Your Child's Set Off Weening- But How Good is Bottle Feeding?

Your child's now graduated from being breastfed to being bottle-fed.

As soon as mothers are able to wean off their children from breast feeding, most children get affixed to bottle feeding. The bottle for these children acts as a pacifier and they suckle for comfort. Most mothers are also happy with this as it keeps the kids off their hands for some time. However, when this becomes a habit that is when parents start to worry and effort starts to wean them off the bottle.

What you need to know
About one fourth of 2 year olds are regular bottle feeders and this is definitely not advisable. Studies have shown that toddlers who use the bottle more are prone to weight issues; they can either be overweight or underweight. Kids who use the bottle more are full and therefore avoid eating other food and nutritional requirements do not get fulfilled. As most children take sweetened milk in the bottle, the additional sugar will give empty calories leading to excess weight. Children who sleep with their bottle in their mouth are also prone to tooth decay.

Weaning off bottle feeding
As soon as your child has the motor skills to hold a sipper and drink, you should gradually start using the sipper more than the bottle. It may take time to wean off the night time bottle but at least start working on the daytime bottle feed to begin with. It is also important to get your child to leave the bottle before the start of playschool otherwise the child will be more distressed in school not being able to get to the bottle every time.

Disclaimer : Content presented here is for information purposes only, please consult with your doctor for any health queries