Today my daughter had a check up at the doctors. She will be 11 months old next week. I try to feed her real food but it seems like she only likes cheerios and those gerber snacks by the baby food isle. The doctor asked how many bottles I give my baby a day on formula and when I told him 7-8, he seemed very shocked and said that it wasnt good for her. That she should only be having 4 bottles of formula a day. That also she should not be falling asleep with a bottle. At dinner time I feed her what we are eating and she will eat a little bit of chicken, maybe some broccoli and then cry like crazy until I put her in her crib and give her a bottle. Can anybody I tell me what I am doing wrong and how do I go about making her eat more? After this visit I feel like I'm not being a very good mommy. He also said next month, when she is a year she should only be having 16oz of formula a day.
I should have mentioned that each bottle has 4 ounces in it. Its one of those similac bottles.
Thank you for all of your answers. When I try and feed her at dinner she sits there for 5 minutes and no matter what she is eating she flips out and cries..So what do you do in that situation? Just let her cry until she eats? I know she wants a bottle so it seems kind of cruel to not give her one. I have a lot of baby food in a jar so would that be better to feed her then the food I eat? This is my first child so Im not sure what to do.
There is nothing wrong with still being on formula. My second child ate a lot of table food early on, but my firstborn wasn't interested until he was well past a year old.
Don't give her formula bottles in bed though. That leads to tooth rot. Water bottles only if she is laying down.
Considering that my dr wouldn't let me give my child anything other than formula for the first year, I find his response odd. Maybe look online for feeding guidelines for 11months old.
She doesn't need to be eating solid food, yet, for nutrition. She gets her main nutrition from formula. So, just let her eat what she wants, and then give her a bottle. A little bit of chicken, some broccoli is a good amount. Have you started using sippy cups? If she used a sippy cup she could have her formula while at the table.
As to the number of bottles. Did the doctor know you were saying 7-8 4 oz. bottles? I suspect he thought the bottles were 8 oz. That is the usual amount given at one time to a baby your daughter's age. 7-40z bottles is 24 oz. 4-8 oz bottles is 32 oz, So you're not giving her too much formula.
As to next month, I also suggest this is just a guideline. I suggest that it's not unusual at all for a 1 yo baby to still be drinking 24 oz of formula and to not be eating much solid food. This was my granddaughter at a year. She's now two, eating more solid food but still drinking about 24 oz of almond milk. She's healthy, meeting developmental milestones, and an appropriate height and weight.
My granddaughter until the last few months preferred finger food. If you're not already giving her food that she can pick up with her fingers you could try that.
You are a good mommy! You are doing OK.
At your next appointment, be sure that you and the doctor are talking about the same thing.
I suggest that you get a book(s) from the library or buy a book, or google and read on the Internet about what to expect at each age for your daughter. A good book, that I've often seen at Thrift Stores, is What to Expect the First Year and What To Expect During the Toddler Years.
You don't mention how many ounces are in each bottle, that may make a difference. Four bottles a day doesn't seem like very much to me.
The reason he doesn't want you putting her in bed with a bottle is that it will rot her teeth. When baby drinks and falls asleep the milk just sits in their mouth and bacteria and decay can develop. It is best to feed your little one and then put her in bed.
M
Just cut back the bottles. You will probably have a rough few days, but she will adjust. She will then start to eat more table food. You are doing fine.
Don't worry. My kids all had bottles in their cribs like every other kid 35 years ago. All have great teeth but that is frowned upon in Today's world and in retrospect it is not the greatest of ideas. Do the best you can.
Does your doc know it is only four ounces. That changes things. Maybe cut out two bottles. I was thinking eight, eight oz bottles. Yes that is a lot, but it is not what she is getting. Maybe put water in her bottle that she takes to bed. Again I think you are doing fine. They all grow up, in spite of what we do to them lol!
Hi M.,
Why don't you try pureeing the food you make for your dinner and give it to her? Put the chicken and broccoli together in a food processor and see how that goes? Even small chunks of chicken, etc. may be too much for her to handle at only 11 months old. Cheerios and such are fine because they melt in the mouth. If processing it isn't possible, then yes, I would stick to jarred baby food. We loved the Earth's Best brand. It's organic.
Ditto Marda's response. 32 oz of formula should be fine for a 1yr old...maybe your ped thought you meant 8oz bottles. Is there a reason why you only give her 4 oz at a time?
My youngest didn't really do solids until after 1, either. At 20 months, she eats a huge variety of foods and is 99th percentile for height and 50th percentile for weight.
That being said, she wasn't a fan of baby food or the "powdered" cereals. What kind and what texture foods are you giving her? Cheerios is pretty normal for starter finger foods. Ours liked rice as well. We transitioned her to milk around 14 months (she had some milk protein inolerance - she was on nutramigen).
The amount of formula is up for debate. Some believe that solid food is more for getting used to table foods than to provide the main source of calories. Others believe that she should be weaned off formula and only on solids by 1 yr.
BUT Do not let her sleep with a bottle. This will rot her teeth. The formula has sugars that weaken the enamel of her teeth when in constant contact. If she must have something to drink to go to sleep, make it water.
The doctor already told you - stop feeding so many bottles and don't let her go to sleep with a bottle.
start a schedule and be consistent
wake/eat - 1 bottle and 1 baby food
eat at lunch time - 1 bottle and 1 baby food
eat at about 3pm for afternoon snack - 1 bottle
eat at dinner - 1 bottle and 2 baby foods.
Next, go to the library and find their parenting section and pick out a couple books that look good. I highly recommend anything by Ferber.
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change to 8oz bottles and feed one bottle per meal. Otherwise do two 4oz bottles per meal. At that age she should be getting 20-24oz per day - per our ped through two kids (one just went through and one there now)
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per you SWH
At dinner - I feed my DS an 8 oz bottle. About 5-10 min later I start spoon feeding baby food. If it's going well, I offer a second baby food. If he's slowing down, then after we finish I switch to about 10 cherrios (or yogurt melts or puffs) and let him work on his dexterity and feeding himself. He plays with the cherrios for about 10 minutes and then dinner is done!
Awake for an hour/bath and then bed at 7p.
First, remember that pediatricians to not all agree on this, so your doctor is giving you his opinion, not the only, gospel way to do something. Did the doctor tell you that your baby is undernourished or overweight (a pretty ridiculous classification for a baby, but still)? If not...relax!! She is growing and thriving, that is the most important thing, not that she drinks precisely 16oz of cow's milk the day she turns one! My kiddos were both breastfed, but they both still took 24oz in bottles at daycare plus morning and night nursing until well after one year old. They went through phases with food- maybe half an avocado one day, only a teensy speck of carrot the next day. At this age she is learning about textures, tastes, colors, and the wide possibilities of food. Keep offering her table food, she will catch on. It took me a while, but I learned to nod and smile when my pediatrician said "by X date, baby should do X," when X is anything like eating certain foods, using the potty, etc.
Babies come with guidelines, not deadlines :)
If she is growing, peeing, and pooping...you are doing great!!
until age 1.. all of the baby's nutrition comes from formula. they are supposed to get 24-32 oz of formula per day.. if they are getting less than 24 oz.. they are not getting enough nutrition or calories... if they are getting more than 32 oz... then they need to eat more food less formula.
by the time she is 1 year old.. she should start transitioning off of formula and on to whole cows milk. BUT cows milk is not a complete food.. it does nto have all of the vitamins and minerals in it..so she needs to be eating a good varied diet of table foods before she switches from formula to milk.
my duahter was on formula for about 15 months as she was not a good eater at all. she didn't care for baby food.. and really hated table food.
so.. yes.. if she will eat baby food give her baby food.. try whatever table food she will eat.. at her age.. she can eat anything you eat. just cut it up.. canned fruit is soft and easy.. so are canned veggies.. or steam fresh veggies very well done. bread cereal and crackers and good..
baby cereal or oatmeal for breakfast.. toast waffles eggs.. whatever.. try feeding her food first for every meal so she fills up on food and has less formula..
I think we did 4 oz bottles maybe 4 times a day after age 1..
Updated
until age 1.. all of the baby's nutrition comes from formula. they are supposed to get 24-32 oz of formula per day.. if they are getting less than 24 oz.. they are not getting enough nutrition or calories... if they are getting more than 32 oz... then they need to eat more food less formula.
by the time she is 1 year old.. she should start transitioning off of formula and on to whole cows milk. BUT cows milk is not a complete food.. it does nto have all of the vitamins and minerals in it..so she needs to be eating a good varied diet of table foods before she switches from formula to milk.
my duahter was on formula for about 15 months as she was not a good eater at all. she didn't care for baby food.. and really hated table food.
so.. yes.. if she will eat baby food give her baby food.. try whatever table food she will eat.. at her age.. she can eat anything you eat. just cut it up.. canned fruit is soft and easy.. so are canned veggies.. or steam fresh veggies very well done. bread cereal and crackers and good..
baby cereal or oatmeal for breakfast.. toast waffles eggs.. whatever.. try feeding her food first for every meal so she fills up on food and has less formula..
I think we did 4 oz bottles maybe 4 times a day after age 1..
A baby of any age should NEVER be put to bed with a bottle - choking, rotting teeth are 2 of the major concerns, but its just a bad and unnecessary habit. Yes, an 11 month old should be at most having formula with each meal, and one before bed. Your baby is not hungry for food due to all the formula. 3 meals, 2 snacks, 1 bedtime bottle is the most that's needed - have a silly of water available at all times.
I think sometimes docs just are stupid. They are not God and if you don't agree then don't do what they say.
That said. I think you need to google How much formula should me 11 month old baby be eating per day.
I found that 24-36 ounces is suggested. After that they need to fill in with food. I wouldn't like this doc.
Falling asleep with formula (or milk or juice) will rot her teeth out very quickly.
It's a very bad habit.
Before bed you should be brushing her teeth so they are clean.
Then all she can have at night to drink is water (that won't hurt her teeth).
If she's eating more in the way of regular food then she'll ease off on how much formula she needs.
But if she's not eating a lot of solid foods yet then the formula is fine.
My son didn't take to solids till just about his first birthday.
Some kids start solids sooner and some start them later.
Pureed vegetables, mashed potatoes (and sweet potatoes), soft carrot sticks (boil them till they are fairly soft), oatmeal (non sweetened), cream of wheat, rice cereal - all are great foods to start with.
It takes awhile for them to learn what to do with their tongue.
The motion it uses to suck on a bottle is different from what they need to do for chewing and swallowing solids.
Once the soft foods are managed, then don't puree them as finely, let them be a little chunky, and she'll get use to different textures.
It can take awhile.
Don't let what the Dr said frazzle you too much.
Just remember nothing but water in the bottle at bedtime.
It's as simple as it sounds: Just stop giving her so many bottles.
If your daughter is using the bottle to soothe herself to sleep, how will you wean her off? You've started a bad habit, you've got to stop it. At 11 months, you should be weaning her off of bottles altogether.
Try giving her sippy cups of milk with her meals. The bottles can be "snacks" in between meals. In other words, three meals/day, with sippy cups of milk, and a bottle in between each meal (2 bottles/day), and maybe one more bottle before bed (but NOT in the crib).
Having a bottle in the crib can cause a whole mess of problems. You will have a harder time weaning her off, teeth problems, ear infections... the list goes on.
Your daughter won't like it. She'll cry & whine. Who ever said your sole purpose in life was to make your child happy? You know what's best for her and she doesn't have to like it.
my daughter only drinks 2 bottles a day. She will be a 1 year old in a week, and I have switched her to milk, and she only has one bottle when she goes to bed now. Try giving her different foods, by that age she should be eating most of what you eat
and once your child turns a year stop the formula, and give her milk, its better for them!
I am sure you are a wonderful mom, dont be too hard on yourself!
I am wondering, did you start introducing food with baby cereal and/or the stage 1 veggies/fruits? And now you have progressed all the way to regular table food, but she just does not like it? Or did she start with table food? Not judging, it would help me to help you to know this.
Maybe the texture of the table food is just too much for her. I would go back to baby food and baby cereal (either puree your own or the jars) and start there. Slowly add in more items with texture as she gets used to it.
Also, maybe she freaks out because she is hungry and cant get full fast enough at the dinner table.... try giving her a small bottle before you sit her down to feed her dinner. That way she wont be urgently hungry and can spend more time exploring the new foods.
I think you should give her the after dinner bottle, but not in her crib. When babies drink from bottles while laying down, some of the liquid runs down the side of their face and into their ears causing ear infections. Also, the liquid stays in their mouth and on their teeth causing tooth problems.
It doesn't take much food to fill up a baby's tummy. Look at her little fist - that's the size of her tummy. So, a few bites of whatever you're eating may be enough for her. If you want her to eat more, just don't give her anything (bottles or food) for at least 2.5 - 3 hours before dinner to ensure that she's hungry. Then, encourage her to eat as much as possible. Don't give her the after dinner bottle right away. Make her wait a bit. She might be encouraged to start eating more at dinner if she knows she's going to have to wait for the bottle.
