Frequently Asked Questions - Feeding


Our Expert Health Visitors have answered the following questions on Sleep to aid parents of infants & children 0-5 years. Look through the questions listed below, or use our confidential online Health Visitor support service if you would like to ask your own question.

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Q I started introducing solids to my little girl two weeks ago, ,just a bit of porridge in morning and some veg in the afternoon, she loved it and eats it all up without leaving any, however since she has started on this food I cant get her to drink milk throughout the day, she will only have 8oz for breakfast and 8 before bed. I'm really concerned that this is not enough milk could u tell me how much milk she should be taking for her age and suggest a routine of when and how much I should offer her milk as she will not take any at lunch or tea times.
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Q When do I stop using the cold water method for my baby's bottles, is it 6 months?
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Q My daughter is on solids and milk but she does not have the amounts she should have. I try to give her savory solids but she only eats sweet things like yogurt, rice pudding and custard Another issue is that because she eats very little in the day she still wakes twice at night for milk. Please could you suggest how I could encourage my baby to eat more varied foods and tips on how to stop the night feeds. health visitors response

Q My daughter is 13 months and eats her solids well but likes her bottle as a comfort to help her go to sleep. How can I break this habit of using the bottle as a comfort without disrupting her sleep and making sure she does not go hungry?
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Q How long do you try to ignore a food fad. I have tried everything that my local Health Visitors have suggested and my son is going from bad to worse with eating. I make sure he doesn't know how worried I am about it and try to make meal times fun but he runs off of hides under the table and I can't seem to win this battle. health visitors response

Q For the past week or so my son's night time waking has consisted of a feed and then a battle of approx 2 hours to get him back to sleep. We are at our wits end. In the morning he wasn't very interested in his bottle so we are assuming that it is a habit and not hunger. Should we persist with this method, is he too young to expect him to settle himself and go without milk? health visitors response

Q My daughter developed milk intolerance 8mths ago, after a heavy cold, is this still milk intolerance? Please could you advice me as to whether I should keep trying to introduce milk?
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Q Have you got any tips to get my son to take expressed milk from a bottle?
He initially took it fine at about six weeks old but has got worse and worse, and now screams whenever a teat goes into his mouth. health visitors response

Q My daughter sometimes chokes on lumpier foods but then not on others. Is this normal? She is an active baby and is crawling, how many bottles does she need a day?
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Q I am wondering when do I start my one year old son on a beaker? I have tried but he is not a bit interested and I know bottles can do stuff to his teeth. Can you advise? health visitors response

Q My ten year old child does not eat dairy products very often and I would like to know how I can ensure that he gets enough calcium, thank you. health visitors response

Q My son has three meals a day with healthy snacks in between and he drinks water from a tommee tippee sippy cup. He also is offered about 18 oz of milk a day, 9oz from a bottle at bedtime and 9oz from his sippy cup at waking time. This is an attempt to wean him off the bottle. He is not taking kindly to the sippy cup and won't take much milk- he is then too distracted to eat a good breakfast- because he would rather have the milk and is then ravenous mid morning. Do I persevere with the sippy cup in a morning, and perhaps give him a whole milk yogurt/ fromage frais mid-morning to push him on till dinnertime? health visitors response

Q I am trying to get my baby to drink from a bottle/cup rather than from my breast in the day but its not working. I haven’t had a break since her birth nearly 6 months ago and I am shattered and losing my sense of 'me'. She won’t take a bottle and just chews the spout of the baby cup.
Any suggestions most welcome. health visitors response