Baby Weaning from Breastfeeding: What, When and How
What is Weaning
When it comes to baby feeding, weaning can mean a lot of things. It can be the process of switching your baby from breastfeeding to bottle-feeding or cup feeding. It can also mean the process of transitioning from bottle-feeding to a sippy cup.
Commonly, weaning is often referred to as the final conversion of babies away from breastfeeding to other forms of feeding such as bottle-feeding or giving solid food
Eonian Care offers a range of feeding solutions. The Eonian Care Baby Bottles & Feeding Solutions Value Set and Eonian Care Feeding Solutions Baby Straw Cup Top accessory, let bubs transition from breastfeeding to bottle-feeding and cup-feeding.
When to Begin Weaning
Health experts advise giving breastmilk throughout your baby's first year. Breastmilk or formula milk must be exclusive in the first half of the year and then alongside solids afterwards.
When to begin weaning is still a personal choice. But it can be affected by several factors such as health issues, painful breastfeeding, sore nipples, or just having to return to work.
There's no need to worry about weaning your little ones off breastfeeding. As you can still give them the nutrition they need from formula or pumped breastmilk fed via bottle or cup.
To express breastmilk for bottle-feeding, we recommend using the Eonian Care Smart Double Electric Breast Pump. As it allows simultaneous and easy pumping that lets you save time and effort. Once you have finished expressing precious breast milk, you can feed little ones with the Eonian Care Baby Bottles & Feeding Solutions Value Set or you can store the excess milk in the freezer with the BPA-free Eonian Care Breast Milk Storage Bags with 2 Pump Adapters.
How to Begin Weaning Your Bub
There are two common approaches on how to wean your bub. One is by letting your baby lead or "grow out" of breastfeeding, and the other is changing your toddlers' feeding routine to get them off breastfeeding.
Baby-Led or Natural Weaning
Baby-led weaning or natural weaning is when children grow out of breastfeeding on their own. You'll observe this as your little ones tend to prefer solid food or drinking from a cup. Sometimes, they can't simply sit still long enough to finish breastfeeding.
Weaning Gradually
If you want your little ones to stop being dependent on breastfeeding, you might want to replace nursing sessions with bottle or cup feeding slowly. Gradually reducing breastfeeding sessions and replacing them with other forms of feeding often does the trick.
Other Useful Tips in Weaning
- You can wean your baby to a bottle followed by a cup. Or you can wean an older baby directly into a sippy cup or one with a straw. You can choose whether you want to use expressed breastmilk, formula milk, or even cow's milk if your bub is at least a year old.
- If your baby is getting a bit older, you can introduce them to cups with the Eonian Care Feeding Solutions Baby Straw Cup Top. This straw cup is comfortable for little mouths as they take their first sips and helps your kids learn to drink like grown-ups. It comes with a soft and angled silicone straw that mitigates head tilting while also assisting babies to exercise mouth muscles and build their oral strength. Plus, the Eonian Care Feeding Solutions Baby Straw Cup Top is compatible and interchangeable with the Eonian Care Baby Bottles & Feeding Solutions Value Set and other Eonian Care Feeding Solutions, making it a practical choice as you start weaning your little ones.
- You can start bottle-feeding children if they are in a good mood or even if they're not hungry yet. This process makes them more receptive to bottles.
- To introduce bottle feeding, using a slow-flow bottle nipple is recommended. So, little ones can get the hang of bottle feeding. This course works great if you're a busy mum who needs someone to step in and do the feeding for you.
- You can start with the Eonian Care 2 Slow-flow Teats with Screw Rings if you're looking for a slow flow nipple that mimics how a breast expresses milk. When your toddlers are already acquainted with bottle feeding. They can use the Eonian Care 2 Medium-flow Teats with Screw Rings and the 2 Fast-flow Teats with Screw Rings.
- Start to shorten your breastfeeding session duration.
- The weaning process often starts between 6 months and one year. However, it would be best if you remembered that your little one still needs breastmilk for the whole first year.
