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Is this normal?


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  • Just reading your question another time; is it normal ? it’s not uncommon I think, you certainly won’t be alone


  • The longer parents wait to start the transition, the more attached kids become to their bottles and the harder it can be to break the bottle habit. Longer bottle use may lead to cavities, overbite or cause your child to drink more milk than he or she need (leading to weight gain).
    Professionals recommend between 6- to 12-month age range is to practice the skills of cup drinking—​not to replace the breast or bottle directly totally. Starting open cup practice early will help the transitioning go smoothly


  • It would be a good idea to have them get used to a regular water bottle which they will use at school.


  • I personally don’t think it is normal, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not ok. If your child is needing it for soothing reasons, maybe you could try and find another comforter that is more age appropriate. The big question is whether they can go through the school day 9-3:30 without the need to have a bottle. If they take one to school, they will get teased by other children.


  • As in a baby’s bottle? Um yeah, I think 5 is too old for that. 5 is school age so they should be past it by now


  • It can be bad for your child to still drink from a bottle, especially to their teeth. If they are using the bottle to fall asleep, you are more likely to get tooth decay. I’m not 100% sure of this one but it may push your children’s teeth out if they are using it to pacify themselves, leaving their bottle in their mouths for too long. I took my daughters dummies away from her and then she started using the bottle as a dummy, we had to take the bottles away and give her a sippy cup at the age of 3.


  • I don’t like the word “normal” as every kid is so different. But to be honest, most health professionals wouldn’t recommend a 5 year old continuing with a bottle. It is up to the parents and not knowing the whole story, if they are concerned it might be best to discuss it with your GP or community nurse.


  • I wouldn’t necessarily say it is normal, but having said that I know several parents who have found the same thing, and my child breastfed until 3 (hope I don’t get too judged for that but who cares just being honest). I tried everything I could to stop him, but the only thing I found that worked was finding a new bed time routine, which involved settling him to sleep with a book rather than a feed. Having said that he still finds it difficult to sleep without that bedtime story, even now that he is eight, though he sleeps through the night now at least. He has always had trouble with sleep since being a new born, so I just do what works best for us. All you can do is not worry too much, and do what works best for your child. Plenty of kids will have trouble giving up the bottle or breast feeding, usually is that they use that as a comfort thing and need another thing that they can use to settle themselves to sleep as an alternative, and as I said I know plenty of parents including myself who have had the same problem. Some people might judge you, but don’t forget every child is different, and some will have more trouble self-settling and sleeping than others. Eventually he will outgrow it, so don’t worry to much.


  • I would say it’s not normal and not good for their teeth but as others have said it’s his mothers choice.


  • No but if it’s not your kid it’s not your problem! Not normal doesn’t mean dangerous or wrong.


  • No he is not my kid.he is the son of my son’s g,f from a failed marriage.he is 5 1/2 and drinks from this bottle with teat and milk.he starts school next year and i told him in front of mother that i would like to be a fly on the wall 1st day.a friend said if he continues this practice the other kids will soon sort him out for teasing etc. he also i suspect is over active as he eats nothing but chicken nuggets,coke and no good food.In my view he is a BRAT.


  • I presume you mean a ‘baby bottle with teat’ ?! If so I think it is time to wean them off it, or perhaps go cold turkey and just not have one around the house. Using a straw would be better for teeth and there should be no need for a bottle at that age. Use water when transitioning and it wont matter if they spill from a beaker (just as with a younger child when they are learning drinking from cup). In fact water is the best thing to be drinking anyway whatever is in the bottle!


  • There really is not thing as Normal when it comes to kids – but it is a little unusual. Does your child just like the sucking sensation? You could perhaps try using straws. I’m pretty sure it’s not great for their teeth to keep using bottles


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