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Author:
Khushboo Kirale
- >> Post Created: September 30, 2020
- >> Last Updated: May 9, 2024
When to stop breastfeeding- Table of Contents
Breastfeeding is an integral part of motherhood. Even before you deliver, people will be all over you to tell you how important it is to breastfeed your baby. And it truly is important. But no one will ever tell you when to stop breastfeeding or how to stop breastfeeding.
I know a few moms who have breastfed their babies till the age of 4 and more, in combination with other foods of course. However, I have also heard them say how difficult it is for the baby to wean and the tantrums they throw because of it.
It also becomes quite embarrassing for mothers to breastfeed 4-year olds in public. So the Question comes ‘When to Stop Breastfeeding,’ ‘How to wean a baby,’ ‘What’s the right age to wean a baby,’ ‘What are the steps to be followed for weaning,’ and so on.
You need to progress your kids to gradually adapt and move on to other food sources in a more organized and informed manner and then decide when to stop breastfeeding.
WHO strongly recommends to exclusively breastfeed till 6 months post-delivery, after which you can gradually introduce appropriate foods along with breastfeeding. You can follow this up to 2 years post-delivery.
However, there are a lot of questions in a new mothers mind about when to stop breastfeeding. My article on ‘Breastfeeding & Weaning—deciding When to stop breastfeeding‘ will help you with all the crucial information you will need to simplify the transition of your baby to weaning in a very organized manner. You will be well informed and collected to handle your baby.
Breastfeeding benefits
Before you think of when to stop breastfeeding, let’s understand the benefits of breastfeeding.
No matter what the amount of time you breastfeed your baby, it is always beneficial. In the initial few days your breasts produce ‘Colostrum,’ which is rich in super vital ingredients like immunoglobulin and cells that help in building your baby’s immune system.
Studies have shown that when a baby is exclusively breastfed for 6 months, your baby builds a strong immunity against most of the common childhood illnesses. These may include—gastroenteritis, middle ear infections, and respiratory illnesses.
Breast milk’s nutritional value after 1 year
It’s a belief that breast milk turns to water after a year and loses its nutritional value.
This is so NOT TRUE. Breast milk does not turn to water.
As per a study published in Maternal Child Nutrition, while the nutritional profile of breast milk remains same even throughout the second year of breastfeeding, its protein and sodium levels increase whereas its calcium and iron levels decrease.
Nonetheless, the antibodies are always there which help boost your child’s immune system no matter whether it’s the first year of breastfeeding or later.
What is the average weaning age?
Considering that weaning is a continuous process, it’s difficult to pinpoint a generic average age.
If you choose to nurse your baby beyond the toddler years, it is completely okay. It’s normal to feed an older child.
According to AAFP, the natural age to self-wean ranges between 2.5 to 7 years.
Obviously, not everyone will want to nurse that long. However, it’s always nice to know it is normal and pretty common across the globe.
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When to stop breastfeeding—weaning schedule
Is there really a schedule for weaning?
As per experts, weaning begins as soon as your child starts consuming alternatives or solid foods, although complete weaning from breast milk can happen only after several months or in some cases years.
However, it’s always advisable to wean a child gradually. This way you and your baby can get time to adjust to the changes.
While deciding when to stop breastfeeding, if you choose to wean between 6 to 12 months, you will have to supplement the reduction in breast milk feeds with formula to ensure that the baby gets the basic nutrition needed at that age.
Breast milk or formula milk are primary foods for your baby at least for the first year. As per experts, under ideal circumstances, one should not introduce solid food in the first year itself.
When to stop breastfeeding your baby or How long should you breastfeed for — could be different for your baby as compared to others depending upon the circumstances surrounding you and your baby. Let’s have a look at different weaning scenarios and a few things you should keep in mind in each of them.
Weaning before 6 months/stopping breastfeeding early
In today’s times, weaning needs to happen earlier than imagined.
It’s natural for you feel sad about it, but you also need to be strong and don’t be too hard on yourself. To maintain the special bond you could look at using a nursing supplementer device while feeding formula. This way your baby will be more comfortable while weaning.
Nowadays there are medications and therapy available for most breastfeeding problems, unless it is a more complicated problem.
Reasons like returning back to work, having multiple babies dependent on breast milk, etc. can be the deciding factor for you to wean your baby early.
When weaning before 6 months, you will need to introduce formula milk as substitute feeds whenever you are not breastfeeding. You need to check if your baby is comfortable with a feeding bottle. Once your baby is comfortable with the bottle, you can let other caregivers bottle feed the baby, giving them some baby time as well.
There are a lot of innovative feeding bottles in the market with bottle nipples that are somewhat close to breasts in form and feel. This will help your child accept the bottle more quickly. There are also different flows, namely—low, medium, high, and so on—available to help your baby adapt to bottle feeding.
You can gradually increase formula bottle feeds while simultaneously reducing breast feeding. Do it slowly, because kids may show some reaction or sometimes take time to adjust to formula.
They may feel gassy and bloated. If so, it’s really nothing serious but it’s always good to speak to you pediatrician about this scenario. You could also speak to your pediatrician to suggest a formula which is known to be better for babies to digest to avoid gas and bloating.
The Basic Weaning Schedule you could follow when weaning before 6 months:
- Initially, replace just a single feed with 1 formula feed every 2–3 days.
- Wait for 3 days, in case your baby does not show any signs or discomfort or indigestion then you can again replace 1 feed with 1 formula bottle feed.
- Again wait for 2–3 days.
- Repeat this cycle for 15–20 days.
- Then replace 2 feeds with formula feed and wait for 1 day. Similarly, gradually keep increasing the formula feed while reducing breastfeeding.
- In no time, your baby will progress to formula feed and will be completely weaned from breast milk.
Weaning after 6 months
After 6 months, you can substitute a few nursing sessions with solid foods.
First substitute some feeds with formula. You can also add the formula to your baby’s solid foods for fun and give them a nutritional boost.
Initially, it will help if you make something semi-solid like in a gooey paste kind of consistency, which is easier for kids to eat. And gradually you can thicken the consistency based on your baby’s readiness and their acceptance level of solid foods.
However, keep in mind that babies don’t usually eat a large variety of solid foods, so it isn’t possible to feed your baby a balanced diet through solid foods alone.
Remember, breast milk or formula would need to remain their primary source of calories through the first year; therefore, ensure that you’re giving enough formula each day using a cup or bottle.
Weaning after 1 year
If your baby has been eating a large variety of foods and has got comfortable drinking water and milk, you could look at further reducing breastfeeding without substituting with formula. However, do consult with your doctor about the same.
Sometimes your baby may show signs of discomfort when you reduce breast feeds to a greater extent, as they miss their time being near you. Do comfort your child and engage them with activities that help them cheer up and get more comfortable with the dietary changes happening.
Sudden weaning
A sudden weaning is never recommended, as it increases the chances of breast engorgement and may also increase chances of breast infections.
It emotionally impacts not only you but also your baby.
However, sometimes, weaning suddenly may be inevitable. This could be due to military duty, starting work early, needing to start a medication, or a health procedure that’s not compatible with breastfeeding.
In such scenarios, based your child’s age, substitute feed with appropriate foods or formula.
You could use cold cabbage leaves for dealing with engorgement or cold compress to stop breast swellings. You may have to express just enough to reduce the engorgement for a few days till your body adjusts to the fact that you don’t breastfeed and then automatically your milk production will go down.
You will also want to give both yourself and your child some extra TLC. Sudden weaning can be very difficult emotionally—not to mention the sudden hormone shifts you will experience.
Self-weaning
Self-weaning basically means what it sounds like, i.e. allowing your child to wean on their own, in their own time.
Every child is different when it comes to nursing and more so when they have to give it up.
Few seem more composed and adjust easily with the weaning process, whereas some are even comfortable with sudden weaning. Some may prefer to play and cuddle as compared to breastfeed.
Others seem more emotionally attached to breastfeeding and take longer to wean.
Honestly, there is no real ‘normal’ here, as every child is different. Always remember in self-weaning, give your child the space to gradually move from breast milk to alternatives. Just because they need to wean does not mean you stop giving them breast milk completely.
You can set boundaries with your kids regarding breastfeeding—like number of feeds, duration of feeds, etc. As your child gets older, your question of when to stop breastfeeding may be more of a negotiation based on a mutual relationship.
Take your time to wean your baby
When to stop breastfeeding — needs to be planned in an effective manner, so that your baby is comfortable with it.
You can start simply by replacing 1 feed in 2–3 days and substituting with a cup or a bottle—depending upon baby’s age and need for sucking. Steadily you could introduce other foods and replace one feed of breast milk. Slowly over a period of a month or a month and a half you can replace 1 feed daily then change and introduce new foods every few days, all based on your baby’s acceptance levels and willingness to try new things.
Remember, as weaning progresses and milk supply reduces, your baby will be exposed to bacterial and viral infections. To ensure you maintain your child’s immunity, experiment with foods that are easier to digest to start with and contain good amount of nutrients. Hence, it is crucial that you plan and decide when to stop breastfeeding while keeping all of this in mind. Your pediatrician will be able to guide you better with the same.
A gradual decrease in number of breastfeeds is advisable, as this way, your baby is protected and slowly starts building immunity. You need to take care and avoid problems such as mastitis.
Always remember you have to continue to maintain the skin-to-skin contact, give loads of cuddles to continue to maintain the bond with your baby, and also ensure your baby does not feel aloof. This is the most crucial thing you need to keep in mind and ensure you continue to provide your baby with the required comfort when to stop breastfeeding.
However, when you decide to stop breastfeeding your baby earlier and faster your, do take professional guidance from your doctor or a lactation consultant.
Baby’s Iron requirements
Iron is important for the baby’s immunity. A full-term baby has iron stored up for about 6 months postpartum. Through breastfeeding, there is also small amounts of readily absorbed iron being passed on to the baby.
However, as you gradually wean your baby do take care that iron does get transferred to your baby through iron-rich alternatives foods that you gradually introduce.
Extended breastfeeding
It is perfectly normal if you breastfeed your baby for up to 4 years, as long as you are comfortable with it.
There may be friends and family members who may express that they feel otherwise. As long as you and your baby are comfortable, feel free to continue to breastfeed.
In such scenarios, it would be good to express and explain those near and dear ones about your comfort and reasons of breastfeeding your baby and not weaning them sooner. This may include information about the continued health benefits, security, and comfort for your child.
The child who refuses to be weaned
There are a lot of cases I have come across in my family and friends where I have heard stories of children who were just not ready to wean.
You too may face a scenario that while you decide when to stop breastfeeding and are ready to wean your baby, you will see your baby resisting all your attempts to do so. In such cases, your approach will have to be different based on the age of your child. There are numerous ways to get your baby to wean that you can choose from based on the child’s age and the readiness they show for alternative food.
If your child can understand you and talk as well, then you could talk to them about it and explain why you have to stop breastfeeding. You can also introduce other more yummy foods. You should keep in mind to create time to be with your baby as your baby will suddenly feel aloof cause of weaning. Hug them a lot. Formulate games and play with them. This will assure them that you are still there for them. Plan these things in advance as you decide when to stop breastfeeding.
In case you still face difficulty in figuring when to stop breastfeeding your baby, do speak with your healthcare provider.
Things to remember while you decide when to stop breastfeeding
- It is up to you and your babies comfort to decide when to stop breastfeeding.
- Aim to breastfeed for six months, then gradually introduce appropriate foods in the next six months while continuing to breastfeed.
- Breastfeeding even for a short time is beneficial.
Takeaway
When to stop breastfeeding your baby is a very personal decision and should be taken based on you and your baby’s needs. It needs to be a decision you take on your own.
Unfortunately, you may feel pressure from outside sources—your friends, family, doctor, or even your partner—to make a particular decision that doesn’t quite feel right to you. Do your best to trust your instincts here. Usually your “mother’s instinct” knows what’s best for you and your child.
Ultimately, whatever decision you make, you and your child will be fine. Whether you breastfeed for 1 month, 1 year, or even more, you can be assured that each drop of milk you fed your child did a world of good and that you’re a wonderful parent.
Hope our post on— How long to Breastfeed & understand when to stop breastfeeding, helps you and your baby through your weaning journey. Do let us know if you have any insights you discovered during your weaning process. This will help a lot of mothers.
Happy Weaning!
Khushboo Kirale
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