Weaning: when and how to stop breastfeeding

What is weaning?

Your baby is considered weaned when she stops nursing and gets all her nutrition from sources other than the breastmilk.

Although babies are also weaned from the bottle, the term usually refers to when a baby stops breastfeeding.

When should I wean my baby?

It’s up to you to decide what’s best for you and your baby.

You may have practical reasons for deciding to stop, such as going back to work, or becoming pregnant again. Or you may be experiencing problems while feeding your baby, such as sore nipples or thrush, which can make it painful to breastfeed.

If you are experiencing pain during feeding, but you’d like to carry on, or if you feel like you don’t have enough support to continue breastfeeding, talk to your doctor or a breastfeeding specialist first. She can give you practical advice on overcoming difficulties.

When is the right time to stop breastfeeding?

There’s no right or wrong time to stop breastfeeding. Making sure both you and your child are happy is probably your only rule of thumb. But before you decide, it may help to know how long breastmilk can continue to benefit your baby or toddler.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of a baby's life and then introducing solid foods under the cover of breastfeeding. After that, breastmilk alone doesn't provide your baby with enough nutrients, particularly iron. It is also recommended you continue to breastfeed till your baby is two years old. This is known as extended breastfeeding.

As long as you keep breastfeeding, your baby will continue to enjoy the health benefits your breastmilk provides, including protection from infection and disease. There’s also evidence that breastfeeding helps your baby to digest her first solid foods.

Once you’ve decided, make any changes gradually. This gives your body time to adjust to making less milk and helps your baby get used to having bottles or sippers of formula milk.

Giving up breastfeeding can be an emotional experience and you may have mixed feelings about it. You may feel sad that it’s over, but you may also be happy to get your body back.

The good news is that stopping breastfeeding doesn’t end the close bond you and your baby have built up. In fact, breastfeeding is just the beginning of your very special relationship.

How can I phase out breastfeeding?

It’s best to gradually reduce the number of times in a day you breastfeed, rather than stopping abruptly. If you stop suddenly, it can be upsetting for your baby, and uncomfortable for you. It may leave you with full and painful (engorged breasts) and can sometimes lead to a painful breast inflammation (mastitis).

It will probably be easier for you and your baby to drop one breastfeed at a time. If your child is younger than one year, you’ll need to replace the breastfeed with a bottle of formula milk.

If your baby is over six months, you can use a cup or sipper instead. Combining formula feeds with breastfeeds can be a good way to ease your baby through the transition.

If your child is older than one year and has a variety of foods and drinks, she won’t need a replacement feed. It doesn’t matter which feed you drop, as long as it works for you and your baby. Once your baby has got used to not having a feed at that time (after a week or so) then you can drop another feed, and so on.

Changing your routine and distracting your child with a game or activity can help. Some mums don’t offer a breastfeed, but don’t refuse either if their child asks.

How long will it take to stop breastfeeding?

The process of weaning is different for everyone. Much depends on how quickly and how well your child adjusts.

Take things at a steady pace and prepare to be flexible. That way you can slow things down if you need to, if you or your baby are ill for example. Completely stopping breastfeeding can take anything from a few weeks to several months.

What if my baby doesn’t want to stop breastfeeding?

If your baby shows no sign of wanting to stop breastfeeding, try to be patient. She enjoys being at your breast because it soothes, as well as nourishes, her. With this in mind, you can help her to adjust by trying the following:

Comfort her in other ways
Gradually replace breastfeeding with other ways to soothe and comfort your little one. Give lots of cuddles, or get dad involved to spend some special time with her. You could also try looking at a book together, singing to her, or playing a game instead. At night time try rubbing or gently patting her back, or rocking her while you sing to her.

Postponing feeds
Putting off feeds can work well if you have an older child who can cope with waiting. When your toddler asks to breastfeed, tell her you’ll feed her later, and distract her with an activity. Instead of breastfeeding her in the early evening, you could ask her to wait until bedtime.

Pick your moment
Major life events can make weaning more difficult. Has your child been ill? Often babies who aren’t feeling well will want to breastfeed more often and in preference to other food or drink. In fact, breastfeeding may be in an unwell child's best interest.

Don’t be tempted to try alternate weaning methods
You may have heard of home remedies that are said to help weaning. Some say that applying the juice of neem leaves or bitter gourd (karela) on your nipples before a feed will turn your baby off breastfeeds. There are also some herbal mixes, solutions and creams in the market that are promoted as weaning creams.

It's not a good idea to apply anything on your nipples as your baby will swallow some of that as well. She may react to the ingredients, or get even more frustrated and upset in the process.

Be aware there is no quick-fix solution to weaning. With time and patience, you will both be able to stop breastfeeding smoothly and comfortably.

If weaning isn’t going well, you can take a break and try again in a few weeks. Sooner or later, it will happen.

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Reviewed by Geetika Gangwani, birth educator and lactation consultant.


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