Babies who have recently been born are actively growing and require a lot of strength and energy, so they often eat both during the day and at night. As the baby grows up, parents increasingly think about how to get away from night feedings so that the baby sleeps all night without waking up and eats only during the daytime. But it is important to understand that the child needs night feedings until a certain period, especially if we're talking about about babies. If the child is on, eliminating night feedings will be somewhat easier.
Night feedings in children from birth to six months
For a baby, a constant supply of food is one of the mandatory moments necessary for growth and development. In utero, the baby had no difference between day and night, but received food continuously, and after birth his digestive system should be adjusted to intermittent food intake gradually and smoothly. The child constantly requires attention and care, frequent breastfeeding or bottle feeding, including at night. At first, these are several feedings per night, gradually the number is reduced to 1-2 times. Although it is difficult for parents to get up at night to prepare formula or put the baby to the breast, it is worth maintaining such feedings until a certain period, weaning them off smoothly and gradually.
The child must be willing to sleep for at least 5-6 hours in a row without waking up to eat, then night eating can be gradually eliminated.
Young children require frequent feeding for full growth and development, including at night. This is especially important for children who are breastfed - night feedings are important both for them and for maintaining full lactation in the mother. Without feeding at night, such children do not gain weight well, cry for a long time and sleep poorly, so in the first six months of life it is imperative to feed the baby both day and night. Babies cannot stand long breaks in feeding of more than 3-4 hours, so it is important to organize night feedings for them. Infants are latched to the breast up to two or three times at night, artificially fed babies are usually fed once from midnight to six in the morning.
In order to make it easier for infants to feed at night, you can organize it by putting the baby in bed with you or moving his crib close to your parent's bed and removing the side of the bed. At night, at the first signs of hunger, you can quickly put the baby to your chest, preventing him from crying and waking up the whole house.
For artificial babies, you can prepare bottles in advance with measured powder poured into them and warm water in a thermos to quickly mix the mixture and give it to the child before he bursts into tears.
note
It is important to know that you cannot mix the mixture in advance before going to bed - this is a risk of dangerous intestinal infections, since the mixture is a breeding ground for bacteria.
Typically, babies wake up to feed two to three times a night, and the number of feedings gradually decreases. In the first 6 months, formula-fed babies can withstand up to 4-5 hours of sleep in a row; babies on breastfeeding– up to 3-4 hours.
The importance of night feeding after the introduction of complementary foods
Over the course of six months, the child’s diet changes, its calorie content increases, digestive function and stool normalize, and the problems of bloating and discomfort disappear. Food that enters the digestive system is already more actively and fully absorbed, helping to increase the density and calorie content of the diet. Therefore, parents can already give the child a more satisfying and dense porridge in the evening feeding, which takes a long time to digest and gives a feeling of fullness, which helps to sleep longer without waking up to eat. During the day, children eat less often, receiving more high-calorie foods; at night, the number of feedings is also reduced, and the child can sleep for up to 6 hours in a row without waking up to eat.
But when breastfeeding, it is important to maintain night feedings in order to stimulate lactation the next day. The baby needs the breast not only for nutrition, but also for comfort and communication with the mother.
In the period after 6-7 months, children begin to experience pain, often causing discomfort and many unpleasant minutes. Therefore, breastfeeding is protection against infections that are more likely at this time, soothing and reducing itching in the gums, as well as satiation useful product. Refusing night feedings and replacing the breast with a pacifier or bottles of water is an additional stress factor for the baby during such a difficult period for him.
At this time, it is worth maintaining breastfeeding at night so that the baby can calm down in the mother’s arms, and teething and its unpleasant symptoms are alleviated. During this period, babies gradually reduce the number of breastfeeding themselves; they need the breast not so much for food as for comfort. Artificial babies can sleep for 5-6 hours at night or wake up to get a bottle of water. It may help them sleep more soundly.
Children after one year and feeding at night
Babies at this age are actively exploring the world, and therefore by nightfall they can become very tired, taking their first steps and developing at a rapid pace. This allows babies to sleep more soundly and longer at night without having to wake up for night feedings. At this time, you can gradually wean children off night feedings by replacing the formula with milk or water, but infants may also require periodic feedings. Usually there are no more than one or two of them during the night. It is important to diversify your baby’s diet, feed him more high-calorie dishes at night, then he will sleep longer and more soundly at night. Full daytime feedings, covering all the toddler’s energy needs, lead to the fact that children increasingly sleep at night without waking up.
How to wean your baby off night feedings after a year
There are no universal tips and recommendations regarding this problem; each family selects for itself those recipes and tricks that help best. Sometimes you have to try several methods to find the optimal one. But it is important to know that abruptly depriving a baby of breast milk or formula at night will become a serious stress for him, which can lead to sleep disturbances and even illness, so the process of weaning off night meals should be smooth. This usually takes up to 4-8 weeks.
- Increasing the volume of food during the daytime . It is important to monitor the caloric content and balance of the diet as complementary foods are introduced. It is necessary that the baby receives all the vitamins and minerals, as well as a sufficient amount of calories from fats and carbohydrates. It is important that the baby, through breast milk (or formula) in combination with complementary foods, receives all the necessary calories during the day and evening hours, and that he has a hearty evening meal, so that he does not then have a desire to eat more at night. Shortly before bedtime, you can give your child cottage cheese or so that the baby sleeps more peacefully. Sometimes taking porridge at night helps.
- Communication with parents . By attaching to the breast, children not only receive breast milk and are satiated, but also gain the opportunity to communicate with their mother, satisfy their physiological needs for affection, tenderness, and feel more protected in their mother’s arms. In order for the baby to get enough attention, it is important to engage with him as much as possible during the day, to walk a lot, be in the fresh air, do gymnastics, massages and outdoor games, so that by the evening the baby can get tired and sleep more soundly. But you shouldn’t overload him with new emotions and events, this can cause overwork and overexcitement. nervous system, which will lead to restless sleep.
- Waking up at night and alternatives . If your baby wakes up at night, you don’t need to immediately offer him the breast or a bottle of formula; you can pat him on the head, sing a lullaby, rock him in your arms or in the crib, giving him the opportunity to fall asleep again. After two years of age, you can place your baby’s favorite toy next to him so that he feels more protected.
- Replacing food with drink . Such methods are more relevant for formula-fed people, who can replace the bottle with the mixture with water or compote. When waking up at night, the baby often just needs to calm down and go back to sleep; measured sucking on the nipple on the bottle helps to quickly fall asleep again. Also, many mothers gradually dilute the formula for night feedings with water until after a couple of weeks only water remains in the bottle. It is only important that it is warm, and its volume is small, and the hole in the nipple does not allow water to quickly pour into the mouth.
- Dad's role in weaning off night feedings . Pediatricians and psychologists often advise involving the baby’s father in the process of weaning off night feedings. You can ask him to put the baby to bed, help with bathing and changing clothes, and also get up at night to give the mother some time to sleep. It is important that the father also takes the baby in his arms, rocks him to sleep at night, without giving pacifiers or bottles, and that the mother is not in the baby’s field of vision at this time. Most modern men cope with rocking, changing and feeding the baby no worse than mothers, so they must actively participate in the process of weaning off night feedings.
How to stop night feeding after two years
Some children breastfeed after two years, and artificial babies require a bottle of milk or kefir at night. This is often due to the child’s irrational daytime nutrition, when he does not receive enough calories during the day, and compensates for them through evening and night feedings. It is important to review the baby’s diet, ensuring that he receives all the necessary nutrients.
In addition, with such behavior, children often attract the attention of adults if they fail in other ways. This is possible in families where relationships are strained, and there are frequent quarrels and scandals between parents, which the child sees. It is important to give the child enough attention, surround him with care, and stop sorting things out in front of the child. It is also important to explain to the baby that he is already old enough to ask for a bottle; give an example that you yourself do not eat at night, but eat in the evening and in the morning, after waking up. You can buy your child a new beautiful bed and move him to a new place as an adult, especially if the child previously slept with his parents.
Alena Paretskaya, pediatrician, medical columnist
Hello, dear parents. It is important to know when experts recommend not feeding babies at night. In addition, this process will become a milestone on the way to giving up breastfeeding. In this article we will talk about this, you can also find out what methods of withdrawal exist and how to wean a one-year-old baby.
There is a need
You can stop feeding at night, the main thing is to do it in a timely and correct manner.
Naturally, many mothers are simply tired of waking up at night and feeding the baby, especially if there is a need to prepare formula. It is not surprising that they literally dream of getting rid of night feedings. However, you need to understand that eliminating this from a mother’s routine leads to a decrease in milk production. After all, it is at night that the bookmark for the whole day takes place.
In addition, if there is such a long break in daily feedings, this naturally causes a decrease in lactation. Therefore, it is recommended to cancel night feeding to a greater extent for those mothers who want to cancel breast-feeding.
It is important for babies under six months of age to have a night snack. They need it vitally. And it doesn’t matter what type of feeding your little one is on.
Suitable age for withdrawal
Experts advise feeding babies up to three months two to three times a night. Further, up to six months inclusive, you can reduce night feeding to one. And after the toddler turns six months old, you can gradually stop feeding the child at night.
However, you need to understand that all children are individual. It is not always possible to fit into such a framework. And mothers simply have to meet the needs of their baby. And there is certainly no need to wake up a baby up to three months old three times a night if he wakes up twice or once. The child will wake up as many times as his body needs, and when he is hungry. Babies who are on an artificial type of feeding are generally less susceptible to waking up at night, because the formula is digested and absorbed much more slowly, so the baby retains a feeling of fullness much longer.
I stopped feeding my son at night when he was 7 months old. He simply began to sleep until the morning without waking up. And, if he woke up, it was enough to just lull him to sleep.
Signs of readiness
- The baby is gaining weight well.
- Feels normal.
- Complementary foods appeared in his diet.
- The number of daily feedings has decreased.
- The baby's awakening at night is timed to a certain time.
- The toddler plays more than eats during the night snack. Doesn't drink the entire portion.
How to wean your baby off formula feeding at night
You need to understand that weaning children who are bottle-fed is just as important as those who are fed naturally. Indeed, they can go longer without eating, because the absorption of formula takes longer than breast milk. But for such babies, routine is especially important and feedings at night should also be present.
So, what methods should you resort to in order to wean your child from night bottle feeding:
- Taking the mixture just before you go to bed will help you stay awake longer during the night.
- In order to reduce the number of feedings at night, it is important not to give your little one a bottle every time he wakes up. Every other time you need to try to lull the baby to sleep without letting him eat (if he wakes up several times during the night).
- The baby needs to eat well during the day so that the feeling of hunger practically does not visit him at night.
- At the first request of a toddler who wakes up at night, you don’t need to run to him with a bottle. Perhaps the baby just had a bad dream.
- It is necessary to reduce the number of servings of night food.
- Mom can dilute the mixture with water. First a little, then replace a third of it with water, then half, and go to clean water.
Weaning your baby off breastfeeding
Very often, children who feed on their mother's milk wake up at night not so much because of hunger as because of the desire to be with their mother, and a habit can take place. The mother may notice that the awakened baby reluctantly sucks the breast or even plays with it. It is believed that babies can be fed at night until they are one year old, but it is worth eliminating such feedings, starting from the time the baby turns six months old, but this is a matter for each mother personally.
What should you do if it’s time to wean your breastfed baby from eating at night:
- If waking up at night and looking for “sissy” is associated with the desire to receive mother’s care, think about whether you may not be devoting enough time to your child during the day.
- If the baby wakes up three times a night, then try to feed him only once; on the first and last awakening, try to put the little one to sleep in a different way.
- If your baby sleeps under “mother’s wing,” it is important to create a barrier to prevent the smell of breast milk from spreading to the baby’s nose.
- If you are interested in the question of how to wean your child from falling asleep with the breast. For this purpose you need to resort to the help of relatives, but better than men, for example, ask dad to rock the baby.
I tried to resort to the help of my grandmother, but my son began to look for her boobs. Then I realized that a man should lay him down. Our dad played this role well. At least for the first time my son was moping.
Many mothers give breastfeeding to their baby so that he can fall asleep faster, but this should not be done. Endure this moment, but there is no need to teach your child to fall asleep in this way. Where is the guarantee that you won’t fall asleep and block the baby’s access to oxygen with your breasts?
- It is important to make it clear to your baby that the bed is only a place for sleeping. Therefore, all feedings should be carried out in another place so that he does not develop associations.
- A factor that can influence the baby waking up at night is a disadvantage daily meals Perhaps the little one doesn’t eat enough and goes to bed hungry.
How to wean a one year old baby from night feeding
If you managed to feed your baby up to this age at night, this is quite normal. Especially if from six months he ate once a night. Most experts are inclined to think that after the child is one year old, it is time to stop night feedings.
Here's what you'll need to achieve this goal:
- Increase the amount of food you eat during the day.
- Give your baby water instead of milk or formula.
- For breastfed babies, avoid contact with mother's breasts.
- Entrust your dad with overnight care for your little one.
- If the child wakes up, distract him with some other activities, play with him, hug him, show him love, do not remind him about food.
The process of stopping night feedings is inevitable. Every mother will have to deal with it sooner or later. The main thing is to do everything correctly so that this stage does not become stressful for the baby.
In the first months of a newborn’s life, when the baby needs to eat every 2-3 hours, and the mother needs to establish breastfeeding, night feedings are a mandatory component of the baby’s regimen. For a woman, such a schedule is certainly not very comfortable - in this case there is no need to talk about a full night’s sleep. Until what age is such a sacrifice justified, and after what age does it become in vain? Let's talk about when and how to wean a child from night feeding right now.
Night feeding: until what age is it necessary?
Most pediatricians recommend weaning your baby off the habit of eating at night after 6 months. At this age, a child can already do without “feeding” for about 5 hours, for example, from 12 at night to 5 in the morning. Komarovsky, a pediatrician, adheres to the same position on the issue of night feedings, whose opinion is definitely worth trusting.
However, it should be understood that such recommendations are generally accepted. In the case of infants whose body weight is below their age norm, who do not gain weight well, are restless and capricious, it is better to save feeding at night until the existing health and well-being problems are resolved.
Why is it important?
As mentioned earlier, in the first months of a child’s life, the night meal fulfills its direct function - satiation. In addition, a psychological moment is also important for the baby during night feedings - communication with the mother, a feeling of her closeness, a sense of calm and security. This is why falling asleep on your chest is very common occurrence: the child calms down and falls into a full sleep, which is difficult to disturb even by moving him to the crib.
After six months, this pattern of behavior can be considered more like a habit than a physiological or psychological necessity: the digestive system is formed, the beginnings of independence appear, sleep becomes more stable. This means that it is quite possible to try to change the baby’s routine without harm to him and with benefit to the mother. This applies to both breast-fed and bottle-fed children.
The situation when a child is one year old, and night feedings occur 2-3 times, is unfortunately not uncommon. To prevent this from happening to you and your child, start changing the situation gradually, starting at 5-6 months.
What do we have to do?
When stopping feeding your baby at night, it is important to pay attention to bathing and the microclimate in the bedroom. It is better to bathe your baby later, before the last evening feeding. The water should be closer to cool. The room must be well ventilated and achieve an optimal level of air humidity. 
Artificial feeding: how to wean yourself off night formula feedings
The recommendations here are generally similar to those given to parents of breastfed children. Unless sleeping separately is not so fundamentally important, since the child does not look for the mother’s breast. 
But the method of drinking matters: you cannot give juice, compote or water from a bottle with a nipple, you need to use a sippy cup. This is done so that the child does not associate night drinking with food, which he gets directly from the bottle.
If you stop night feedings at or near this age, you can try to explain to your baby that mom and dad don’t eat at night, which means he doesn’t need it either. At this period, children are able to understand simple arguments and at the same time already know how to identify themselves as a person, and therefore associate with their parents.
Sometimes even a pacifier can distract a child from thoughts about food at night: this is another proof that the child is not experiencing physiological hunger, but rather requires attention or is worried.
Night feedings and healthy sleep: is there a connection?
Of course there is: on a full stomach, many children find it difficult to fall asleep, which means that the child does not sleep for some time after feeding at night, “getting up” to the norm of rest during the day. This situation makes it difficult to develop a normal routine, to which a baby older than six months needs to be gradually accustomed.
On the other hand, it is the lack of normal sleep that can become an obstacle to weaning from feeding at night. Therefore, it is important to choose for this right time: when the baby is healthy, he is not teething, there is a calm environment in the family, and during the day parents have the opportunity to spend a sufficient amount of time with the baby in the fresh air. By the way, if all these aspects are present, very often after 6 months the child does not wake up to feed at night. Therefore, the problem of weaning can be solved by itself.
Do I need to wake up my child?
Some sleepyheads may stop waking up for nighttime meals even earlier - at 3-4 months. And in this regard, parents are often interested in: should they wake up their baby for feeding at night? If there are no direct indications for night feeding recommended by the pediatrician observing the child, if he is gaining weight well and has no problems with urination and bowel movements, there is no need to wake him up to feed him. Having slept well, the baby will simply have breakfast with an excellent appetite, and mom will be able to rest peacefully during the night.
Feeding a baby with breastfeeding or formula at night, their frequency and duration is one of the burning topics of concern to mothers. How a mother gets enough sleep determines her mood and well-being, and therefore the well-being of the baby. How to wean a child from night feeding if it has become a burden, or even unbearable?
What should you consider before eliminating night feeding?
If we are talking about breastfeeding, then mother’s milk is not a load on gastrointestinal tract a child neither at 6 months, nor at 7 months, nor even at 2 years. Eating at night is natural and physiological for children, especially very young ones. With time children's sleep becomes deeper, the ability to quickly become saturated with milk increases, therefore, after a year, children eat less often than in infancy. According to research, night feedings in themselves do not provoke the appearance and progression of early childhood caries.
However, the reason to stop this practice may be the mother’s desire to get enough sleep, due to fatigue from lack of sleep, inability to rest during the day, and other reasons. If it was not possible to establish an acceptable regime, then the question arises of abandoning night feeding.
Adapted formula has more calories than breast milk and is harder to digest, so it would be advisable to transfer the bulk of formula consumption to the daytime. In addition, bottle feeding at night is often more difficult for mom. And here it becomes topical issue about how to wean a child from eating at night. Fortunately, many babies on IV stop waking up at night to feed before they reach 8 months.
Until what age do children usually eat at night?
Each child is individual. It is generally believed that artificial babies sleep all night from birth without waking up. This is not always the case; some children on IV continue to ask for food at the age of 9 months, at 1 year and later, because the pacifier satisfies the sucking reflex, but does not satiate. According to modern concepts of demand feeding, this is not a problem for the baby, but can be tiring for the mother.
Infants are usually fed more often during their sleep, since mother's milk is quickly and easily absorbed by the body. In addition, breastfeeding at night most contributes to the production of prolactin, the hormone that causes milk production in a woman. Therefore, if a mother wants to feed for a long time, you should not completely stop feeding at night, but you can try to reduce their frequency and duration.
Emergency, rapid weaning
There are situations when you need to stop feeding urgently. This situation is unusual and is associated, for example, with the urgent hospitalization of the mother. Usually, it is not possible to urgently stop only night feedings in babies under one year old, so in such cases breastfeeding is completely curtailed. However, it can be resumed after the end of treatment, which will be difficult with a very young child, and much easier with a child after a year.
If you urgently stop feeding, the mother must monitor her well-being and also express her breasts if the volume of milk absorbed by the baby was significant. This method rarely takes place without crying and stress for the child, so if a woman has chosen this decision, she needs to be patient and, if possible, have the support of her family who can calm and console the baby.
It is not often said that abrupt weaning affects the emotional state of the mother due to changes in hormonal levels. In such moments and hours, you can remember your love for the baby, which does not decrease with the cessation of breastfeeding night and day.
Gentle refusal of night feedings
A gradual, smooth reduction in night feedings is optimal for both the mother’s body and the child’s psyche. When the baby gets used to not having night feedings, motherhood can become easier for those who couldn't get enough sleep while latching in the dark. But we must remember that with the natural cessation of breastfeeding, nighttime and early morning applications are the last to go away, which means that a conscious change in this pattern will require some effort and perseverance.
1.Feed your baby more often during the day. The sucking reflex is strong even at 1.5 years, and if it is not realized during the daytime, the baby will certainly suck at night.
2. Try not to combine giving up nightly breastfeeding or bottle feeding with other new, unusual situations, changes in the family lifestyle: adaptation to kindergarten, moving, etc.
3.Remember the importance of hugs and kisses, do not move away from the child so that he does not have a need for tactile touches at night.
4. Offer alternatives. When you wake up, pat the baby on the back, sing a lullaby, give him some water, take him to the toilet, whisper in his ear, rock him in his arms.
5.Talk about the fact that people and animals sleep at night, mother’s breasts sleep, the baby also needs to sleep, and it’s better to eat during the day.
6.Take help from your dad, grandma or other loved ones. In the absence of mother, it may be easier for the baby to accept a new, unusual way of falling asleep.
7. Separate the sleeping areas of mother and child. Sometimes children sleep worse separately from their mother, but some find it easier to fall asleep on their own without feeding in their crib or children's room.
8. For IV, you can use this trick: dilute the mixture with a small amount clean water, gradually increasing the percentage of water. The child will become uninterested in waking up just to drink some water.
9.Share food and use other techniques to fall asleep. That is, do not deny the baby a breast or a bottle, but after them read or tell a fairy tale, sing a song, lie with the baby, no longer giving him food. This also needs to be done gradually, after feeding the baby well in the evening.
At what age is it best to wean off night feedings?
The optimal age for each mother-child pair will be different. A one-year-old baby learns to walk independently; for some, learning this skill occurs at 10 or 11 months. Often, learning something new is accompanied by a kind of setback in development, and a baby who has already stopped eating at night may again begin to ask for a breast or a bottle. In addition, until at least 2 and a half years of age, children undergo the process of teething, which may be accompanied by restlessness at night. But the later the refusal of nighttime reinforcement occurs, the easier it is to come to an agreement with the child, and at 1.5 years old it will be easier to teach a baby to sleep without food than at 6 months.
