how much cereal do i give my 5 month old?

Question

I want to start giving my 5 month old cereal but I dont know how much to give and do I offer breastmilk before or after I give the cereal? How many times a day should I feed the cereal and how thick?

Answer 1

I just started feeding my son cereal and had the same questions. After a lot of research I came up with this conclusion... there is no right and wrong way. You need to experiment to find out what works for you and your baby.
I feed him a bottle when he wakes up at 7, then at about 9am he gets his cereal. I now give him a 1/4 cup. ( I make 2oz formula to mix with and when he is done I give him the remaining formula to "wash it down") then at 11 he gets a bottle again. I also feed him cereal at 5pm.
I do it this way because he wouldn't take a full bottle feeding right after cereal and wouldn't eat his cereal after a bottle. From what I have been reading the cereal is in ADDITION to his regular diet, so you don't want them to miss out on her regular breast milk meal.
As far as thickness goes I started out with it pretty thin until he was able to move it to the back of his mouth and swallow pretty good then I started to thicken it up.
FYI- when we started the cereal he got constipated on and off for a few weeks. I think its pretty normal, but nobody told me that!!!
I think it is important to go with your gut on this, not with what everyone else says your supposed to do.
Good Luck!

Answer 2

Offer an pre-lude of breast milk before the cereal, if your baby is starving then he/she won't have any patience for a spoon coming at his/her mouth. Breastfed babies generally don't need to start cereal until they are 6 months old so really it doesn't matter how many times a day you feed it yet. When there are 6 months once in the am and once in the pm until he/she gets the hang of it then feed 3 squares (by then you'll be introducing other foods anyway). The baby should be breastfeeding at least 5-9 times a day then also. The standard amount of cereal to start with is 1 tablespoon of cereal to 3 tablespoon of breastmilk (or formula), it'll be really thin, but it's the best consistancy to start, then very gradually (over weeks) lessen the amount of b-milk, at first it'll look like soup but really it's best.
Your baby will not starve if you miss a 'cereal meal' or two or even skip a day at this point, unless doc prescribes it more than once or twice a day. This is practice. Breast milk is really the best until 6 months and at the risk of sounding like a broken record, it's all really practice for them anyways....

Answer 3

Make it the consistency of applesauce. For the first feeding I would only view it as a 'test run' and try to get her to take it in. Once she is used to it a baby should be getting two quarter cup servings of cereal a day. I would feed her the cereal before you breastfeed her so she will be hungry enough to try it. You may also want to add a little applesauce to sweeten it. Breastmilk has a little sweetness to it, so the cereal may seem bland if not flavored a little. My daughter only ate about 3 bites the first time, but soon she got used to it. As yours gets older you can thicken it up and even buy different flavors they have.

Answer 4

You really should not put the cereal in a bottle at night. It's not good to get your baby used to eating to go to bed. It's not healthy, especially for the teeth. When first starting out, just do it once a day, generally at night at dinner time. Get your baby used to eating dinner with you. Start with just one or two tablespoons and at least the same amount of milk. You might need to use a little more milk if your baby doesn't like the thickness. You'll know if it's not right for your baby. Then once he/she gets the hang of how to eat it, you can increase the amount and start offering it at breakfast and dinner. Work your way up to half a cup at each serving. Here's a link to a great website that should help you out for any further solid feeding. Good Luck!

Answer 5

Rice or oatmeal. Simply your choice. Some will say rice and some will say oatmeal. You pick it. It needs to be runny at first. 2 Tablespoons of cereal is the recommended amount. What I did/do is feed your baby 2 oz of milk to kick the intense hunger. Then feed him/her the diluated cereal. After the cereal is gone another 2-4oz. She/he will stop when they are full. Starting with runny cereal thicken it up just a little bit every couple of days. When he/she can properly digest cereal with the consistency of mashed potatoes then he/she is ready for smashed food.! Good luck!

Answer 6

Hi,
I would offer cereal now, start with it runny if you haven't given your baby any solid foods yet, and just start with a little at a time. If your baby seems hungry then make more, I have heard giving cereal before bed time may help babies sleep through the night. If your baby is really hungry you may get frustrated, the baby is used to getting the milk right away, so I would introduce cereal after you have breastfeed to get him/her used to it. Good Luck

Answer 7

When I started cereal with my children my doctor recomended that i just put about a tablespoon of rice cereal in their bottles at bedtime...you have to get the cross cut or juice nipples though so that the cereal can get thru the nipple. Then as the child gets used to the cereal add it at breakfast...with a little apple sauce...start with a small amount of thin cereal at first because the thicker cereal is hard for a baby to swallow..

Answer 8

Start out by giving two tablespoons, and mix the milk into it, like the first person said. At least equal part milk to cereal to start with, if not more. You want it somewhat runny the first few times. I fed my baby once a day when I first started him out on solid food, to see how he handled it. Too much at once might constipate your baby. It also reduces their need to breastfeed as often, which might cause you to produce less milk. Start out by feeding it in the evening, because it makes them sleep soooo much better when they have some solid food in there. After a few days I fed my baby cereal twice a day. I always made sure to give some solid food right before bed because he would sleep longer. Boy, was that nice! Thicken it up as your baby gets used to it. I did it a little bit thicker every few days. Just make sure to give plenty of milk to keep your production up - I had some problems once he got on solid foods. I had to supplement with formula when he wanted more and it wasn't there for him. That was the beginning of the end - once he figured out how much easier it was to get from a bottle than me, he preferred bottles. Getting the hind milk out of mom was just too much work, I guess.

Answer 9

I give my 5 month old 2 tablespoons mixed with formula (or breastmilk) 2 times per day. The doctor also had me add some yellow veggies to her diet as well. The thickness is runny.

Answer 10

good morning ... my grandaughter is 7 months and my daughter started with the cereal 2 months ago also ... she started with a couple tablespoons in the morning and it was not very thick at all and the baby would usuall eat it all but she will let mom know when she wants no more and she usually drank 2 to 4 more ounces of formula and ... and about a month later she started with the veges in the evening about 1/2 jar and now at seven months she gets friut in the afternoon .... she now has a couple of teeth so in between she is eating real fruit like strawberries but mom helps her alot with that... but as u know all babies are different and your baby will let u know when she is full she will turn her face away from the food ..... congrats on the baby and good luck :)