Hi all!! My 4 1/2 month old son is only being breastfed and till now was fine with the food he was getting every 3 hours! Now he is demanding it every 1 1/2 hr- 2 hrs. (at night as well!!") He is very big for his age and I want to start him on solids. Whats a good approach to doing this (I know your thinking - ask a pediatrician but I would like some other moms advice!!!) so I and baby can have a good day and a perfect nights sleep?!??! p.s. he does not take bottles..................
2006-10-17 13:16:55 · 29 answers · asked by princessbaby 1 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
sounds like a little rice cereal is in order. He may also be going through a growth spurt and your body needs to adjust to the amount of breast milk that he needs. Don't be overly worried that he's big for his age. Most breast fed babies are heavier but they will lose that baby fat when they are up and toddling around. First how is his gag reflex? strange thing to ask but if he cannot gag do not feed him anything but breast milk he's not ready. If he can just mix about 2 TBS of rice cereal( Baby cereal) with some of your breast milk and spoon feed it to him prior to nursing him at bed time . This may buy you a little more shut eye. But keep in mind that the spoon is a new concept and he will not get the hang of it right away. Good Luck
2006-10-17 13:31:57 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I suggest that you try feeding the baby some baby food. I have 3 children - 11, 4 and 3 months. My last two are boys and they were big too and needed food early. My last one I already feed him baby food vegetables. I feed him in the bath since that is his favorite place. I tried feeding him in the high chair, but he didn't like being in there, so I decided to try in his favorite place and he has been happy. The other thing is- this should definitely be brought up to the pediatrician. My first son did the same thing. He would scream about and hour to hour and a half after a feeding, but feeding him would always get him to stop crying. After he saw the dr. and ran some tests, I found out he had GERD and was basically having heartburn from overproduction of acid and the milk was soothing him, until it was digested out of his stomach and the acid built up again, then the crying would start again. He was put on meds til age 1 and was fine after that. I don't know if that is what is your sons problem, but I would check it out. Maybe he is just going through a growth spurt and wants more food because I believe at 4 months children calorie requirements increase.
2006-10-18 00:27:46 · answer #2 · answered by graves2000 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I have read that all babies will go through a point where they want to feed every 1-2 hours. At 4 1/2 months I really wouldn't start solids until you spoke to your pediatrician. The solids will not help your baby sleep better, it is a myth. Maybe it works for some but I have never heard of it actually getting your baby to sleep.
I think breastfeeding is great, and congrats to you for doing it!! I wasn't able to breastfeed my babies and they are both doing wonderful (one 3 years, one 3 months). If your pediatrician advises against solids now, try using the soothie bottles or bottles from www.onestepahead.com that mimic a breast and formula feed. I wasn't able to breastfeed because neither one of my daughters ever got enough and I had to supplement with formula, so after a few weeks of breastfeeding I went only to formula.
If this hasn't been going on for very long you can try to stick it out for a few weeks and hope he resumes his normal feeding schedule of 3 hours. Like I said, I have heard that this does happen with most babies at some point.
Good luck to you!!!
2006-10-17 20:29:06 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
My doctor told me that I could start my son on solids at 4 months since he was bigger and got fuller faster.
Just try rice cereal mixed with breastmilk, thin at first, for a week, then add a fruit or veggie each week. Do the same veggie or fruit for the entire week, that way if he develops an allergy you know what food caused it. Also it is a good idea to start out with veggies, otherwise he will taste the sweet fruits and not want peas or anything like that!!
Good luck!
2006-10-17 20:44:08 · answer #4 · answered by dmercer12679 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is probably hitting a growth spurt. Let him nurse more often, he will slow down again soon.
Check out http://Kellymom.com for info on starting solids.
You might also research "virgin gut".
Unless your baby has: lost his tongue thrust reflex, can sit up unassisted, is actively reaching for foods etc... then he IS NOT READY FOR SOLIDS! Your milk is the perfect food for his first year, solids are optional. Rice cereal is really not very nutritious, the artificial vitamins are not easily digested or absorbed, it is highly processed whit rice. Unless you use a whole-grain cereal, it is like baby WonderBread. eww ;-(~
Night time feeding are still necessary at this age, as the babies stomach is as small as his fist and it fills and empties quickly. He does not need empty calories to sleep at night, he needs his mama!
If you simply must sleep, I highly recommend "The No-Cry Sleep Solution" this book is a real lifesaver!
2006-10-17 23:59:38 · answer #5 · answered by Terrible Threes 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Okay, first, it sounds like he's hitting another growth spurt. (My five month old daughter is hitting one) Start slow. A small bit of rice cereal once a day. After about a week or so try oatmeal cereal and alternate each day. This will help your baby stay fuller longer and get him on the path to more solid foods (Fruits, vegis etc) They say not to start on wheat cereal until about six months or so (Longer if there's history of wheat allergies in your family) before anything, talk to your doctor. Include him/her in this since he/she probably knows not only your baby's medical history but your family's as well.
2006-10-17 20:36:58 · answer #6 · answered by Mommy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, i am not a mom, but i am a dad that spent a many of sleepless nights with my two sons. If you have not even started him out of solids, then the best thing i can recommend for him to sleep is baby cereal mixed with milk, make sure its thin enough that he can swallow it easily. might try a feeder for him. its like a bottle, but has an interchangeable nipple and spoon.
Thats the first thing we started out boys out on when they were small, and if given right before bed, they usually only woke up once , if they didn't sleep through the nite!
Hope this helps!
2006-10-17 20:20:59 · answer #7 · answered by vbeaver31 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I would start giving him rice baby cereal, maybe just give it to him before bed, he'll likely sleep longer. You can give it to him maybe once during the day too if you want. But be sure he's not getting too much cereal and not enough breast milk. I personally, breastfed exclusively for the first 6 months.
2006-10-17 20:54:12 · answer #8 · answered by Violet 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I know it seems like you'll never get any sleep again but trust me its just a growth phase for him right now! My daughter has just turned 10mos was breastfeed exclusively until 5months- she has never taken a bottle so to start her on solids I began by mixing cereal and bananas-- I think the bananas added that little bit of sweet that helped her to eat it (make sure to strain/blend bananas well at first). I would nurse her and then offer the solids to ensure she was getting adequate nutrition.
2006-10-17 20:32:49 · answer #9 · answered by tessie 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I started mine of baby cereal, not much, but when he wants more, make more. There is no set rule, because each child is so different. My son went straight to soft table foods, even before he got teeth, but he was allergic to milk. My daughter still fights about peas years and years later. In my day, 4 months we'd have expected him to sleep all night, even if he was still hungry. Just make sure you don't make a ' tubby' out of him.
2006-10-17 20:25:36 · answer #10 · answered by Diana P 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋