Lazy Eater

Updated on October 29, 2007
J.L. asks from Cleveland, OH
13 answers

Hi,

My son is almost 8 years old and has always been a lazy eater, probably a huge reason why breastfeeding was such a struggle. He has been drinking out of avent bottles since about 2 weeks old (with breast until 2 months) and gets to a point every couple months where he will suck really hard and then give up after only finishing half of it. So each time this happened, we switched to the larget nipple, and he started drinking great again. However this time, there is no larger size.
So here is my question...what bottles have fast flow nipples? He has never had nipple confusion, eats solids great, is at the perfect average weight, but it is a fight to get 20 ounces in him for the past week or so. He is generally a really happy boy who sleeps great.
Any suggestions???

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B.E.

answers from Cincinnati on

What I have always done, that has seemed to work great is to just use a knife stick it in the hole in the nipple and make it bigger so that the milk/formula comes out faster!

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M.E.

answers from Lexington on

maybe you are over feeding him. my little girl has never taken more than 4 or 5 ounces of anything since she was born. maybe you need to try the "less, more often" approach. give less ounces more often during the day and see if that helps. if he's hungry, he'll eat and when he's full, he'll stop.

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B.S.

answers from Cleveland on

I had to take a double-take on your post bc it says your son is 8 YEARS old and you want a faster nipple bottle!! LOL..hahaha....: )

anyhow....It sounds to me like your son is just having an "off" week. I don't think it's the nipple. The Avent #4 flow should be fast enough, but I'm wondering if maybe he's just going through a phase of not wanting to eat so much... is he teething? maybe is coming down with something? I would give it a week or two and see if his milk intake increases...all babies go though up and down eating habbits : ) Have you tried the sippy cup?

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J.A.

answers from Youngstown on

My 10 mos. old daughter was doing the same thing at around 7 mos. We had introduced the Nuby sippy cup (with nipple vs. spout) at around 6 mos. and she took to it well. So when she started refusing the bottle, we just switched to the sippy cup and she has used it ever since (now we have switched to the one with a spout). However, she is breasted most of the time and only takes milk from a sippy cup 2 days a week while i work. Try it....it might help :)

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W.C.

answers from Lexington on

It's time to go to the cup. We started ours at 5 and 6 mo just by having them play with it. Once he figures out he can drink alot faster he'll love it - probably.... :)

Good luck!

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T.M.

answers from Cleveland on

Hi,
I know there is one that has a y cut on it. For thicker formulas. Both of our kids had acid reflux as an infant and we had to thicken their formula. For a while we had to take a normal nipple and cut a little slit in the top so it would flow out better. However, you have to really inspect the nipple before each feeding as after a while pieces can tear away.
Call your doctor and see what they advise.
Advent also makes nipples with vary flow and depending on the way you hold the bottle it can be a small flow to heavy flow.
Good luck:)

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B.W.

answers from Cincinnati on

Playtex Drops Ins have staged nipples, including fast flow. Plus, the drop ins eliminate the bottle washing and eliminate the full, gassy feeling baby can get with other bottles (because you squeeze all the air out of the drop in bag) so they swallow less air, hence less gass bubbles in their belly. These are the only one's I have ever used and they have always worked very well.

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L.R.

answers from Cincinnati on

Does your son hold the bottle on his own? If he does I would try starting him on a sippie cup. There are some that have a silicone top to them and work great. The brand name is Nuby and there pretty cheap at Wal-Mart. This should help to solve your problem and keep you from cleaning all of those bottles.

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C.C.

answers from Indianapolis on

you can poke extra holes in the nipple of any bottle to make them flow faster.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.B.

answers from Cleveland on

It sounds like he may be ready to move on to the sippy cup. The Nuby sippy cup is great for transition. You can find them at Walmart for $1.74 each. My son did really well with those. He started on them just before he turned a year. Good luck!

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M.R.

answers from Columbus on

I know that avent bottles have 3 different flow sizes for their nipples, one hole, two holes, and four holes I believe is how they run. My son in 9 months old, and we occasionally go through the bottle thing. We use Avent & the playtex drop-ins, once his bottom teeth came in we had to give up avent - he just wouldn't use them, but he does fine with the playtex. He fights the bottle alot when he's teething, and for a few days after new teeth come through. That is a possibility. I wouldn't stress, as long as he is urinating enough and it's not dark or stinky he's probably fine. I guess my suggestion would be to try a new bottle system and see if that helps...Good luck

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E.M.

answers from Louisville on

20 oz is alot!!! i hope you are not trying to give this to him all at once.... dr browns bottles has nipples that have diff levels 1 2 3 and y give them a try

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K.I.

answers from Cincinnati on

J.,

Maybe he is just not hungry! There is no rule that a baby has to eat 20 oz per feeding. One of the biggest problems with our society is we are so obsessed with food that something like 1 in 3 adults is severely obese. We supersize everything, eat enormous portions, and force kids to "finish their plates."

My suggestion is to let him eat until he stops, then wait to see when he is actually hungry again.

Best wishes,
K.

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