As a parent, you want to do all you can to ensure that your child grows up healthy and is given all he or she needs to aid the mind and body. For most babies, this includes breastfeeding. You probably already know that breastmilk is full of nutrients and offers a good start to a baby's life. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends nursing for at least one year. But what if you or your baby don't want to or can't breastfeed for that long?

According to Gale Prachniak, a lactation consultant at the Women's and Infants Hospital in Rhode Island, "In general, any breastfeeding is a benefit. If the mother can do it for even a short period of time, whatever she can manage, it is going to benefit the baby. Any amount of time a baby is breastfed is never time wasted."

However, making the transition from breast to bottle for a baby younger than 1 year can often be a delicate matter, for both baby and mother. Mothers may often feel guilt, remorse or loss by weaning their baby before the age of one year. "This is a very private and individualized experience," says Prachniak. "A mother needs to understand that some of the feelings are very normal. It's not because she has done something wrong that she is feeling this way. She is moving from one phase to another and it is an adjustment. All changes take time."

"I was not in control of the [weaning] transition and while it was easy enough for her, it was somewhat difficult for me," says Sarita Douglas, an attorney from Salt Lake City, Utah. "At the age of 7 months, my daughter discovered that she was free to look around with a bottle and she began to show irritation with breastfeeding, and quickly refused the breast altogether. I was not prepared for this sudden end to such an intimate bond. I'm sure that there was a hormonal imbalance that exacerbated my emotional response. I was devastated – crying at the drop of a hat."

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