A Townsville Hospital paediatrician is urging parents to resist putting their babies and toddlers to bed with a bottle.

“Breast or bottle feed your baby first and then put them down for the night,” Dr Jason Yates said.

“Toddlers who are eating plenty of nutritious food during the day don’t need a bottle of milk at bedtime.

“Babies less than 12 months still require breast milk or formula for growth; however, putting them to bed with a bottle is not recommended.

“If toddlers need something for comfort or to settle them, offer water.”

Dr Yates said giving babies and toddlers a bottle as a soothing technique confused the messages about food.

“Babies and toddlers need food for growth and development not to help lull them to sleep,” he said.

Dr Yates said once a baby or toddler was weaned off breast milk or formula, they shouldn’t be having any more than 500ml of cow’s milk over a 24-hour period.

“Cow’s milk should not be offered to babies less than 12 months old,” he said.

“A full bottle of cow’s milk at bedtime or overnight is too much and often results in replacing solid food and your child being too full to eat breakfast the next day.

“If you sense it’s going to be a battle to break the habit, start by diluting the milk with water and increase the dilution over time.”

Dr Yates said another issue with the bedtime bottle was the risk to children’s teeth.

“Once they’ve brushed their teeth ready for bed, giving your child a bottle of milk means the milk swishes around in their mouth and the sugar from the milk sits on their teeth all night which leads to decay.

“The sooner you can kick the habit of the bedtime bottle in toddlers or, better still, avoid it becoming a habit in the first place, the better off your child will be.” Dr Yates urged parents never to put juices or flavoured milk into bottles.

“Never, ever put soft drink or any carbonated flavoured water into a bottle; it’s a recipe for teeth decay and a major contributory factor to childhood obesity,” he said.

“Our advice is feed your baby or toddler – breast, bottle and/or solids – brush teeth for toddlers and then put them down for the night,” he said.

“The habit of the bedtime bottle may be hard to break for a little while but, like any element of parenting, the easiest way is not always the best way for your child.

“If you’re new to parenting, get into good habits early and reap the rewards of well-rested children developing normally and getting the right messages about sleep, food and eating well,” he said.