Get Your Toddler to Eat Full Meals and Sleep All Night!

Let me tell you about Natalie…

She was a 16-month-old who drank 2-3 bottles of milk and juice all through the night. When she went to bed she drank a full 8 ounce bottle of milk in her crib while falling asleep. At least two times a night she would wake up crying for more.

Her mom would then come in and give Natalie one 8 ounce bottle of milk AND an 8 ounce bottle of apple juice. Natalie would drink down both the milk and the juice and go back to sleep, only to wake up in a few hours later hungry for more.

Natalie’s mother was worried that her 16-month-old wasn’t sleeping though the night. But she was more concerned that her daughter didn’t eat properly during the day. She thought that reason Natalie woke up at night was because she didn’t have enough to eat during the day.

But she was wrong…you see toddlers are very good at regulating their caloric needs in a 24-hour period. If they receive half of their calories through the night from milk and juice, they just don’t need to eat much through the day to catch up.

Natalie’s daytime eating problems directly related to her nighttime feeding. It was extremely detrimental to Natalie’s developing teeth to be drinking so much juice and milk. Before long serious dental issues would emerge.

Natalie’s eating and sleeping issues are common worries I hear from many tired moms. It doesn’t matter how old the child is – if they don’t eat well during the day, moms worry. That worry often leads to tired moms giving into the demands for juice or milk.

It’s not just the bottle, either. Many moms breastfeed during the night because of poor eating habits during the day.

The best way to fix these problems, and to see an increase in daytime food consumption, is to stop all feedings at night– period. Yes, it will take a few days for your child’s body to adjust to the in calorie organization, but very quickly the body takes over and meets its quota through the day.

Of course, we are not talking about newborns here. Newborns need to eat in the night. I’m talking about babies and toddlers six months and up.

Also remember that after the age of one, milk is considered a beverage and shouldn’t be the main source of caloric intake. Food takes center stage, and milk becomes secondary.

If your child ISN’T sleeping 11-12 hours straight through the night, I’ve got some a complete, common-sense approach to share with you that has been proven to work for over 109,000 families. It’s called The Sleep Sense Program, and you can get instant access right here.