DS won't drink formula

[KrystalS]

My DS is 10mos. He doesn't drink bottles during the day anymore, he just stopped, wouldn't take them anymore. He has 1 bottle before bed, which I struggle to get him to drink, then he has 1 bottle in the middle of the night if he wakes up. He is waking up maybe 3 or 4 nights a week still.

He drinks from a straw cup during the day but he will not drink formula from the cup. I have tried cold water, warm water, doesn't make a difference.

I know he needs more formula than 2 bottles, he only drinks 6 oz in each.

I try and give him foods to make up for the fat he isn't getting with the formula, but is this okay?

When can I start giving him regular milk?

He definitely isn't small, 25lbs, so weight gain is not an issue. But I know he still needs the fat and calories for development.

[sariana]

I really don't know much about this, but my first thought was: Does he eat cereal? Do you make it with formula? Are there any other foods you can make with formula to up his intake?

Also, have you tried different brands? Maybe he doesn't like certain kinds.

I think it is more than fat and calories that formula provides. Hopefully someone with more knowledge about formula will post. My DC are well beyond that stage now.

[mommylamb]

We started on milk at 12 months, but he's not underweight and absolutely refuses formula, I'd try milk at 10 months. Or maybe mix milk and formula together. Are you still breastfeeding too?

[KrystalS]

We started on milk at 12 months, but he's not underweight and absolutely refuses formula, I'd try milk at 10 months. Or maybe mix milk and formula together. Are you still breastfeeding too?

I'm not breastfeeding. I wanted to start mixing his formula but I wasn't sure if it was okay at 10 months. I have given him sips of milk that I was drinking and he does like it. I wasn't sure if there are health reasons why I need to wait until 12 months for regular milk.

[mommylamb]

I think the main health reason is that formula is more complete nutrition than whole milk. But, if he is absolutely refusing formula anyway, I would try mixing it with whole milk and see if that goes over any better. Or maybe just in baby cereal if he'll do that. My DS never liked the cereals. We didn't switch to milk until DS was 12 months, but I know other people do it earlier if necessary. Regardless, I wouldn't sweat it since he's growing fine.

[rin]

I'd check with your pediatrician, but people I know have gotten the go-ahead to give their DC cow's milk before 12 months (I think 11 months or so), but I believe they also had some recommendations for making sure their DC were getting balanced diets. My understanding is that if a baby's getting formula/breastmilk you don't have to worry as much about what kind of solid foods they're eating, but if they aren't getting formula/breastmilk the solid food becomes much more important.

(I think some people also avoid cow's milk at first because of the potential allergen thing, but if your DS has already had it that obviously wouldn't be an issue.)

[wellyes]

Why do you think he'll like cow's milk more than formula?

My DS went through a refusing-the-bottle stage around then. I think the world is just too exciting at that age. What worked for us (not saying it always works) is feeding him either in a car seat or in the dark..... somewhere with minimal distractions. HTH.

[KrystalS]

Why do you think he'll like cow's milk more than formula?

My DS went through a refusing-the-bottle stage around then. I think the world is just too exciting at that age. What worked for us (not saying it always works) is feeding him either in a car seat or in the dark..... somewhere with minimal distractions. HTH.

I really don't know if he would like cow's milk I just know that he isn't drinking the recommended amount of formula. I really don't want to push the bottle at this point because I am happy that he has given it up on his own and I won't have a battle later on.

I do push him to drink a bottle before bed so that he sleeps better, and it takes forever to keep him drinking it. And he absolutely refuses formula in the cup.

[candaceb]

I just went through this. DS went on a nursing strike at 9.5 months and my milk dried up. I had been fighting supply issues for 7 months and I just decided I was done at that point. The problem was that he had been refusing bottles for months, and couldn't quite drink out of any form of cup. He could suck liquids out of a straw but they would all keep dribbling out - and I think it was partly because he didn't like the formula. The pediatrician said to just keep offering it to him and he would figure it out, so we did. He finally figured it out around 10.5 months, but still wasn't very interested in formula. I decided to try whole milk, and that was slightly better. I still gave him formula in his smoothies at lunch until this week, when I ran out. We completely gave up on the "nursing" routine when he weaned - since he wouldn't take a bottle, there were no snuggles while he dribbled milk all over the place. He has dinner at 5:30 and then goes to bed at 6:30 and is up and ready for breakfast at 7:00.