Weaning is when a baby transitions from breast milk to other sources of nourishment. When to wean is a personal decision. Moms may be influenced by a return to work, her health or the baby's, or simply a feeling that the time is right.
Weaning a baby is a gradual process that calls for patience and understanding from both you and your child.
2. 1
Overview
Weaning is when a baby transitions from breast
milk to other sources of nourishment. When to
wean is a personal decision. Moms may be
influenced by a return to work, her health or the
baby's, or simply a feeling that the time is right.
Weaning a baby is a gradual process that calls for
patience and understanding from both you and
your child.
3. 2
Deciding When to Wean
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends
feeding babies only breast milk for the first 6
months of life. After that, the AAP recommends
that a combination of solid foods and breast milk
be given until a baby is at least 1 year old.
4. 3
Deciding When to Wean
Some experts say that after the first birthday is the
best time to begin weaning because kids are more
adaptable to change at that age. A 1-year-old baby
is also eating more solid foods and so may
naturally lose interest in nursing. Engorgement will
also become less of a problem for moms around
this time because as the demand for breast milk
decreases, so does milk production.
5. 4
Deciding When to Wean
Weaning does not have to be an all-or-nothing
proposition. Some women choose to wean during
the day and breastfeed at night, depending on
their work situation and their schedules. Some
children wean themselves earlier than the mother
had intended and some babies are resistant to
weaning when the mother is ready.
6. 5
Deciding When to Wean
Weaning is easier if a child has also taken milk
from another source. So try giving an occasional
bottle of breast milk to your little one once
breastfeeding is well-established — even if you
plan to continue breastfeeding, this can facilitate
weaning later. This also allows other family
members to feed the baby and also makes it
possible to leave your child with a caregiver.
7. 6
Deciding When to Wean
If you decide to wean before 1 year or find that
you're not making enough milk, you will need to
give your child an iron-fortified formula. Check
with the doctor to see what formula is right for
your child. If your child is near the first birthday,
consider placing formula in a cup instead of a
bottle.
8. 7
Deciding When to Wean
Although some kids are content to nurse
indefinitely and will wait for their mothers to
initiate weaning, others will give clues that they're
ready to wean. They may express indifference or
crankiness when nursed or may nurse in shorter
sessions than they did before.
9. 8
How to Wean
To allow both mother and baby to adjust physically
and emotionally to the change, weaning should be
a gradual process.
10. 9
How to Wean
One approach is to drop one feeding session a
week until the child is taking all of the feeds from a
bottle or cup. If you are planning to continue to
give your child pumped breast milk, you will need
to pump in order to keep up your milk supply. If
you are weaning your child off breast milk,
gradually dropping feeds can help avoid
engorgement. You might want to start by
eliminating the midday feeding because it's usually
the smallest and most inconvenient — especially
for working moms. Many m
11. 10
How to Wean
Another approach is to leave the decision of when
to wean completely up to a child. Once they're
eating three meals of solid food a day (plus snacks
in between), kids often breastfeed less and less. In
this situation, you may find that your milk will dry
up from lack of demand, and pumping may be
necessary if you want to keep the milk flowing.
12. 11
How to Wean
If your child is breastfeeding less, make sure he or
she is getting enough formula or milk. Check with
the doctor about the amount your child should be
having.
