for giving my kids full fat milk, they refuse semi, not sure what the problem with that is...it seems everyone has something to say about what we put in to our kids mouths

LIZS · 16/11/2005 18:14

mine still have full fat if I remember to buy it - they are skinny and don't drink it much apart from on cereal.

Passionflowerinapeartree · 16/11/2005 18:20

DD2 (nearly 4)is still having her bedtime bottle of milk, DD1 & DD3 don't want it any more though. As you say it's only once a day so where is the harm?

JessicaandRebeccasmummy · 16/11/2005 18:23

This is making me feel SLIGHTLY better about Jess still having bottles. She drinks juice from a 4mnth cup because its the only one she has ever grasped, but still has 2/3 bottles of milk a day at almost 16 months. Jess doesnt eat as well as she should mainly down to a lot of teething problems and recent hand foot and mouth, so is filling up on milk.

Jess also throws a wobbler if i try and cuddle her while she has a bottle, and has to do it herself. In her cot, bottle in one hand, dummy in the other and thats her. Bless her. Jess can have her milk whenever she wants however she wants - i would rather she drank milk than sugary drinks

Twiglett · 16/11/2005 18:24

This is just IMHO

I finally bribed DS to give up his bottle of milk (with teat) just before bed when he was 3 years old .. he got a lego set and a slide out of it .. I was actually quite embarrassed that he was still using one and would never have let him use a bottle outside the house from about 18 months.

I never gave DD a bottle at all .. probably because of how I felt about DS having one and am amazed at how early she drank out of normal plastic beakers, and how well

Passionflowerinapeartree · 16/11/2005 18:29

Pashmina, why do you get stick for giving full fat? I give mine full fat (our full fat in Guernsey is yellow)and the eldest is 5. All three are tall and slender.

pashmina · 16/11/2005 19:51

Passionflower, most of my friends use semi, and say that it is reccomended by the dreaded HV's. not sure if it is true, but its all my 2 like, and mine are tall and slim. just finished putting them to bed, they really enjoyed their very creamy waitrose organic milk, and as far as I'm concerned they can keep having it for for as long as they like - now where is my large glass of RED

Original poster
HRHQoQ · 16/11/2005 19:52

mine is just about to have his (bog standard Morrisons) Semi-Skimmed milk and go to bed

OP posts:
donnie · 16/11/2005 20:02

dd1 finally gave up the bottle when we stopped giving it to her - after her 3rd birthday!!! we tried her on milk in a cup after that but she wasn't interested.
She also had a dummy at night until she was 3 - life is too short to get everything ' right' - besides, if adults are allowed their little 'vices' then maybe the toddlers are too!

gingerbear · 16/11/2005 20:06

I am NOT ashamed to say that DD is 3.5, and still enjoys a bottle of blue top every morning and evenng.
She didn't bother when we were away for the weekend recently, but hey, if I want to quaff a couple of glasses of red vino before bed, why the hell shouldn't DD have a comforting slurp?

tamula · 16/11/2005 20:06

apparently prolonged sucking on a man-made teat (as opposed to the nipple on a breast) doesnt do too much good for the shaping and development of the mouth and teeth. For obvious reasons sweet things in a bottle are worse.

My dd is 7 and a half months and she doesnt have any bottles at all, I stopped the teat when she was 7 months, but it was only at bedtime she had a beaker for all other feeds, I did prepare myself for a bit of a struggle and if so was prepared to wait a bit longer before stopping it entirely but she wasnt fussed, as long as she got her milk she was fine, so no bottles!

She doesnt even have her beaker sterilised, I use the same beaker for all milk feeds, we just wash and go

weesaidie · 16/11/2005 20:08

I thought full fat was reccommended in early years as kids are growing s fast...?

Anyway I got rid of my bottles at around the year mark... my mum is really strict on this for some reason (opinionated HV that she is) but it was easy enough for me.

At first dd hardly took any milk out of it and so I would just pop it in the cot with her and she would drink it there. Now she will happily drink it before bed.

But, I don't think it is a big deal if it is just before bed really.

cod · 16/11/2005 20:09

Message withdrawn

weesaidie · 16/11/2005 20:10

Oh sterilising?? Gave that up as soon as poss!

tamula · 16/11/2005 20:12

yeah, sterilising got the heave-ho at 6 months! cant be bothered with all that faffing about

bettythebuilder · 16/11/2005 20:22

dd (3 next month) has her milk before bed in a bottle with the top of the teat cut off and a straw inserted. She chooses a straw for her and a straw for her mummy's gin and tonic
I tried and continue to try with cups but the spills are horrendous, and I do cry over spilt milk!
I don't know how long this will continue, but it's the best way I've found to get her to drink a decent amount of milk before bed.