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Babies: 6 - 9 Months
Is it normal for a 6 month old to need a middle of the night feeding still?
Or is this a bad habit that is forming? DShas been waking around 12am every night for the past 2 weeks to eat. At first I thought growth spurt but does a growth spurt really last this long? He drinks a full 5oz bottle and would probably drink more if I gave it to him, but then again he's never been one to refuse a bottle.
I guess I'm just worried that I'm creating a bad habit by feeding him since I often read that babies at this age do not need to eat in the middle of the night. I'm ok with it if he's truly hungry and needs the bottle but if not, I need to figure out how to wean him of this.
Any advice is appreciated!
Andrew James born 7/9/10 @ 7:13pm - 7lbs 14oz & 20in
Baby #2: EDD 11/2/12
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Is it normal for a 6 month old to need a middle of the night feeding still?
If he's taking a full 5 oz my guess is he's hungry.
DD still wakes to eat, and there's no doubt she's hungry. It's developmentally appropriate for LO's to need a middle of the night meal or snack until 18-24 months.
DD2 8.22.13
MMC 1.4.17 at 16w
Expecting #3, EDD 1.29.18
Sounds like it's normal for your child and that's really all that matters. They'll drop the night feeding when they're ready.
Most doctors will tell you at that age middle of the night feedings are not necessary. That advice is a guideline and doesn't apply to all babies.
i still feed Samantha in the middle of the night. i do however try and put her to sleep without it. shes been about a week with no nighttime feedings except the other day when someone decided to rev their truck at 4:30 in the morning and woke her back up after i just put her down so i ended up feeding her and she went back down.
Samantha will take a full 4-6oz when she wakes up as well.
You should ask your pediatrician. At our 6 month well check up she mentioned that we shouldn't be feeding her anymore. Even if she is hungry, she is at the age where she should train herself not to want to eat. She also said she would eat more during the day and she was right. I used to feed DD every morning at 4 and she ate like she was starved and then wasnt interested in eating when she woke up for the day but it only took 3 days of not feeding her at 4 for her to get used to it and now she eats like a little cow when she gets up.
It made sense when our pedi was explaining it saying it so I guess go with what you feel comofrtable doing!
My daughter did this too, at 6 months we stopped giving her formula in the night and just offering her water instead. After a couple weeks of giving her water - she sleeps all the way through the night now.
I think (at least for my daughter) it was a habit. She woke up thinking she was supposed to eat. So once we taught her she didn't need to eat during the night she doesn't wake up for it anymore. It could also be that she was getting dry mouth. So in the rare instance that she does wake up we have a sippy cup handy and we give her a drink and she goes right back to sleep.
This! I don't know why some pedis seem to have a weight or age at which babies magically don't need an overnight feeding anymore. Sometimes I think they just tell people what they want to hear :P
We did what PP did and "trained" DS to take more calories during the day (EBF) and eliminate that habit of waking up in the middle of the night. Another thing I do still is dream feed - before I go to bed, usually around 10 pm, I pick up DS and nurse him while he's still asleep and put him right back down afterwards. My DH has done it with a bottle too and DS sleeps right through. Maybe try that around 10 or before you go to bed and see if it makes a difference. Then if your LO is still waking around midnight you know that he's probably not hungry and just waking out of habit. Just a thought...