What should you do when your toddler is firmly attached to their milk bottle. Dr Pat Spungin, Raisingkids.co.uk's resident child psychologist, investigates the issues.

Raisingkids member's problem
My 18-month-old daughter still has two bottles (in a sippy cup thing) at 8oz each. My mother says she shouldn't be drinking milk anymore and should get her nutrition from food. She eats three meals a day and one snack and is perfectly healthy. The milk she drinks is SMA Progress and she has a bottle before nap time (1:30pm) and one before bedtime (19:45). I have tried to drop the afternoon bottle but she wouldn't go for her nap, and if she doesnt get her nap she is very grouchy and tired from around 3pm until bedtime!

My question is, does she drink too much milk and how do I get her to sleep without her milk?

Dr Spungin's advice
Is the milk drinking affecting her eating? From what you say it's not, so from that point of view it is not a substitute for 'real' food.

She probably doesn't need the milk as food but the activity of sucking, especially before she goes to sleep, tells me this is a source of comfort. As such I wouldn't worry too much about her having too much milk. A word of caution though - once her teeth are clean she shouldn't have any milk as the milk has sugar in it and it coats her teeth during her sleep. You could substitute water for the milk, especially during these hot days. If it’s the sucking that she needs that should do the job. Talk to her about it first, tell her that's what big children do. Maybe point to the baby on the tin and tell her that she is not a baby anymore so no more milk.

A more difficult option is to try giving her the milk before she cleans her teeth. That may be difficult as she may then fall asleep before her teeth are done. I wouldn't just remove the sippy cup as it seems to soothe her and she will give it up in her own time.

• Read more of Dr Spungin's answers
• Members' Tips: Toddlers and sleep