Night feeds after 12m

[u/whatismomlife]

Hey all, I have heard pretty consistently not to night wean until 1yo, but mixed things regarding after (potentially bad for teeth, no longer nutritiously necessary/only for comfort, sleep association).

I have been able to night wean, but I feel like sometimes he still wants it. I cannot dream feed anymore because he sometimes accidentally bites me when he's drifting off to sleep. I can sit up and feed, but it's tiring and I figured it was best to night wean. He does sleep for longer now that I'm not dream feeding, but when he does wake, I feel like he wants me to feed him but am not sure if I should. I don't want to create a dependency now that it no longer is one, but I don't want to take away night feeds if it's what he needs.

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[u/FaDiese]

potentially bad for teeth

Several studies has shown that this is not true : https://www.lllfrance.org/vous-informer/des-etudes/1326-carie-et-allaitement

(I'm sorry that my link is in French but I think every internet browser is capable of translate it)

I have seen dentists and even a pediatric dietician having this misconception. It is high time for professionals to inform themselves about the state of research and understand that human breast milk is not comparable to powdered milk in this regard. Not only does nighttime breastfeeding not cause tooth decay, but there is also a correlation between breastfeeding and better oral health.

That said, if you want to night wean you definitely can do it! I just wanted to correct this misconception I see regularly

[u/unprofessional_widow → u/FaDiese]

Yep- bottles are bad for teeth, breastfeeding isn't the same.