My baby is a year old (TODAY:) and she has just recently begun to wake in the middle of the night for a bottle. I've tried the route of just laying her back down and patting her back and getting her back to sleep but she's back awake before I can get back to bed. I've tried putting her in bed with me and holding her; then it just becomes crawl around and pat mommy's face and stand up and pound on the headboard play time for her. She has slept through the night for so long now. All I can figure is that she is going through a growing spurt and is getting hungry again in the middle of the night. I don't like giving her a bottle in the middle of the night because of the things that they say about rotting childrens teeth. If she's hungry though, I can't/won't deny her nutrition. Once she has drank her bottle, she goes back to sleep. I need some good advice from other parents that have been through this same thing. I really need to start getting more sleep.
Thank you, everyone, for all your wonderful responses. As it turns out, I believe I have a combination of a growth spurt AND 1 year molars. She is extremely fussy today and I got my finger in her mouth (amazingly, without being bit:) and her 2 top molars are broke through and she has a large lump in her bottom gums. She requires a full 8 oz bottle in the middle of the night and some times more; hence, the belief that she is in a growth spurt. My baby is just growing up WAY TOO FAST!! Does anyone know how I can reverse this? LOL
Hi N.,
I do not think that a childs teeth are going to rot because he or she has a bottle for a few months of their life. If it makes her go back to sleep let her have it and brush her teeth first thing in the morning. My daughter woke up every nite and had a bottle that put her back to sleep until she was 17 months old.
Try a healthy and filling snack right before bed, something with some protein in it so she will stay satisfied, and hopefully asleep!
N.,
I don't know what you are giving her in the bottle, but our pediatrician had us give our boys rice cereal in their bottle at night. The cereal helps to keep them full longer so they sleep better. (I also find that I sleep better if I have cereal before bed.)
I used the Gerber cereals because they mix easily in the bottle. We used one nipple exclusively for cereal and made the hole extra big so the cereal could come out. We even sucked on the bottle to make sure that the flow was good and not difficult otherwise they get tired from sucking and don't get the cereal down and wake later hungry.
I wish you the best of luck and lots of restful nights.
I started giving both my kids a banana or some fruit right at bedtime during reading time. It seems to really help them relax and sleep through the night. they love it, and it's somethign that I feel good about giving them so late in the day. Hope this helps.
Good Morning!!
I was just reading your request for ideas on the middle of the night hungry problem. If you are worried about giving her a bottle because of her teeth, why don't you just give her a cup of milk and then lay back down. It might also be a help in weaning her from her needing a bottle at all.
Annie G. 41, SAH Mom of two teenagers.
Stinks, doesn't it? Mine woke up 3-5 times at night until he was 18 months old. I'd say try feeding her right before bed, few carbs, no sugar. Or try to get a larger protein load in her at dinner. But, I think the growth spurt thought you are having is probably correct.
Good luck!
Well I just dont think moms are ever allowed to get real sleep. My kids are 4 & 7 and I rarely sleep all night w/o interruption, even if the interruption is just my worry over a caugh I hear.
Try to be sure dinner has enough Protine and fiber. These things keep you full longer.
She could be just thirsty, try letting her sleep w/ a bottle of water.
If you do find that the bottle is just what she needs be sure to have it ready before you go to bed. When she wakes feed it to her and then put her back down this way she cannot fall asleep with milk still in her mouth which I think is the real concern for the teeth.
By the way...CONGRADULATIONS! You made it a year. I took a sigh of relief at that point with each child.
'Bottle rot' usually occurs when a baby/child continuously goes to bed with a bottle of milk or juice in their mouth in place of a pacifier. If you're giving her a bottle because she's hungry/thirsty in the middle of the night, stay up while she's eating, when she falls asleep, remove the bottle, don't leave it in her mouth. A pacifier might help if it soothes her to sleep.
Usualy bottle rot is caused by SLEEPING with the bottle. Not just a midnight snack. And it does take alot of consistancy for it.
Kids go through these phases for various reasons. Generaly it will pass.
N.-
I feel your pain! My 2 year old STILL does not sleep through the night consistently. If you are afraid your daughter's teeth will literally rot out of her head if you let her have that bottle, I can understand that. I freaked out about that, too. UNTIL my Mom said to me "you don't remember asking me for bottles?" And at that point I did. I have distinct memories of asking for a bottle when I was already drinking from a cup -- and getting it. I have never had a cavity in my life. I agree with other moms here, try to give her just enough to hold her over until breakfast, and brush her teeth in the morning just to be sure. Most importantly, do what feels right for both you and your daughter. I hope some of this helped. =)
Bottle mouth only happens if your baby goes to sleep
with the bottle in her mouth. If you remove the bottle
when she is done it should be alright. Have you tried
giving her a bottle before bed with just a little thin
ceral in it, this might help.
Hi N., I think a bottle would be fine in middle of night, just dont leave it in her crib all night. That is where it harms teeth and if you can, wipe out her mouth after she is done also to reduce anything sitting on teeth.
Hi,
We ran into this too. When we felt sure he was over his spurt, and just in the cycle of getting a night time bottle, we started giving him a bottle with 1 oz of milk, and 4 oz of watered down chamomile tea. over the course of a week or so, he woke later and later until he was sleeping til 7. Good luck!
Maybe she is going through a growth spurt and she's hungry more. Try to give her just enough to convince her to go back to bed. If you fill her bottles to the normal limit she may get attached to that and think its okay every night. Give her 3 ounces, make it a little warm.
I told my daughter that it was a special good night milk and it helped. Good luck.
I have a couple of thoughts on this.
The first would be what time are you giving her her last feeding before bed? Is she on solid yet? If so, then maybe making sure she gets a night time snack just before she goes off to bed. If not then this might be a sign that she may need that little extra.
Sometimes it could be teething, or an ear infection. Or maybe she is missing you.
Maybe if you put a shirt of yours in the bed with her, so she can smell you.
I hope that this helps. Sometimes kids cannot be figured out.
my oldest is now 23, and the baby is 11. They still throw me for a curve.
Hello N.,
When I weaned my babies from the breast to the bottle the Doctors said not to put a baby to bed with a bottle filled with milk,juice and the like because of the sugar and what not that can cause cavities on the baby's teeth. It is ok to put the baby to bed with a bottle filled with water. I have always put warm water in the bottle ... make it warm just like the breast milk was and she will be fine.
Hope this helps.
God Bless and take care and good luck.
A.
I gave two of mine middle-of-the-night bottles when they went through this stage. I also got into the habit of leaving a sippy cup of water in the crib - so I never worried about them falling asleep with a mouthful of milk to marinate their teeth.
My oldest is five, the other is two. I've been taking them for annual dental checkups since their first birthday. I make sure teeth are brushed twice a day. They don't get juice or candy except as a special treat. And the two year old takes fluoride drops. We don't have any dental issues or concerns and I don't regret those midnight snacks one little bit!
My first two thoughts were either a growth spurt or is she getting her 1 year molars? I know that when my kids got their molars they didn't sleep well at all and our pediatrician told us that the sucking reflex soothed their gums. If it's her molars, you could try some infants motrin or tylenol before bed and some oragel if she wakes up, maybe that will help. My kids always got up a lot at night when they were teething. If it's a growth spurt it will more than likely correct itself over time. Good luck!
When m daughter got to be a year old, I had also reached a point where I really wanted some sleep and just was ready for her to sleep through the night. I did some reading about it and found out that babies of single moms sometimes wake up more at night because they need the extra reassurance from mom that they don't get during the day. Don't know if it's true, but it helped me deal with the continued night waking.
Also, yeah, 1 year molars. Fun times. They take longer to cut than the other ones too.
I feel your pain. I had to do the same thing. I gave my son his bottle at night for a short time but I would use a wash cloth and rubbed his teeth down with it after wards. What time do you put your little one to sleep? Do you feed her before bed time with a snack? I finally had to start putting my little one to bed a little later and gave him a snack before bed so he would sleep better. I hope these suggestions help you.
Good Luck with your little one.
A.
She may be just going through a growing spurt, if you are worried about her teeth brush them after she feeds, or does she fall asleep during the feeding?
Babies do know how much to eat, it is us as parents that try to force more on them when they are pushing it away, so if she is hungry feed her the bottle and live with it, it might only be a short period of time and this will end.
I hope this helps.
