When can I drop the night time bottle and more!

[Mommyadel]

My little one is 14 months old. Her night time feed is in a bottle all other daytime liquid intakes is by straw cups. I know she particularly cares for it since it's the only one she gets now. When should I drop it? I've tried other cups but the flow is to strong for her and she can't keep up with it.

[Haribo2012]

Hi are you talking about her bedtime bottle? If so no rush it's nice for you both and soothing, my DS dropped his about 16 months but really because he got a chest infection and wasn't drinking much, after that was cleared up we just gave milk in a cup, I'd always planned to try and get rid before 2 yrs old.
As long as teeth are getting cleaned afterwards I wouldn't worry for a while.

[Lolly]

My DS had his bedtime bottle until he was 2.5- he was very attached to it! We made sure teeth were always cleaned after the bottle though and it was the only bottle he had. Funnily enough we also got rid of his when he had a bad cough, the coughing made him sick at bedtime after the milk so we stopped it and never gave it back. We only gave milk at bedtime if he asked from that point on.

With DD I just swapped her bedtime milk bottle to a sippy cup of milk one evening when she was about 16 months, she took to it with no fuss and then just stopped wanting it after a month or so.

Remember too that at 14 months they don't *need* liquid milk, it's not a feed now, it's a drink. It is a convenient way to get the calcium in them but if they have a balanced diet they only need about 12oz of dairy (milk/cheese/ yoghurt) a day, it doesn't have to be milk. I've just realised that my two have  only had a milk drink at bedtime a handful of times in the last 5 years since DD dropped hers How time flies!!

Laura

Laura

[josie30]

so glad I found this thread as I've been wondering the same thing. DD2 has started to drop the amount of milk she drinks at night (we've also just stopped formula for just full fat milk) but I've been worried about her milk intake. NHS guidelines in the uk are 300ml a day which isn't much at all really and she eats plenty of other calcium rich foods so i'm thinking we will drop the bottle soon and she can have her milk in her cup. I have to confess I think her bottle has become a bit of a prop so bedtime could be interesting......