Giving up milk/bottles once they're one?

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I'm really confused. I know you are supposed to move on from bottles when they are one, and DS will drink water from a sippy cup, but does he really need to give up all bottles once he's one? He's 11 months now, and still have an 8oz bottle in the morning, 5/6ox in the afternoon and 8oz before bed. He has litterally just got his four front teeth in the past month, so I'm less concerned with damaging his teeth. So should I switch all feeds to a cup soon? Or just try the morning and afternoon feeds? Also, am I supposed to swap to full fat cows milk, or to follow on milk? I feel a bit adrift with the whole thing TBH!

if he is happy with the bottles leave him be! he will drop them gradually on his own, at age one ds4 and dd both still ahd three bottles a day and by 18mths had cut down to two bottles a day. dd has two bottles, 5oz in the morning and 5oz at bedtime, as long as he drinks water from a cup the rest of the time and you clean his teeth after his bottle before bed its fine.

once age one he is still supposed to have 12oz of milk a day (that can be made up with yog and cheese etc as well) seriously dont worry about it.

ds2 and ds3 both bfed will 3 and a half years, a bottle and a cuddle from you morning and night is just the same as that, clean his teeth and its fine.

i stayed with the first milk, never bothered with follow on it can make them constipated and its just an advertising con.

if you want you can offer him cows milk instead of formula but ds4 and dd wouldnt take it and i felt better that they were getting vitamins etc plus it meant i worried less when they were ill and wouldnt eat.

if you feel he is filling up on milk and not food, you can cut down the amount he has in a bottle, at age one ds4 was still having 9oz 3 times a day, i gradually cut that down until he was having 5oz in a bottle twice a day.

dd has never had more than 5oz ever, but she really likes her morning and bedtime bottle, they get a lot of comfort from it and as long as he eats well and you clean his teeth its fine :)

btw i gave the boden top and trousers to mum and dad who will bring them to you :)

So glad you posted this OP, I've been worrying about this too! DS is approaching 1 and still has 4 bottles! I've been trying to get down to three like we're meant to be, but DS is having none of it. I've given up for now, he eats really well and sleeps through the night, putting on weight and generally happy so am trying not to worry. I don't believe much of what HVs say to be honest but have been worrying about this. They say 'no bottles or dummies from 1' because of teeth, but as DS wasn't ever breastfed, surely it's like going cold turkey on all the comfort he gets from his bottles?! He will drink water from a cup, but not milk - though I haven't tried in a while, but he does love his bottles. I'm also doing BLW and the whole idea is that they decide when to drop milk feeds so I don't want to force it. Everyone else I know seems to religiously follow HV advice - thank god for MN.

Maybe try to switch day time milk to cups and leave the bedtime feed as a bottle for the time being? Babies who drink lots of milk from a bottle often cut down once they are drinking it from a cup - they need about 12oz of full fat cow's milk a day from 12-24 months.

the thing with bottles is yes they can be bad for teeth if for example you let your toddler wander round with one in their mouth all day, or they have them at night to feed to sleep. but if they just have two or three bottles of milk a day when sat down having a cuddle and you clean their teeth after the bottle before bed then its fine!

dummies all the time would be bad as well, but again for sleep etc fine, just encourage them not to have it when playing, walking, talking etc. my dd is two next month, has two bottles of milk and a dummy! but the dummy is just for nap time and bedtime, she leaves them in her bed when up and sometimes has one in the pushchair or the carseat if she is tired, so 90% of the day she doesnt havea dummy at all. she has milk in the morning and then milk before bed, then clean her teeth.

ds4 had a bottle of milk before bed until he was 3yrs 4mths when he gave it up no problems :)

ds2 and ds3 bfed till the same age, so as far as i was concerned that cuddle with a bottle of milk before bed was exactly the same.

I'm going to try putting his third milk - 3pm-ish in a cup and see how we get on. His first and last will def stay as bottles I think, the second is before a long nap at 11am and really soothes him so I'm not taking that one off him.

He doesn't feed to sleep or have dummies, but I hate feeling like a bad mum when all I'm doing is what seems to make him happy and healthy!

Just looking forward to shifting to cow's milk, will save a fortune in formula!

He seems to be trying to drop his afternoon feed as well - he often will only have 4 or 5 oz of it. I might try and offer it in a sippy cup to see how he goes.

So maybe move the bedtime bottle to before his bath? And do milk, bath and teeth, story and cuddle and then bed? He doesn't fall asleep eating anyway.

Also, he eats NOTHING. I have no idea how he is so big (getting him weighed tomorrow, think he's going to be over 25lbs). He will eat weetabix or porridge, and will sometimes eat dinner if he feels like it (and I spoon feed him). But everything else he eats two bites of and throws on the floor for the cat. I've given up being bothered by how much food he eats, as he's always had lods of milk and clearly isn't going to waste away anytime soon (98th centile for height and weight). But if he's dropping feeds I don't want him to be going hungry, iyswim?

if he is hungry he will eat :)

if he is dropping hte afternoon feed then it wont hurt to offer it in a cup and yes to bottle, bath, teeth and bed at night time. keep the morning feed as well for now if he wants it, he will let you know hwne he doesnt want it.

and he doesnt look like he is wasting away!