Contents:
- Medical Video: HOW I WEANED MY TODDLER FROM BREASTFEEDING
- What is weaning children?
- Know the signs that the baby is ready to be weaned
- How to wean children so that the process is easier?
Medical Video: HOW I WEANED MY TODDLER FROM BREASTFEEDING
From what age should the child begin to be weaned? Some say starting at the age of four months, six months, one year, some even up to the age of two. Well, before knowing at what age is good for weaning, you should first know what is actually weaning the child so that you are not confused. Sometimes, some people are still confused when asked what weaning children are.
What is weaning children?
Weaning a child is the time when a child begins to move to solid food from just the milk. This is a process - done gradually - until the child actually stops breastfeeding from the mother's breast, usually until the child is 2 years old.
In general, the ideal time to start weaning a child is 6 months old. However, this can be faster or slower because the development of each child is certainly different and cannot be equated. This is normal so you don't need to worry.
After the baby has received solid food at the age of 6 months, you can still give breast milk to babies up to the age of two years, as recommended by WHO. When babies really stop breast milk, this all depends on your decision and your own baby's wishes. Babies who are weaned earlier (at the age of less than 6 months) will usually stop breastfeeding faster than babies who are weaned later (at more than 6 months of age).
Know the signs that the baby is ready to be weaned
Weaning children may not be an easy decision. This process requires patience. You also have to see the child's ability, whether the child is ready to be weaned or not. However, you should not worry too much because the child turns out to be able to provide guidance when he is ready to begin the weaning process.
Well, here are signs that the baby is ready to be weaned:
- Babies begin to appear uninterested when breastfeeding in the mother's breast
- Babies remain fussy even though they have been breastfed
- Babies breastfeed in a shorter time than usual
- Babies are easily disturbed while breastfeeding
- Babies "play" with the mother's breasts, such as pulling and biting the mother's breast
- Babies suckle in the mother's breast but don't suck it so the milk doesn't come out. The child may still suckle in the mother's breast but only to seek comfort.
How to wean children so that the process is easier?
However, babies over the age of 6 months must start receiving solid foods other than breast milk. Why? Because breastmilk alone cannot fulfill the nutritional needs needed by the baby for its growth after one year of age. So, before this age, babies should be introduced to solid food.
However, to start a change is certainly not easy, so is the baby. You might be able to do the methods below to make changes from breast milk to solid foods easier to do.
- Try to start offering milk bottles rather than suckling in the mother's breast. This milk bottle can be filled with breast milk or formula milk. You can apply a few drops of breast milk to the baby's lips or tongue before he suckles in the bottle so that he can receive milk bottles easily. Reducing the frequency of breastfeeding in the mother's breast for several weeks can help the baby adjust to changes slowly.
- Shorten breastfeeding time. You might be able to start limiting how long the baby suckles in the mother's breast, from which usually 10 minutes can be shortened to just 5 minutes. Then, you can replace the less breastfeeding with formula milk or baby porridge.
- Delay the breastfeeding child. Delaying the time a breastfeeding child can reduce the frequency of breastfeeding children in a day. If your child is older, you may be able to distract him from other activities when he wants to breastfeed, or you can also offer formula milk or other foods. If the child wants to suckle in the afternoon, you can explain to him that he has to wait until before bed to suckle in the mother's breast.
