How to Wean From Breast-Fed to Bottles

If mother and child are comfortable, breastfeeding should continue until the child reaches her first birthday, recommends the American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP) Healthy Children website. In the past, mothers in America have leaned toward weaning earlier than the AAP recommendation. However, recent times have seen late weaning become much more acceptable. Personal choice and family circumstances will likely influence when you decide to start the weaning process. Preparation and a positive attitude should help increase your chances of weaning your child successfully.

Instructions

1

Purchase several different kinds of nipples and bottles. You will need the nipples to be similar to a breast nipple in texture and shape. Having a plastic or silicone nipple in his mouth will be a new sensation for your baby, and if it is too hard or overly big, he will become frustrated and may refuse to feed.

2

Ask someone you trust to give your baby her first bottle. Your child is more likely to accept a substitute feeding from someone other than her mother, according to the Australian Breastfeeding Association. The warmth, comfort and familiarity of mom means she will just want you to breastfeed her.

3

Decide which feeding you plan to replace first. Ideally, this should be your baby's least favorite feeding of the day, suggests the La Leche League International. The chosen feeding should be during daylight hours. Weaning at night is often challenging because you may be tempted to give up on the bottle and breastfeed your baby so you can go back to sleep sooner.

4

Offer your baby the bottle 15 minutes before she is due for a feeding. She should be interested but not so hungry that she is hysterical. If your partner is doing the feeding, leave the room they are in altogether. If the baby sees you, she will want to be breastfed immediately and will not entertain the idea of something new.

5

Add a small amount of breast milk to the bottle's nipple; this should encourage the baby to suck on it. Let him hold the nipple in his mouth and play with it so he can become familiar with the texture. This is important because the sucking motion required to feed from a bottle is different than the mouth and tongue movements used to breastfeed.

6

Anticipate resistance. The chance of your baby playing with the bottle nipple for a while and then refusing the feeding altogether is high. Try three times. If he is still refusing the bottle after this, you need to stop. Be sure to wait 10 minutes before offering him the breast; otherwise, he will associate refusing the bottle with getting what he wants. If you accept that there will be setbacks, the experience will be less stressful for both of you.

7

Allow up to one week in between each bottle-for-breast substitution. Weaning is a slow process when done correctly and can take up to 6 months or longer, according to the Australian Breastfeeding Association. Slow weaning is also important to ensure that your breasts do not become sore and prone to infection.