No formula AT ALL after 12 months?

[Marisa6826]

I've been working really hard at feeding Sophie solids everyday. And she loves them ( and CHOWS!) - but she will cry and cry if I don't give her the bottle afterward.

She's 11 months old now and isn't showing any signs of giving up her beloved formula. I know that the cow's milk switchover is supposed to start at one year, but I'm really concerned that she's not going to be getting the nutrition she is from the formula if I switch her over and she continues to consume the same quanitity of milk.

Do I HAVE to stop the formula cold turkey?? Can I stay with the Similac Advance? I really am inclined to believe that those stage two formulas are more propaganda than anything else. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

One other thing - is it strange that she doesn't want to hold her own bottle at this point? She's not into the sippy cups either.

-m

[Annette_C]

Marisa,
First of all, it's not strange for Sophie not wanting to hold her own bottle and that she's not interested in a sippy yet. Give her time and she will! Babies develop at their own pace. Some are more independent than others at first but, in the end, they all catch up to one another.
As far as quitting formula cold-turkey, you don't have to if you don't want to. Sabrina was the same as Sophie at her age so, after her 12 mo. checkup when her ped suggested weaning off formula, we decided to start cutting the formula down and mixing in some whole milk. That gave our DD a chance to get used to the new taste and we felt better because she still got some of the nutrients from the formula.
This is what we did:
We started with a 2(formula) to 1(milk)ratio. After about two weeks to a month (depending on how the baby reacts to it), we went to 50/50. Then to 2 to 1 but 2 being milk and 1 formula. Finally, just milk.
At that point, if you are still concerned about nutrition, just add liquid vitamin to the bottle (or sippy). I'm sure her ped will recommend a vitamin supplement for her at her 12 mo. checkup.
HTH,
Annette
SAHM to Sabrina 6/24/02

[egoldber]

We weaned Sarah gradually from formula to whole milk. Sarah actually reacted quite negatively to whole milk initially, so we had to do it really slowly. But by, say, 14 months? she was on whole milk rather than formula.

The thing with formula is that it is a very high fat food. And while toddlers need fat in their diet, they generally don't need as much as formula provides. And their weight gain slows down tremendously after 12 months, so they really don't need all that extra fat.

HTH,

[Marisa6826]

Annette and Beth-

Thanks for the sage Mommy advice. I knew from what I've read here that you have to gradually convert, I am just concerned that Sophie still REALLY seems to want/need her formula. I'm somewhat lactose intolerant and I've told that to the Ped. He said it wasn't an issue. I'm not so inclined to write it off that quickly.

As I've mentioned in the past, my current Ped tends to be pushy about timelines and then goes a little beyond bounds in what is "parent" vs. "doctor" decisions. He told me at Sophie's 9m visit that she had to be off bottles by 12m. First off, it's not his business and secondly, I'm not pushing Sophie to do something she's clearly not ready for. At any rate, I will be switching to a new Ped once we move. I've been looking for an excuse to do it, so now I have a good one!

He did, however, mention that he would be switching her to vitamins at 12m and that I would be stopping her fluoride drops at that point. She has very little interest in water or juice at the moment, so I'm wondering if her vitamins will have fluoride in them.

I've heard that the vitamin drops are gross, and credibility to that? Or is it iron drops I'm thinking of?

-m

[egoldber]

Just FYI, my ped never recommended vitamin drops, iron drops or fluoride supplements. There isn't necessarily any need for any of them.

If Sophie isn't eating well, or a wide variety of foods, then you might want to consider continuing her on formula. But honestly, toddler portion sizes are REALLY small! A "serving" of bread, for example, is a 1/4 slice of bread. So even when they seem to eat very little, they are usually getting what they need.

And often peds say things like "your baby has to be off bottles by 12 months" knowing full well that most babies are still on bottles at 12 months but wanting to give the parents a sense of urgency to start making the switch. And it is definitely easier to switch a 12 month old than an 18 month old.

Not that this isn't COMPLETELY annoying and your ped definitely sounds like he could use a bedside manner transplant!!! But remember that the AVERAGE parent they deal with is NOWHERE near as well informed as the moms and dads on these boards! We are by FAR the exceptions! But again, there's absolutely no excuse for him to make you feel uncomfortable! Maybe when you move you can find a new ped?

[JElaineB]

Whole milk (which is recommended until age 2) has 8 grams of fat per 8 fluid ounces and at least Enfamil with Iron has 5.3 grams of fat per 5 fluid ounces, which is equivalent to 8.48 grams of fat per 8 fluid ounces. So the fat content between whole milk and formula is not significantly different.

Jennifer
mom to Jacob 9/27/02