When should the baby stop feeding at night? How to stop feeding the baby at night

Newborn babies have the habit of drinking milk at night. You can try to help your baby get rid of this habit when he is 6 months old. This is beneficial to the baby's healthy growth. How to judge whether your baby can stop drinking milk at night? How to help your baby stop drinking milk, follow the editor to learn!

Why should we stop night feeding for babies?

1. At night, all the physiological functions of the human body are reduced. If the baby drinks milk several times at night, it is easy to increase the burden on the stomach and intestines and cause digestion and absorption disorders.

2. Night is the time when the baby's growth hormone is secreted vigorously. Waking up at this time will hinder the child's growth.

3. If babies are addicted to midnight feeding, they are more likely to neglect the three main meals during the day, resulting in insufficient intake of main meals and affecting their development.

4. It is bad for baby’s teeth and is more likely to cause tooth decay.

5. Getting up in the middle of the night to prepare milk for the baby disrupts the adults’ life rhythm and affects the normal routines of family members.

6. Only by stopping the baby from drinking milk at night can your baby get a good night’s sleep!

How to tell if your child needs to be weaned from night feeding

The first type of night feeding: hunger type night feeding

1. Not eating enough

The baby did not eat enough for dinner and is really hungry; the baby eats dinner too early and is really hungry; the baby does not have enough energy in dinner and is really hungry.

The amount of milk or the overall calorie intake of the baby after adding complementary food is very important. Some babies eat dinner too early or too little, and they are prone to feeling hungry when they go to bed. Then a mother asked, would it be better if I add complementary food to my baby before he goes to bed?

If the complementary food is not eaten correctly, it will not be of much help. For example, fruit juice, rice soup, and vegetable juice all take up stomach capacity but do not have enough calories. Even if the baby eats them, they will only make the baby feel full temporarily, and there is not much calorie intake. Therefore, it is normal for the baby to wake up at night to feed.

2. High consumption

The baby exercises a lot during the day and is really hungry; the baby is cold at night and consumes a lot of calories, so he is really hungry.

Babies consume more calories in winter. For older babies, after they can crawl or even learn to walk, as their daytime exercise increases, the amount of milk and calorie intake from complementary foods are key. Otherwise, if the amount of milk is not enough or the calorie intake from complementary foods is insufficient, they will have to make up for it by feeding milk and adding meals at night.

3. Other requirements

The baby is in a growth spurt and is really hungry; the baby is also thirsty. Babies under 6 months old should be given breast milk instead of water.

Some mothers say that their babies suddenly seem to be hungry and suddenly increase their milk intake. This is most likely a growth spurt for the baby, which is a normal phenomenon and only lasts for a few days. However, the baby also has a need, which is thirst, especially when the weather is dry or the room is air-conditioned or heated. At this time, the baby needs more water.

The second type of night milk: soothing night milk

Babies have a very high need for comfort. Babies who cannot self-soothe may need comfort from their mothers or others when they wake up at night because of fear, loneliness, etc. Babies who have better self-soothing ability will comfort themselves when they wake up at night and their mothers or fathers may not even know that the baby wakes up to comfort himself.

1. Check-up type

My mother didn’t spend much time with me during the day, and I missed her; my mother disappeared during the day, and I was afraid that she disappeared again; my mother only played with me well at night, so I woke up to find her to play; it was so quiet that I couldn’t hear my mother’s heartbeat or breathing, and I was afraid that she disappeared; it was so dark that I couldn’t see her, and I wanted to confirm if she was there; my mother used to hug me tightly when she slept, but why didn’t she do that today? I wanted to see if she was there.

Babies all long for their mothers' company. The most direct expression of their attachment to their mothers is that they want to be held in their mothers' arms and suck their mothers' nipples. What a wonderful moment for babies! However, as maternity leave ends, some mothers will return to work; or some mothers will have some time for activities alone; and some mothers will choose to sneak away when they go out because they are afraid of their babies crying.

No matter which one it is, the baby's little heart is always hurt a lot, and I have to eat some milk to calm down! Sleeping time is the time when the mother is there, so the baby will always resist his sleepiness and pick this time to check if the mother is there every now and then, and have a few mouthfuls of milk to "check in" for the mother, sparing no effort to check the mother's post.

2. Soothing

If you suddenly wake up and your baby looks at you with big frightened eyes and cries in vain, what is your first feeling? Yes, as you feel, your baby is afraid. When your baby is afraid and lonely, there is nothing better than throwing himself into the mother's arms and taking a few sips of milk.

The third type of night feeding: giving the wrong type of night feeding

The baby may be thirsty or uncomfortable, but the mother is stuffing them with milk. The mother may be confused in sleep and not understand the actual needs of the baby, or the mother may not realize that the child has other needs and thinks that they keep waking up just to feed like a newborn.

The fourth type of night feeding: habitual night feeding

My mother used to feed me at this time; she used to change my diaper at this time and feed me after that; she gave me milk every time I asked for it. Was it always at this time every day? I used to sleep with milk in my mouth when I woke up, but why not today? Why? My baby doesn't want to do it anymore.

Every time I wake up at night, my mother plays with me, so this should be the time for my mother to play with me.

What are the consequences of waking up a baby when he is in a deep sleep? NoZuoNoDie! The baby's understanding of the word "often" is obviously different from that of adults. After a few times, the baby will think that I should be like this. Therefore, the consequence of feeding the baby, changing diapers, and inserting milk at a fixed time at night is that the baby wakes up at a fixed time at night, and the condition for falling asleep again is that the baby should be fed.

Knowing what type of night feeding your baby has can help you better understand your baby's needs and help you stop feeding your baby when needed. Check it out to see what type of night feeding your baby has.

How to stop your baby from feeding at night

Formula-fed babies

You can add rice cereal and other easy-to-digest complementary foods to the last meal of milk powder before bedtime to delay the baby's hunger. In addition, you can appropriately extend the interval between feedings during the day and increase the amount of milk powder according to the baby's individual situation. Increasing the amount of milk and extending the interval between feedings are two-pronged. In addition, feeding the sleeping milk powder directly is also a good choice.

Formula-fed babies are often obsessed with bottles. When weaning babies from night feeding, weaning them from bottles can reduce their attachment to pacifiers. However, weaning from bottles should be done slowly and in a timely, appropriate and skillful manner according to the baby's mood. You can buy your baby a cute cup or tableware with animal patterns to attract the baby's attention, and say to the baby: "Baby, you have grown up, it's embarrassing to use a bottle again!"

Breastfed babies

Breastfed babies are particularly sensitive to the smell of their mothers, so mothers should bathe and change clothes frequently during the weaning period to reduce the smell as much as possible. At the same time, it is also necessary to keep a proper distance from the baby without affecting the baby's mood.

Since breast milk is thinner than formula, breastfed babies need to eat more before going to bed.

When hearing the baby crying at night, the breastfeeding mother will involuntarily secrete milk. The mother should adopt the attitude that it is better to squeeze it out than to be soft-hearted. If she really can't bear to do so, she can squeeze it out and save it for the next day.

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