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384896 tn?1335294331

9 months old and refusing to drink her formula.

My daughter is 9 months old.
This past week she's been refusing to drink her formula.
She'll drink a lil bit. Like usually she drinks about 8 ounces every bottle, but now it's a task and a half trying to get her to drink not even 2 ounces.

I'm not sure what exactly I should do.
I know you're not supposed to give them regular milk until they reach about a year old.

Any suggestions?
21 Responses
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Avatar universal
I just don't really believe what they have to say.  So basically all our previous presidents and successful figures throughout our history were on formula/breast milk.  Like you stated we don't know how a baby truly develops, but these companies DO.  Interesting.  
Helpful - 0
2195822 tn?1341056911
I know this is old but to the poster above I agree. My mums friend bottle Fed and within a month her daughter wouldn't drink it. She put iher on cows milk at two months. Yes not recommended but she would've starved otherwise and the mother felt like she had no other choice. It didn't harm her daughter.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I know this is an old post but writing it anyway for anyone who is looking stuff up, first of all I live in canada and we can start our babies at 9 months on whole milk as long as they have been  introduced to an iron balanced diet , I have 3 kids my oldest 2 boys never ever went to the whole year before having milk and they are smart smart smart, my friend has 5 kids and they were all of formula by a year and they are smart smart smart , they are worried about the iron consumption because without enough iron babies do not grow, this bs about babies not taking in any nutrients from the food they eat is just that bs, if that were the case my daughter would not be growing at all seeing as its a battle to take her bottle and when I say this I mean I can not get her to take it unless she is sleeping she can go to bed and wake 12 hours later and still not want a bloody bottle, so if this is the case you do what you can to make sure your baby does not starve or dehydrate and if they do not want formula and you have been to the doctors and yadda yadda there really is nothing you can do but offer it when possible but you can not force them.
Helpful - 0
384896 tn?1335294331
I dunno what Ivy's deal was cuz I got her to where I only put the syrup in half the time now. Sometimes she'll drink it without now, and sometimes she won't drink it unless the strawberry is in it.

Pinkbell~ I don't like to give my lil one chocolate because there's caffiene in chocolate and she's already a spazz as it is... let's not make it worse! lmao
They recomend you don't give an infant chocolate till 1 anyways. So for her first birthday she'll be getting chocolate cake to make a mess of! What a treat! lol!

Joy~ I bought her some safe-to-swallow baby starters toothpaste and a lil baby tooth brush, it's so cute! lmao! But anyways, I've been brushing her what was her "tooth" but now it's "teeth" cuz she just popped in another on earlier this week, lol. I've been brushing her teeth since I saw her first tooth coming in. I'm kinda obsessed with making sure mine, my hubby's and my lil Ivy's teeth are clean because I don't wanna end up with missing or rotted teeth. It's one of my biggest fears to end up like my grams cuz she hadda have all her teeth ripped out and now she's wearing plates. And she's miserable. I don't want any of us to have to deal with that. So I'm very dental hygenic. And I also don't want Ivy to end up with bottle rot, or whatever that's called.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I think the whole world knows that the AAP recommends formula/breastmilk til  age of one. We were giving her options, to get her child to eat/drink formula. You cant pour formula down a childs troat-esp. if she wont open her mouth. anyway enough said, congrats to you you found something that got her to like it again!!!!!!!! ima try it with my next baby, which i hope to BF my next child til one.
Helpful - 0
284738 tn?1283106819
thats fine to post it.. and information is wonderful but what it comes down to is that is her child and that child is her responsibilty.. She is the mother so it is ultimately her decision.. and i hate when people try to cram their way of doing things down other peoples throats.. its irritates me soo bad! My ped told me i could start milk with aubree at 10 mths so i did.. she is my child and i am her mother so therefore her well being is up to me not to everyone on this board... thats fine that we can give advice and information to other people that is wonderful and that is what medhelp is for ... but i just think some people go too far..   like its their way or the highway.. and people get bashed for doing certain things with THEIR child..  if i want to give milk to my daughter when she was 10 mths old that is MY business... i don;t need people telling me that' oh thats wrong'.. she is MY child and I am HER mother.. its one thing to give me the information so i can make an informed decision but its quite another to bash me or others for doing what they think is right for their child..

it kills me how self righteous people can be.. like they always follow every single guideline.. thats absurd.. they are just guidelines there is nothing written in stone on how to raise a child.. we live and learn.. some things that work for some people dont work for others and vice versa..  I'll probably get bashed for this but you know what I could care less b/c I have been wanting to say this for awhile and with me being pregnant and my pregnancy hormones just raging I guess i just picked now and this topic to let it out
( even though it really doesn't have anything to do with this post) so sorry riot for taking your post off topic.. and it will probably get deleted anyway : )

So my advice to you is to do what you think is best for YOUR child. because in the end thats all that matters...  You can ask for advice here on medhelp and alot of the times you will get good answers but please don't take what they say to be set in stone.. you do what you feel is right for your child! Never let anyone tell you what you are doing is wrong for your child.. b/c afterall she is your child and you know what is best!!!

Best of Luck with Ivy and the new baby!!!
Helpful - 0
171768 tn?1324230099
i realize that some people get upset when posters post information that contradicts decisions that they made for their own children, but being a medical community, I believe it is important to relay current medical recommendations and reasonings, in addition to personal anecdotes. It may not affect the current poster, but as we all have seen, old threads are pulled up very frequently and commented on. The personal anecdotes can be very helpful, but professional recommendations need to be considered as well. I do have to note, that in many cases such as this, I do not always agree with the whole "you know what's best for your child" reasoning. That can be applied to discipline, sleep habits, etc... But given that we are not as familiar with an infant's physiology and nutritional needs, I feel that it is best to try to follow pediatrician's recommendations for infant feeding.

It is a fact that the AAP recommends forumla/breastmilk until 12 months. There are plenty of medical studies and knowledge that that is based on. I feel that needed to stated, and I am sorry if that offends anyone.
Helpful - 0
284738 tn?1283106819
Riot-- I put the sugar free hershey choc. syrup in my daughters milk when we first switched her over and it worked like a charm.. its your daughter so if you think its what you need to do to get her to drink then  its your choice.. i hate when people get up on their soap box and try to force things down peoples throats...  

With that being said we started my daughter on half milk/ half formula at 9 1/2- 10 mths old and by 11 mths she was drinking just whole milk...  this is just what i did with my daughter .. im not saying it is the right choice but it was the right choice for my daughter.
Helpful - 0
965641 tn?1274534320
my son did the same thing at about the same age too
his cousin was living with us at the time and her kids
he ended up picking up one of her kids bottles - who was on regular whole milk already and he would just drink that and that was the end of formula for us
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Make sure you brush her teeth really good after she drinks!
Helpful - 0
419158 tn?1316571604
Wow, I woulda never thought of that! Good idea:)
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171768 tn?1324230099
Glad you found something that works :)
Helpful - 0
384896 tn?1335294331
Well I've solved the solution of the baby formula thing.
She doesn't like the taste of it.
She's gotten a taste for food older people eat, and must think the formula is gross.
It smells HORRIBLE to me, so I don't blame her for not liking it.

I tried the half milk half formula thing, and it helped a lil bit, but not much. So my MIL went out and bought Hersey's strawberry syrup to mix in her formula like we would in our milk.
So I put just enough to give it a lil hint of strawberry flavor to it.
And for those of you who think that that's a BAD thing to do, I'm just gunna say I'd rather her drink her formula and have it have a lil extra calories in it, than have her not get anything at all.
And she just LOVES it. She has NO problem drinking her bottles now.
So I'm happy.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I actually called my daugher's pediatrician regarding her eating habits because I wanted to make sure I wasn't feeding her too much.  (keep in mind my daughter is 5 months, so it may be a little different) The nurse told me that she needs to get at least 24-32oz of formula a day, so whether she eats and has formula at the same time doesn't matter - all that matters is her getting the 24-32oz.  Now I'm just saying what the doc told me for my 5 month old.  On the other hand, my nephew had to be on soy formula and when he was 1 they switched him to whole milk.  He had a reaction and now has to be on soy milk instead.  He doesn't like it.  The doctor told my SIL to give him cheese, yogurt and other dairy products in place of it (they are hoping he will get used to it).  I don't know if you can do anything with this information, but just letting you know what I've learned so far!!

My best advice though would be to call the doctor and see what they say.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
UUUMMM--- My child REFUSED formula since she was about 8mon old. I literally had to force her to drink it-usually when she was tired or sleeping id pop a bottle in her mouth bc she wud not drink more then a few ounces at a time.
            I got her on whole organic milk since 10 and a half mon. She eats a variety of different foods. To all of you who 'think' that Roit_Queen should give her 9mon old at least 24 oz..... you girls dont know what its like when your kid just simply REFUSES to open there mouth. I always used to get that from my doctor 'oh thats too little for a 8 month old' you know what?????? you wana try feeing her formula?????? guess what she just aint gonna do it.
           You can try giving you daughter Pedia-sure, and milk. Well Pedia-sure is for kids from one yr of age. so ask your doc. But milk? as long as she can handle yogurt for babies, i think she'll be fine. Personally as a mom of a formula-hater, i choose calories and not-starving over whats "NUTRITOUS" enough.- esp. when your kid doesnt give you that choice.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
She's probably just become so active that she's "too busy" to want to take the time to drink. If she's eating, that can also decrease how much milk she wants.

I think you should try to shoot for 24-32 ounces of formula AT LEAST. If she's getting at least that much, plus food and fluids, she should be okay. If she starts losing weight or having other problems then I'd definitely bring it up to the ped.
Helpful - 0
171768 tn?1324230099
there is a very good reason why pediatricians insist that babies stay on formula or breastmilk until 1- they NEED the nutrients in it for brain development. Baby foods, juice, water, etc... cannot replace what is missing from the baby's diet when there's no formula. I know it seems like it's only 3 months too early to be off formula, but if you think about it, 3 months right now is 1/3 of the baby's lifetime! And this first year is crucial for brain development.

Your little one actually doesn't need any water or juice- all the fluids she would need is in formula. In fact, too much water at this age can be dangerous for little ones. (look up water intoxication, too much water for infants, etc... because of their small mass, they can easily absorb too much water and end up with this potentially fatal disturbance in brain functions). the idea of trying a sippy cup is a good idea, or a straw cup. Offer formula before food, or try to get it into her when she's drowsy. My girlfriend is in the same boat as you, so she uses 8 ounces of milk twice a day to make cereal for the baby. I'm not sure that's the best way, but at least her little one is getting at least 16 ounces of formula daily. I'm surprised her baby isn't constipated.

I would check with the ped. I have heard of kids refusing the bottle when they have an ear infection or some other illness. Since this is a relatively new problem for her, there may be a medical reason. Also, you may want to try a higher flow nipple if she won't take a sippy cup. Maybe she's frustrated by the flow.
Helpful - 0
384896 tn?1335294331
The women at WIC suggested trying half cow's whole milk, and half formula.
It's not the bottle I know that because when her sippy cups are dirty and I can't get around to washing them cuz I'm busy, I'll throw her water in a bottle for her.

She RARELY drinks juice. She doesn't seem to care for it too much. Once in a while she'll gobble it down, but I'll only offer her up to 4oz a day. No more than that because she gets diarhea or gets constipated very easily and I have to monitor her daily food intake very carefully.

I'm gunna try the half milk and half formula.
I've offered her some regular milk earlier and she seemed to like it, but then I read that it can cause anemia in infants, and so I took it away from her. lol
But they said offering a little milk with meals is okay around her age, just don't give her too much.

I dunno, she needs to have her formula because she needs the nutrients from it.
I guess I'll see what happens.
Helpful - 0
419158 tn?1316571604
Well my little guy has been like that for awhile. And around 9 1/2 months I started giving reg milk. I know alot of people would disagree about that but he had been drinking small amounts during meals with no problem. He loves it! He has never been a good bottle drinker, but now he drinks so much more. You could try formula in a sippy cup? Maybe its just the bottle? Have you given her any reg milk at all? Maybe ask your doctor first about it. Maybe you could try cutting out some of the juice? Babies dont really need that anyways, its just empty calories. Maybe its filling her up and thats why?? Just a bunch of suggestions. My little guy is 10 1/2 months and had been on whole milk for about a month. No problems, but every baby is diffrent. Good luck!!
Helpful - 0
456039 tn?1302660148
I am not sure, but as long as she is getting fluids and eating I don't think you have to worry too much.  I would keep trying the formula just because it has everything she needs in it, but untill she will take it again I would just make sure her diet is as balanced as possible
Helpful - 0
384896 tn?1335294331
I forgot to say that it's only the formula.
She drink water like a friggin horse, she chooses that over her juice and formula.
I really don't know what her deal is...
Helpful - 0
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