my 8month old daughter has been very persistent lately in wanting to feed herself her bottle.. and she can, shes finally gotten to the point where she doesn't make a mess with it, squirt it all over, drop it, or just sit there and play with it. My only concern is that she always wants to lay down on her back while shes drinking her baba. she will take the bottle while shes sitting up but then will lay down once she has it in her mouth.. im guessing she doesn't like it have to tip the bottle up while shes drinking it or have to tip her head back once the bottle gets to the point of being half empty or less. To be honest with you I never really thought about it. Last night I showed my fiancé, I was so excited I was like "look what your daughter does now!". He was pretty concerned about her drinking while laying on her back. I told him if shes going to drink it by herself without me holding it that's how she does it. He said maybe I should stop letting her do it if she wont do it while sitting up. Should I be concerned?? its not like I give her a bottle and walk away, at most I will run to the bathroom to pee real quick and come back immediately. Basically my thinking now is that either my fiancé is a little over paranoid/protective, or maybe im not concerned enough..
the boppy pillow under her head worked wonders!!.. and yes I still do have her in my arms 99%of the time while im feeding her.. I just wanted to show my fiancé that she is actually capable of doing it herself... when daddy feeds her he says she wont hold it that she just puts her hands on it and he has to tip it up.... but even so when she is with me eating she slowly scrunches her way from sitting almost upright to laying down.. shes a real squirmer
Babies have been holding their own bottles at this age for eons. They love laying down with it. She is fine. Don't worry.
She'll be fine drinking it laying down. She is old enough to be able to sit up or roller over if there are any choking concerns.
S.
Yep, if she can roll over she will be fine, although I woudl put something under her in case she would spit up :). If you are still concerned, consider a Boppy under her head. That's how we did it when they could hold their own bottle.
The concern I have is when they lay down and drink the bottle, some of the contents may run down the side of their cheek and get into the ear. That's how many babies who are given a bottle to go to bed with get ear infections. I never gave my daughter a bottle to go to bed with. She drank her bottle, then was put down. She never had an ear infection.
Just watch and wipe up anything running down her cheek toward the ear.
Prop her up on a Boppy or pillow and let her go! She can't sit up and drink a bottle yet... her head is still disproportionate and she'd topple right over!
I've always heard not to let them lay down with the bottle because it could result in ear infections (the liquid drains back towards the ears). I've never done it with my bottle fed babies. Maybe let her sit in a high chair or swing or something? Or just hold her and let her do it. Sounds like you have an independent gal! Good luck!
Prop her up on a pillow or a Boppy. Then let her lie down and drink it.
My babies have all done this and very rarely did they get ear infections. I even (gasp) gave them bottles at bedtime once they got old enough to hold the bottle.
I totally agree with Sharie. She can move on her own if a problem comes up. All of my kids did that at some point. I used Playtex nursers though so there was no issue of not wanting to hold the bottle up. I think they just wanted to be comfy.
I think your fiance is right on this one. There's so much about what you describe that doesn't sit well with me. Self-feeding a bottle at that age, for one - I can't imagine not holding my baby in my arms for feedings. If she wants to hold it herself I guess that is what it is, but I would think that at that point she should be sitting in your arms or in a high chair or something with you still interacting with her. The thought of a baby feeding herself a bottle for even a minute just makes me sad.
That said, letting her lazily suck a bottle laying down isn't good - not only for the choking risk, but for the sugar from formula pooling at the back of her mouth, which can cause tooth decay.
Bottle feeding is not and should never be confused with appropriate self-feeding. You should have the same contact and commitment to feeding her from a bottle that you would if you were breastfeeding - self feeding is appropriate as she explores table foods or learns to take water or, later, juice or milk from a sippy cup. But for bottle feeding? I think you should hold her and not let her drink lying down.
All kids drink their bottles while laying down. Never heard of anyone being concerned before....if they choke they roll over and cough it up.
I thought I'd see what others have said online recently and actually there's a lot on this concern, your fiance is right on target, not for choking but other dangers.
Basically what my pediatrician said 30 years ago with my daughter and my grandson's ped over 3 years ago still stands. The American Academy of Pediatrics says falling asleep with a bottle in her mouth, formula or breast milk, leads to tooth decay, and laying down does promote sleep. They also say, if your baby's lying down during feedings, the liquid can flow from her mouth into her ears' Eustachian tubes, (they're talking inside her mouth, not where you can see it to wipe it) where it can linger and cause an infection. And they note that it can deprive your baby of key snuggle time. Holding and cuddling your baby during feedings gives her a sense of safety and security and helps promote bonding.
The expert advice also says to transition to a sippy cup as early as 6 months, to hold it for them at first, with your daughter she'd probably hold it in her own. Hold her for bottle/sippy feedings, they recommend she be done with the bottle at a year so enjoy your time, by then she won't need the bottles, food with be her main nutritional source.
My daughter loved laying down and drinking her bottle by herself at that age.
She'd hold her bottle with one hand and play with her feet with the other.
I never worried about her choking or anything. She started walking at 7 months so she knew how to roll and get herself upright.
She was an independent little spitfire and there were LOTS of things she wanted to do herself. She would sit for an hour putting her own socks on, then her shoes, then she'd take them off and start over. She was quite good at entertaining herself.
I have two kids of my own, I've helped raise lots of other kids. They are going to want to master doing certain things themselves. It's actually healthy.
It's my opinion that you don't need to be overly concerned about this.
Best wishes.
