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View Full Version : Would you ever recommend reducing a toddler's nursing if....



brittone2
08-16-2005, 06:15 PM
He was just not eating much in the way of solids? Logan has NEVER been a huge solids fan. The most he ever ate of baby food (homemade or jarred) was a whopping 8 spoons I believe. He went to table foods early...9-10 months. He will pick here and there but doesn't eat much volume.

His iron was okay at his 12 month visit. I haven't taken him for his 18 month well baby as we just moved and he just turned 18 months yesterday.

I don't think he has a textural aversion as he eats a great variety of things, just no big amount. I'm not talking typical toddler stuff either...I mean today he literally ate 2 grape tomatoes all day. Yesterday he ate shredded cheese and some string beans. He will sometimes pick for 2-3 meals, sometimes he only eats a simple snack. I only offer healthy stuff. If I would let him eat crackers he'd eat them all day I'm sure. But I try to do minimally processed foods and I want to stick by that. He eats things like hummus and olives, so it is an interesting variety, but I mean....really small volume!!!

I try feeding him when he's on the go and feeding him when he's distracted. It works a little better once in a while but he's still just not a fan. He's growing fine, he's healthy, he's full of energy. I'm not one to worry and I totally believe in the value of breastmilk. But sometimes I wonder if he doesn't eat because he still nurses so much (he nurses a LOT). He stays latched on for an entire 2 hour nap sometimes and also eats 2-3 times a night while we're cosleeping.

I totally would tell any other mom that her toddler will eat when he's ready. I know that intuitively and believe that. I don't want food to be a battle. We try no to coerce, praise wildly, etc....just try to be neutral on feeding. But...I can't get the child to eat! Even things he likes like grapes, apples, blueberries....it is a few nibbles and he's done. FYI he also hates hates hates the high chair. He'll sit better at a stool at our peninsula but that doesn't usually translate to any more eating.

I feel like he's nursing because he needs the extra calories. He is getting molars in (two broken through and two on the way) so that's exacerbating things, but he's never ever been a big volume eater. At all.

So would you ever recommend reducing nursing intake to see if they would eat more table food? I don't think he'd go for it anyway but I'm not sure what i should do...I guess just hang in there and wait for him to eat on his own when he's ready?

Sigh. I usually am very relaxed about it but now that he's 18 months and still just not eating much volume...I guess I want to make sure he's doing okay. He's hitting all of his milestones and then some (he's mister chatty in terms of vocabulary) and has only been sick 3x in 18 months, one of which was a one day fever w/ no other symptoms.

ETA: I should add that he nurses probably 8x a day total...not just nap and night time.

lizajane
08-16-2005, 08:28 PM
i am sorry i don't know the answer to your actual question! but it seems to me that you know he is healthy/growing/happy. you know breastmilk provides valuable nutrients and fat. so i would just ask you to consider what YOU want for him. it is clear that he loves to nurse! if you love it, then in my totally uneducated opinion you should be able to keep allowing him to make his eating decisions. but if you are feeling worn out by the constant nursing, then maybe you could distract him from a nursing session or two by spending a few days on the go doing some of his fav things (park? pool? walks?) and keep offering solids snacks along the way???

my 6.5 month old appears to have no interest in solids (everything ELSE goes straight into his mouth!!!) so maybe i will be looking to you for some advice in a few months!

Rachels
08-16-2005, 08:47 PM
No. It's pretty common for toddlers that age to just barely eat. I couldn't believe it when I saw it happen here, but I was assured I was in excellent company. Reducing nursing will cut out nutrition and calories without actually getting him interested in food. He sounds like a typical toddler, both in the frequency of his nursing and in his reaction to solids. He's lucky to have you responding to him so well. Hang in there. They do eventually eat.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
New baby coming in October!
(Holy smokes, it's a boy!!!)


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Maya Angelou
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Nursed for three years!

brittone2
08-17-2005, 08:51 AM
Thanks ladies :) I have no problem with him nursing a lot, although at times it can be tiring, and AF recently returned for the first time PP and I'm on day 11 of her...so that's wearing me out a bit ;)

Yes, I feel fortunate that we DO have BFing to rely on for extra nutrition and calories. I guess he's never eaten much but lately I'm lucky to get him to eat *anything* at all. I guess every once in a while I have that self doubt creeping in that maybe I "caused" this by just allowing him to nurse whenever as a toddler. Intuitively I guess I know it isn't true, but I still worry sometimes when I see how little he eats.

On the bright side, I've had a voracious appetite and I'm using his nursing to my advantage on that front LOL ;)

Thanks for the reassurance. I guess he'll eat when he eats :)

aliceinwonderland
08-17-2005, 09:27 AM
I really don't know.My intial instict is to keep nursing, so I could get as many calories into him as possible. Wehn DS fell on his chart for weigh (as soon as he became more mobile), his ped was saying things like, feed more milk (human and cow, I was only part-time nursing at the time), etc. He did not say that milk makes him full so he won't try other foods...Maybe experiement with one meal, where you let him have a break from nursing for a while, and see if that increases his appetite at the next meal?

i say i don't know because our ped said the above, byt my parents (who are both doctors) kept telling me he's filling up on your milk and not eating. Which i don;t think was entirely true....

sntm
08-18-2005, 06:01 PM
Jack did that too. He was always a small volume eater until he got closer to two. Now he can eat a whole sandwich, etc. He ate two full-sized ears of corn, half a cup of green beans, and half a fish stick the other night for dinner, after having a predinner snack of grapes. Of course, he will still nurse 8x a day if I'm available!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03
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Breastfeeding 2 years & counting

brittone2
08-19-2005, 09:26 AM
Thanks Shannon!! I sometimes just look at other kiddos his age or even much younger and I can't *believe* how much they eat!! DS ate about 3 bites of toast this morning for breakfast, and the entire rest of the day he'll probably eat another tablespoonful of food total if I'm lucky.

Glad to know that he'll probably outgrow it eventually ;) Thanks for the reassurance!

ellies mom
08-19-2005, 11:29 AM
Beth

My DD is the same way. I swear she eats almost nothing (other than nursing). It is so nice to know we aren't alone on this. Thanks for asking the question because I wonder the same thing.

sntm
08-20-2005, 03:10 AM
And if he backtracks, don't worry. Jack will still have occasional days where he subsists on breastmilk and air!
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shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03
mama to Jack 6/6/03
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_sapphire_24m.gif[/img][/url]
Breastfeeding 2 years & counting

brittone2
08-21-2005, 09:00 PM
well girls, all I can say is thank goodness we have our boobs :)

Glad to know Logan is in good company on his existing on breastmilk, air, and the occasional bite of cheese or apples :P

papal
08-22-2005, 08:40 AM
I guess I will be the voice of dissent here. I have no scientific reasons or anything else to back me up, just mommy instinct, so feel free to ignore.
When Leela was around 15 months or so, if I let her, she would only have drunk cow milk and nothing else. I had to cut back and give her 3 cups a day.. that was the only way I got her to eat regular food. I am sure cow milk does not compare to bm in terms of nutrients (or does it?) but I do think if he is getting milk, he won't have as much interest in other food. JMO.

Wife_and_mommy
08-22-2005, 09:15 AM
I'm not opposed to giving baby BM if that's all you/he wants but O is definitely in the camp of "milk(cow/Pedia/any!) all day? I'll take all you'll give me!"

I have to consciously cut her back because she would just drink milk all day and eat nothing else if I let her. She's *not* a major volume eater as it is so I try to make sure I'm giving her veggies, fruits, and other nutrients. She definitely gets a morning and night cup and, depending on the day, I might give her more during.


Elizabeth

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Our second morsel due early February 2006!