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You have been always told how important it is to breastfeed your baby.  The benefits of breast milk are many.  However, babies cannot survive on breast milk alone throughout their lives.They need to be introduced to variety of nutrition and tastes. When you stop nursing your baby and they get their nutrition from some other sources apart from breast milk, it is called breastfeeding weaning.   

When to begin with breastfeeding weaning

There is no hard and fast rule when you should start to wean your baby from breastfeeding.  According to the recommendation of The World Health Organization, all babies should be exclusively breastfed for six months whereas The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies should be breastfed for about one year. However, nobody knows your baby better than you.  You are the best judge to determine when to wean your baby from breast milk.  

Types of weaning

Weaning can be either way – baby-led weaning or mother-led weaning.

Baby-led weaning – The simplest form of weaning is the baby-led weaning.  Some toddlers detach naturally as they grow active and do not have the patience to latch on to their mothers for milk.  You can expect this any time after they reach six months.  Your baby will give you signals that will show if he is ready for solid food by reaching out and grabbing solid food at meal time.    Go with the flow and let your baby experience varieties of solid food as recommended by your pediatrician.

Mother-led weaning – Mother-led weaning is a difficult form of weaning.  Your toddler may not be willing to give up the comfort of snuggling while sucking breast milk even after two years.  At times, it may become embarrassing if your toddler starts throwing tantrum in public.  You need a lot of patience to wean him off breast milk.  Give your baby time to adjust to the change as you begin weaning   

Method of weaning

Weaning is supposed to be a gradual process.  Never indulge in abrupt weaning as it could be quite traumatic for both of you.  Abrupt weaning could lead to plugged duct and infection in the breast.

Pump it up – Instead of latching your baby to your breast, you could choose to pump your breast milk and feed from the bottle.  This way, your child would get the habit of bottle nipple and still get the nutrition of breast milk.

Miss a feed – You can substitute breast milk with formula milk as a gradual process of weaning your baby from breastfeeding.  If your pediatrician recommends cow milk, you may start with 200 or 300 ml of cow’s milk as introductory feature.  Gradually, you can increase the amount to 400 ml/day depending upon how well your baby can digest the milk.  Also be alert for any signs of allergies developing.

Shortened nursing time – Reduce the duration of breastfeeding and continue with bottle feeding immediately after detaching the baby from breast.

Distracting – Mothers may distract their babies from breastfeeding and create interest in other form of foods.

For a healthy baby, you need to do what’s best for them.  Develop their taste buds by introducing variety of fruits and vegetables packed with nutrients.