How much milk should an 8.5 month old have?

[Amberc]

My 8.5 m/o son still has a bottle of formula every 3 hours even though he is weaned (3 meals a day eats half to all of it). Am I meant to reduce his intake? I thought he would just reduce it himself by leaving some but he doesn't. Wondering if I should be more proactive or if I should just continue?

Hi Amberc, goodness, he likes his milk doesn't he? My DS is the same- still on 2-3 bottles a day at 13mths on top of 3 meals, and 1 in the night. When you say every 3hrs do you mean just during the day? How many ounces in a bottle? I think 8.5mths is still quite young so I would just give him whatever he wants especially as he is eating a good amount of solids too. Do you give him water with his meals and in between? Do you give milk or food first? Sorry for all the questions just trying to get a better picture?

Well it's 3 hourly until bedtime and nothing in the night (although he is up before 6am). He has water with every meal and the milk kind of fits in between the solid feeds. He doesn't eat loads of solids and I wonder if I dropped a feed he might eat more solid food. TMI but his poos are still like baby poos and I think that is a combination of not enough solid food and plenty of milk when I know lots of other babies his age have 'adult' poos!

So is he having about 5 bottles a day? I think that's the same as my DS at that age then he dropped to 4 at about 9mths. Maybe you could try upping the solids and always give solids and water first. Nutritionally speaking though, the milk is really good for them so I wouldn't worry too much