What To Do When The Baby Doesn’t Want A Bottle?

As we know, specialists recommend exclusive breastfeeding at least for the first 6 months of the baby’s life; however,  in some cases it is necessary to use a bottle. Not only for those babies who for various reasons take powdered milk, but also in case it is  necessary to feed them with breast milk but from the bottle. But what to do if your baby doesn’t want a bottle?

Whatever the reason,  babies sometimes need to be fed in alternative ways from the mother’s breast. Maybe the mother has to go back to work or she has to go out and leave the baby for a few hours, but in the meantime the baby has to eat. Therefore, the use of the bottle becomes indispensable.

However, sometimes  the baby does not want the bottle and can totally refuse it. In these cases, an immediate solution is needed. But when this happens, it is good that the baby is prepared in advance:  if it is a question of stopping breastfeeding permanently, it is better to do it gradually.

How can you help him if he doesn’t want a bottle?

Not all babies refuse the transition from breast to bottle, but it costs a little for most to  adapt and in fact it is difficult for many. The longer the baby’s breastfeeding lasts, the harder it can be to leave the breast. The concept, however, is that it doesn’t have to be an abrupt change.

There is a good time for the baby to leave the breast for good, but sometimes it is a matter of urgency: we have to leave it to go to work, but he does not want the bottle. To avoid this situation, it is advisable to try to do it in advance, so that  the baby gets used to recognizing the consistency of the bottle and does not notice the change.

With simple experiments, we can make sure that the adaptation process is not so violent. Specialists recommend that someone help us , to make the baby associate the absence of the chest with that of the mother. That is to say, let someone else give him the bottle, so that the baby does not wait for the breast.

Tips for switching from breast to bottle

It is not an easy task, sometimes the problem is not that the baby does not want to stop breastfeeding, but that he does not want a bottle. Some mothers recommend leaving them hungry for a certain time,  but this will not achieve any results, because in the end we will still have to give them the breast to feed them.

Specialists recommend that  the mother be present only when trying to train the baby to accept milk from the bottle. So, if we already know that sooner or later we will have to leave it, it is better to prepare it in advance.

Here are some useful tips

• It is essential to look for a way to balance the baby’s nutrition: that is,  that it is balanced and does not present nutritional deficiencies. For this, you have to remove the breast very slowly, with the right intervals of time.
• Alternate traditional breastfeeding with the new method:  after a few times with the bottle, we go back to giving him the breast. Let us remember that the important thing is to avoid traumatizing the child, so everything must be done calmly. Furthermore, we must avoid problems resulting from the retention of milk in the breast.
• The baby senses your presence, he can see you or hear you: this is the main reason why he refuses the bottle. Therefore,  pediatricians suggest that someone else give it to him while you are not present.

• In part, the refusal of the bottle also depends on the food:  sometimes it has to do with the taste of the milk, its conservation or other characteristics ;  for example, powdered cow’s milk is difficult to digest.
• Other times, the pacifier may be the cause of the refusal : let’s try to change it or feed it with a teaspoon or a glass with a spout.
• An effective way to teach them to accept the bottle  is to wait for it to show less interest in the breast. This will let you know when he is willing to switch modes.