Getting Baby off of Formula

It is best to wean your baby off of formula gradually(especially if under 1 year old). Since you do not know if your baby is allergic or not, you should give formula and whole milk separately. Expect a little constipation! If your baby will use a sippy cup, that is a great way to separate the two.

Good Luck

P. D
Child care provider for 10 years and a 13 year old son.

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I started this week, myself. I have done 1/2 formula and 1/2 milk. No problem.

Some kids may not mind the taste of milk and you don't need to mix. Depends on the child, obviously.

I heard you should not put the milk in the bottle because you only need to then wean them from the bottle. I found my baby would not take enought milk & formula so I need to ignore that rule & work on weaning from the bottle as well.

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I am starting today with whole milk vit D one doctor told me to use an ounce of whole milk and the rest formula and go up from there. Another doctor told me to give 1/2 whole and 1/2 formula until he is fully on formula. I am going to start off with 1 ounce and work my way up so that I can watch for any allergic reactions. Hope this helps. D.

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I wud start with one feed of whole milk and see how her stomach reacts to it and then add another feed.Do it gradually.I started with my daughter at 11 months ,first few days were one feed of whole milk and no stomach changes(thank God!).By the end of her 11th month she was fully on Oberweis whole milk.Hope this helps!

Whole cow's milk is *not* a substitute for formula or breast milk. It is simply a convenient way for your kid to get calcium and protein. A balanced diet is what the formula should be replaced with. It sounds like your girl is eating a variety of foods, but everything that I've read says you should not give milk before 1 year of age. Whole milk yogurt, which is easier to digest, is ok after about 7 months, though.

I would ask your Dr. whether you should be stopping the formula before age 1.

I just went cold turkey with both of mine and they did not mind at all!!

Hello,

Allergies aren't really a concern if you are formula feeding, since formula is made of cow's milk. The main concern is anemia, because cow's milk doesn't have a lot of iron and it is not easily absorbed. Kids who switch to whole milk earlier risk becoming anemic versus when they are a little older and their iron needs are lower.

I weaned my daugher slowly by giving milk in a sippy cup and gradually subtracting bottle feedings. I agree with a previous poster to put milk in a cup so the milk so not to associate it with the bottle.

Good luck!

I would definitely check with your pediatrician. I know my doctor would not let me switch to whole milk until the baby was at least 12 months old. Before then they are still developing and need the extra vitamins and nutrients that formula has.

I would definitely consult with your doctor, but we switched our daughter to half formula and half whole milk when she was a little over 11 months. She took to it well and by her first birthday she was drinking just the milk by itself.

Have you consulted your doctor? My doctor (and other things I've read) indicated not switching until one yr. At one year,the digestive system is more mature. I think allergies is another reason they suggest waiting.

But about a week after my daughter's first birthday, we did milk in a cup (cold turkey!) and she was absolutely fine.

Good luck!

My daughter was not good with transitions. So, what we did, based upon the advice of others, was to still keep the bottle, but gradually decrease the amount of formula in it and mix in more whole milk. For example, if she was taking a 6 ounce bottle, we would maybe start with 4 oz. of formula and then 2 oz. of milk. Do that for a few days. Then go to 3 and 3. And, then 4 of milk and 2 of formula. And keep decreasing the formula until it was all milk. I think she got used to the taste easier that way. Then after a few weeks or so of all milk, we got rid of the bottles by around 12 months. If she will take a sippy cup well, try it with a sippy cup instead of the bottle. However, we had to do it in two steps; one for the milk and then one for the bottle. It worked well for us.

I would ask your doctor if it is ok to switch this early. From what I know you are suppose to wait until the child a year old. In any case, I just switch to whole milk when my son turned one. He really did not notice the difference. We also went from bottle to sippy cup with the milk.
Good luck.

Annie, I did 24 hours no formula, lots of Pedialyte then after the 24 hours start the whole milk. My only suggestion is that you use the highes quality of whole milk.

I would try to give her whole milk, and see how she reacts. If she doesn't take to it right away, I would slowly start adding an ounce or two of milk to her formula every few days until she is getting all milk.