Undoubtedly, breastfeeding is of great importance during the first years of the baby's life. With breast milk, it receives all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients necessary for normal growth and development. However, sometimes it happens that the baby wakes up many times during the night, which gives her mother many inconveniences. After all, how can she watch the baby during the day, if at night she practically did not sleep? Therefore, many parents have a completely logical question about how to remove night-time feeding during hepatitis B. Let's understand this in more detail and find out with what methods you can accustom your baby to the normal daily routine.
Is it worth it to wean?
Let's dwell on this in more detail. According to doctors, normal natural feeding of infants should last about 6 months. During this time, the baby's digestive system manages to form normally, so he becomes completely ready for the transfer to ordinary food. But if the child is a year old, how to wean from night feeding, because at this age this contradicts the laws of nature. Before answering this question, let's see if it is worth doing it at all.
According to experts, in the first months of life it is very important for children to constantly feel the presence of their mother. So they feel complete safety and security from the outside world. As for night feedings, they are also necessary. Breasts cannot withstand long breaks between meals. And this is not a whim, but a natural necessity. But night feeding is important not only for the baby, but also for his mother. In her body, a large amount of prolactin is produced, which is responsible for the formation of milk. If until the morning the baby never ate, then over time its amount will decrease. In this case, it will be necessary to transfer the baby to artificial mixtures, which is not advisable. In addition, a woman may have various health problems.
Therefore, if you are interested in how to remove night-time feeding during HB, then you should first think carefully about everything. Until the baby reaches 6 months of age, it is better not to make any adjustments to the nutrition program, but to feed as the need arises. And then it will be possible to gradually accustom the child to the normal mode. How to do this will be described in detail below.
When can I start?
So what do you need to know about this? Parents with more than 1 child in the family have no particular problems getting up at night for breastfeeding. But the newly made mother simply does not have enough tempering, so they want to teach their child to eat as soon as possible only in the daytime. This can be understood, because during the day a woman gets so tired that in the evening she just falls off her feet, so it’s very difficult for her to get out of bed when the baby wakes up.
Therefore, the question arises whether it is worth feeding the baby at night. Opinions of qualified specialists on this issue differ. Most often, women who have to simultaneously cope with two or more children want to wean their breasts as soon as possible. Therefore, as soon as they grow up to 6 months, they are transferred to baby food. But doctors have a very negative attitude to such a decision.
And the point here is not only that infants require much longer mother's milk. There is also a psychological problem. After all, as already mentioned earlier, babies need a mom not only to satisfy their hunger. Due to its long absence, the baby can get a lot of stress. Therefore, if in a year a child asks for breasts at night, then you need to give it to him. There is nothing wrong with that.
Doctors say that you can start to wean from 11 months. As practice shows, at this age, children are completely ready to switch to "adult" food. And the desire to taste mother's milk is nothing more than a habit. But, again, there are no specific recommendations on this subject. Here it is necessary to take into account not only the wishes of the parents, but also the individual characteristics of a particular child.
How to understand that the baby is ready?
Below will be described in detail how to remove night feedings with HB. But first, let's find out how to determine a child’s readiness to switch to normal food. Among the main characteristic features are the following:
- the baby in addition to mother's milk receives various baits;
- the number of breastfeeds is reduced;
- the child is gaining significantly in body weight;
- the baby has no health problems, he is very active;
- wakes up at night at the same time;
- the portion is not eaten to the end, and while eating, the child’s attention is constantly switched to extraneous things.
Typically, these symptoms occur when a baby is 10 months old. If you notice them, you can begin to accustom him to ordinary food.
Gradually or instantly?
This is a very important aspect that interests every parent. To date, a large number of different methods have been developed that allow both quickly and slowly wean the baby from night snacks. Each of them has certain pros and cons, therefore, in order to choose the best one, you need to consider the most popular schemes. These are:
- gradual way;
- instantaneous;
- Dr. Komarovsky’s system;
- Sears family method.
Let's talk in more detail about each of the methods and find out what leading doctors and experts advise about transferring children from breastfeeding to conventional feeding.
Gradual way
This technique is the most optimal, since retraining is slow, and the child manages to adapt normally to the new daily routine, and his body gets used to the "adult" food. Its essence lies in the fact that a special regimen of the day of the child on breastfeeding is compiled, based on an increase in the density of meals in the daytime. Before going to bed, in addition to mother's milk, the baby is given an additional portion of porridge or mashed potatoes. Thanks to this, he eats well and sleeps peacefully until the morning.
It is important to consider one important nuance. Gradually, the volume of breast milk given should be reduced, and the portion of complementary foods, on the contrary, should be increased. The main advantage of the technique is that the child gradually gets used to regular food and the psychological habit of the mother’s breast disappears. As for the shortcomings, it was not without them. Among the main experts distinguish the following:
- it is very difficult to pick up porridge that will please the child;
- young mothers can not always correctly calculate the regimen of the day;
- babies do not always agree to eat what their parents give them.
A baby dummy will help to more quickly repel cravings for the chest. She is given to the baby for the night, so he is at a subconscious level, as it were, next to his mother, thanks to which he will feel completely safe, and his sleep will be sound and calm.
Instant way
This method is applicable in cases where you need to wean a baby from the chest in a very short time. But you need to use it only if the reason is really worthwhile. For example, if mom works and because of constant night rises chronically lack of sleep. The method consists in the fact that the rate of feeding a baby decreases with milk sharply, and it is replaced with cereals, fruit purees or baby formula. Thanks to the sharp transfer of crumbs to a new diet, it is possible to save a lot of time, which is a big plus. But the drawback is no less significant. For the baby, such measures will be a lot of stress, which can negatively affect his health. Therefore, in order to reduce the likelihood of developing negative consequences, it is recommended to begin weaning no earlier than 11 months.
The system of Dr. Komarovsky
This is another common technique in our country. According to the most famous pediatrician Komarovsky, night feeding should be stopped at 6 months. In his opinion, at this age, the children that they receive during the day are quite enough for normal development and vital activity. And craving for the chest at night is a common habit, from which the baby just needs to be weaned. Moreover, if you continue to breast-feed the baby at the first whim, then this will be more harm than good. Constant overfeeding can lead to disruption of the digestive system. The doctor identifies the following rules that will help you quickly transfer your child to the normal regime of the day:
- Do not give the crumbs for lunch too large a portion of food, but before going to bed, feed him well so that he does not feel hunger until the morning.
- In order for the baby to sleep more soundly, before the last meal it should be bathed. Also give him a baby's dummy at night that will mimic the mother’s breast.
- Create a suitable microclimate in the apartment. According to experts, people sleep much better with cool air temperatures not exceeding 20 degrees, as well as high humidity. Therefore, shortly before bedtime, the room should be ventilated.
- Reduce your lunch break. So the child will become more tired during the day and sleep better at night. And if he does not wake up, then he will learn much faster to do without a mother and feeding. At 6 months of age, 14 hours of sleep are enough for the children.
- Begin to accustom the baby to normal mode from the first weeks. So he will immediately develop the habit of eating at the same time, which subsequently will remain for life.
According to Komarovsky, observing these rules, you can quickly get rid of the nightly feedings of the infant and begin to get enough sleep, so you will be cheerful and full of energy in the morning. But you must understand that all of the above are not strict canons, but only recommendations. When raising your children, you must consider their individual characteristics. Only in this way can you do everything right and achieve good results.
Sears Family Method
If you have no idea how to remove night-time feeding during HB, then ask those who do not know by hearsay. Such connoisseurs include William and Martha Sears. The head of the family worked all his life as a pediatrician and wrote more than 30 books for young parents. In his opinion, it is not necessary to forcefully wean the baby from the chest, but to continue lactation until he himself stops taking it. If the craving for breast milk continues after a year, then the following recommendations will help you:
- When breastfeeding, it is necessary to increase the number of bodily contacts of the mother and baby so that there is no deficit of attention.
- Before you go to bed, wake your child and feed him, so that at night the baby does not wake up and does not require food.
- Place the baby in a crib, not in bed with parents.
- When the one-year-old will reach for the chest, shift it to another room.
- When feeding baby formulas, mom should get up at night alternately with her father. So both will be able to relax normally, and the child will be less capricious.
The authors of the technique argue that when using the above recommendations, you must constantly monitor the condition and behavior of the baby. If the tantrums are excessive, then the system must be adjusted.
What should not be done?
It was described in detail above how to wean children from nightly breastfeeding in various ways. Now let's talk about what is better to refrain from. Experts say that you should not do the following:
- Follow the child’s lead. This is very important with children over the age of 12 months. If you do not immediately accustom them to the fact that they will not be able to get everything they want, then in the future parents will have problems with manipulation.
- Do not give your baby up for education to grandparents until you completely wean him from night breastfeeding. The absence of a mother is a huge emotional shock for children, which will only increase if they do not get milk.
- Throughout the period of failure, try not to expose your child to any other adverse manifestations.
All this is banned because young children do not yet understand what is happening. If at some point there is no mom near, whose smell is the most dear to the child, then this will become a big stress. And your task as parents is to create the best possible conditions for him, protecting from everything negative.
Conclusion
Now you know how to deal with the problem of overnight breastfeeding. But no matter how much you become tired, do not rush to wean the baby from mother's milk, because it is for him the best food that contains all the nutrients necessary for normal growth and development. Wait at least until the child grows up to 6 months, and only then make any decisions.