When to Wean off Bottle and I'm Worried About Baby Cavities?

I would let her have the bottles. However, her teeth are supposed to be brushed 2/day.

If you baby is getting sufficient nutrition, cow's milk is fine in place of formula after 1 year.

Hi S., my pedi told me at my 1 year visit to wean him off the bottle and switch to cow's milk. I also brush his teeth 2 times a day with a non fluoride toothpaste. I was told by my pedi that if ya use fluoride and the child doesn't know how to spit it could be harmful if they swallow to much. Where I live there is fluoride in the water from taps, but I have well water so he gave my son a prescription for fluoride. Good luck!

Hi S.,

I don't have an answer to the formula question since I am a nurser, but I can tell you that yes, you should be brushing her teeth every night before bed and AFTER she has had her last bottle. If you have a hard time brushing, try using a washcloth to swipe her teeth with (with a little baby toothpaste on it). When we sleep, saliva production decreases and this allows any bacteria to sit on our teeth. That's why brushing before bed is so important.

Here's a little helpful hint. My family used to camp a lot and sometimes we weren't able to brush before bed for one reason or another. My mom used to carry sharp cheddar cheese when we went camping because of this. Cheese has enzymes in it that act as an anti-bacterial agent. Apples are also a good snack for cleaning the teeth as they have a slightly astringent property and can actually reduce plaque. I still think brushing every night is essential, but if she resists her morning brushing too much you could use these tactics to sort of fill in the gaps. It's not brushing, but it's better than nothing.

For your peace of mind I will also tell you that she is VERY unlikely to suffer from cavities (called "dental carries" in babies) if she's not falling asleep with her bottle in her mouth. My suggestion is that you start exchanging the middle of the night bottle with one filled with water. Most babies still waking up at her age are more thirsty and attention hungry than anything else.

As for moving to the cup vice the bottle, just keep offering her the cup instead, but don't push too hard, she has to be ready. Try offering her a choice between juice (which you said she's not fond of) in her bottle, or formula in her cup. I'm betting she'll take the cup of formula once she understands what is in which drinking vessel.

Best of luck to you.
D.

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I'm just editing my response because so many moms recommended those little tooth brushes that fit over your finger. I just wanted to add a word of caution about those. I'm sure they're great for most people, but be prepared to use a regular baby brush if you have too. The only thing those finger brushes ever got me was BITTEN! LOL :) And bitten hard; hard enough to leave bruises under my fingernails with both my boys. So try it, but be willing to find what works best for you, no matter what that is. :)

Okay here is a response from "Worst Mom in the World"... I have five grown children who all ate the same thing and all had different numbers of cavities, so some of that is hereditary. They also also drank cow's milk from about the age of 6 months or so from a bottle. They went to bed with a bottle of milk until four or so. A dentist once told me that just drinking water after meals washes junk off the teeth, so if you are really worried give them water at night. As for the whole sippy cup thing, they just took them apart to get out the pieces that made them spill proof! AGGHHH. So let you conscience be your guide about drinking and eatin, if they are eating well, do not worry about formula. Despite all the stories, cow's milk is very nutritious and is an inexpensive drink with MUCH less sugar than juices.

About me: SAHM with one grown and gone(Air Force), one on his way out (Navy) and homeschooling last three in high school.

Brush her teeth two times a day (like adults are supposed to). I started with one of those fingertip brushes and baby tooth and gum cleanser (Orajel is one brand that makes it).

I just stopped bottles for my daughter when she turned one. (She was only taking one bottle in the evening before bed at that time, so it was pretty painless.) My ped said there was no reason for those special formulas for kids older than one (other than to finacially support the formula companies!) and that cow's milk was fine after age 1.

First, you must remember that each child is different... My now 4 year old left the bottle behind at 11 months. I introduced the sippy cup and he wanted no more to do with the bottle. I ended up putting formula in a sippy cup for a month! :) My second boy will be 2 in February and is just now starting to relax and go to sleep without a bottle ... sometimes. Not very often. I give him a bottle to help him fall asleep for his one nap and at night just before bed. It is recommended that you don't do that... however, I did it for my first boy as well, and his first dentist appointment a few months ago was very impressive. (Some pediatricians also recommend going to the dentist when teeth first show up... my dentist, a family dentist, said they need to be old enough to understand and sit still for them.)

As far as brushing teeth, yes, brush them now. I started brushing with that little rubber Gerber brand tooth brush that fits over your finger and has little rubber "bristles" on it. My dentist also said you should not give your child a flouride toothpaste until he can spit it out. Too much flouride is not good for anyone. They make baby toothpaste and toddler toothpaste without flouride for that reason. Gerber is a good one for the beginning... then she's old enough to brush for herself, there's one with Little Bear on it... or Thomas the Tank engine... or whichever one she might like. You could make it fun and let her pick out a toothbrush and toothpaste, just make sure it doesn't have flouride. Of course, if she's not yet 1 year old, that might be something for next year.

Sorry for the long email... just don't worry too much... start brushing her teeth, and don't worry about the bottle before bed. (My advice, not the pediatrician's... ;) Each child is different, but I always gave my boys a bottle before bed, and we brush teeth in the morning and evening after bath, and the 4 year old's dental appointment was stellar. Each one gets to brush first, then it's mommy's turn to brush. Don't forget to brush the tongue, too. Neither one liked it much at first, but I was persistant and did the best I could without starting WWIII. Now, the 4 year old knows it's just the way it goes, and the almost-2 year old is getting better at it.

Good luck. Oh, one more thing... the switch to cow's milk at one year old is to whole milk so they have the good fat ... it aids in brain development, then at 2, switch to whatever you're drinking... 2%, skim, fat free.

I'll try to stop writing now. ;)

Hi S.,

It's so nice to hear a mom so concerned about teeth! I remember brushing my son's teeth about as soon as he had them. However at this age, all you need to do is rub his teeth with a wash cloth before bed. Mostly you need to make your son comfortable with you messing with his mouth. After you "brush" his teeth give him a bottle of water if you want to continue the bottle-before-bed routine. My son stayed on a bottle until he was 3. I personally don't see the difference between a sippy cup that the child has to suck and a bottle except societal perception. I think I continued him on formula until he was 2.

I hope this helps. Good luck.
J.
Luke's mom

I took my daughter off bottles cold turkey on her birthday. Fist what i did was have her drink most of her bottles in a cup. Meals and during the day. So it wasn't any major times she needed something to drink that you were taking away. (the night time bottle is never easy, to be honest i wouldn't have done that one at all. I learned not to from my sisters son he used one and it was a fight) But than what i did was throw them away at her birthday party. I got everyone involved. You could also have everyone take one home so they are truly gone. Just make sure they are all gone..lol Wave to the people at the door holding them. So she knows they are leaving forever. That makes it easier. She will still ask for one in the evening but you just need to say "All gone" She might throw a fit but DON'T get one if it's stashed or buy an new one. That will only prove you can get one if she wants it bad enough. After a few days maybe a week she will stop asking or crying for one.
Good luck

My son is 11 months, and we stopped giving him the bottle about a month or so ago. It's a little strange, but once he started tossing the bottle from his crib, and overturning it so that the formula would leak from the nipple, my husband and I decided he'd had enough and bought a spill-proof cup. We still feed him formula, we decided to stop once he turns a year old. We hardly give him juice and it's always baby juice. He drinks mostly formula and water at this point. EVERYTHING comes from the cup, no bottles.

It took him about two days to come around to the cup. At first, he went an entire day refusing to drink from it, and we had to just give him food (baby and table). After the second day, he took it, and now he recognizes it and wants it on sight. He has about eight teeth, and once they started showing, we started brushing twice a day with a baby toothbrush and Gerber toothpaste. Was kind of hard because all he liked to do, (and still does), is suck the toothpaste off the brush. But we figure if he gets the general message, it will be ok.

We also still give him formula at night when he wakes for the diaper change, and his teeth are bright and healthy. BTW, when he started teething with painful gums, we would only brush once a day to give him a break. Hope this helps!

We switched right after 1 when whatever formula I had on hand was gone. I switched to whole milk initially figuring that the consistency would more closely match the formula. I put the milk in a sippy cup and that was that. She never had it in a bottle.

I think toddler formula is a ploy to get your hard earned money and they don't need it. If you feed her a balanced diet, she'll get all the nutrients she needs. And by balanced, I mean over the course of a couple of days, not per meal or even per day. They eat so little its hard to get all the food groups in for each meal in the serving size recommended.

our 'rule' is that once her teeth are brushed at night she is only allowed to drink water. i've seen it recommended to start brushing as soon as there are teeth but i'm sure you can start now. i would also take her to a dentist, just to check out how things are coming in. you can usually find one fairly cheap.

Hi. First, I would get her off the formula, but check with her doctor first. And definitely, you should be brushing her teeth. Actually, you should have started the minute the first one broke through. Just get a very soft child's toothbrush. Even if you just brush without toothpaste, it will help to dislodge any food particles. Second, I would try her on a sippy cup. I know my second was using a sippy cup when she was 9 months old, because her sister was drinking from a cup. The doctor was amazed! He said, "I'd like to see her off the bottle by the time she's a year old." I said, "She already is." Good luck and Happy Holidays.

everything I have read says that you should brush her teeth before she goes to bed to rid her mouth of cavity causing formula residue on her teeth

I started brushing my daughter's teeth when she started getting teeth. I used the little plastic finger tip thing and the non-flouride toothpaste because she couldn't spit out the toothpaste (she's five, uses fluoride toothpaste and still forgets to spit it out sometimes). I brushed right after her nighttime bottle.

My bad mother story is that my daughter didn't give up the bottle until she was 2 1/2 but she never went to bed with it. She wouldn't drink anything from a cup, and I couldn't let her get dehydrated just to prove a point. She was only using the bottle in the morning and after her nap. It really was a comfort thing for her. Once she decided she could drink from a straw sippy cup and still get cuddled, we finally gave up the bottle. I'm still letting her use the straw sippy cups though she can drink just fine from a glass. I don't want to yell at her for spilling drinks, nor do I want to have to clean them up.

By the way, give your daughter whole milk until she is two for the fat content. When she turns two, you can switch to any low-fat milk you want. And if she drinks juice, water it down. I mix 1/2 juice and 1/2 water. That way my daughter gets the liquid she needs, but with less sugar and gets some fluoride.

Hello,

I do not think that you need to worry that you are going to rot out your child teeth at this point and from what you are doing. She doesn't sleep with a bottle. I would recommend that you do brush her teeth, they have a toothpaste by orajel that you could use. I would also recommend that you take her to her first dental appt soon...ask her dentist about the floride before giving it to her. I have already taken my 14 mo old daughter to her dentist and she doesn't feel that she needs floride.
When your daughter turns 1, start her on whole milk then. I started mine on whole milk at 11 months, so it's really up to you, but my daughter was brestfed until her 1st bday in addition to the milk.
Also, there are straw cups, My First Straw Cup, search it online, I buy mine at great baby products.com. They are said to be better than sippy cups. They help with the muscles that are needed for speech. These cups are great, my daughter had been using them since about 9-10 mo old. I had problems with her using the regular sippy cups. All I had to do was get her to realize that the milk came out of the straw, so I sucked some milk up in the straw, put my finger over it and let her suck it out of the bottom a couple times, then she got it.
As long as you refrain from too many sweets, and juices, and things that will rot her teeth, you should be fine. Just be sure to go to her dentist and brush her teeth.
Good luck!

rotting teeth is from the milk sitting in the mouth because baby was too tired to swallow everything. after her late night feeding have her drink a few sips of water to wwash it down or give a paci to do the same thing. the next step formula is for babies that dont like cows milk or are in need of the extra vitamines and such. i would start taking bottle away now too. maybe to give only at bedtime then completely by say 15 months. they have so many sippy cup choices that she's bound to like one. when you do take them away take them out of the house too. that way you cant give in.

You have received excellent advice so far. I just want to point out that you should use some sort of fluoride toothpase IF your formula isn't mixed with fluoridated tap water. I know a child can get too much fluoride, but I was using bottled water to mix formula due to tap water issues, so my 4 month old, with his 2 teeth, got brushed twice a day with a very small amount of fluoridated toothpaste. As long as they don't swallow a large amount, there is no harm. Good luck!

Hi, S., As long as your daughter is not going to bed with the bottle, you should be fine. Yes, you should be brushing her teeth. Twice a day; don't worry about using toothpaste until she gets older. We switched to cow's milk at a year; I feel like my girls had bottles at bedtime for quite a while! Good luck and happy holidays. N.

She'll be switching to milk once she turns one anyway so there is no need for that formula for kids over one. That's just added money you don't need to spend.

The way I worked it was the day my daughter had her 1 yr well check, she had formula at breakfast & lunch & she went cold turkey to milk at dinner. She had no problems with the switch.

As for the bottle, she got a bottle of milk at breakfast, lunch & dinner. My daughter was slow to transition off her bottle, she was completely off at 15 months. Our pediatrician had no problems with that.

Hello Karen, I am a childrens' dental hygientist and I have seen the worst cases of baby bottle decay. It's not the fact that she drinks from the bottle during the night, it's the formula that stays in her mouth that does most of the damage.
Babies can't swallow everything in their mouth like we can, so the formula stays and the sugars start to work, Enamel on baby teeth is thin and it doesn't take long to decay. You said she likes water. Well, give her a bottle of water during the night. Sippy cups are good, but remember it is the sugars that cause cavities. Don't give her alot of juice unless you make it half water, half juice. Brush her teeth twice a day.
Good luck