At what age is it okay to feed a baby cereal?

Question

My son is now just over 2 months old. He has grown and is growing so much so quickly. For the last couple of days, he has taken shorter naps... He falls asleep eating, when I take him off he wakes right back up and is still hungry. It's not a production problem! Milk constantly comes out when he's latched...

Answer 1

no sweetie, he just likes to suckle.
give him a pacifier at nap time....

doctors are now saying that pacifiers are great for helping reduce SIDS because of the 'suckle instinct',it somehow helps their bodies to remember to breathe. (which is what happens to SIDS babies)
if you don't want him getting "hooked" on a pacifier..take it away at around 6 months when the SIDS risk is rare.

and my doctor recommended i put my daughter on cereal at 4 months to help with growth. (she's tiny).
my sons got cereal at 6 months.
your baby, (at 2 months) only needs milk right now...his system is still to young to handle that.

Answer 2

No you are right it is not a production problem it is a growth spurt. Your son is going through one of many. usually they are at 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months and 6 months, but some babies are early and some are later. Keep nursing and feed as often as he needs. Don't give him any cereal or formula, this will not fil him up more or make him sleep any longer. babies need to eat every 2-3 hours. You are dong a great job and you should be proud of yourself. Keep up the good work. Otherwise I would wait until between 4-6 months and keep nursing after that too. If you have any questions you can call your local breastfeeding consultant. Good luck.

Answer 3

OOOOOOHHHHHH doll! I just asked a poll on this one a few days ago, and boy did some people take it as their personal mission to pass me off as stupid for asking....
However, I will tell you, I believe every baby is different and it is up to the competent mother to make that call. Feel free to ask around and everyone has a different answer. When I was a baby I got cereal at 4 weeks old, my hubby was a mear 7 days old when he got cereal, my 10 year old at 5 weeks and 7 year old both got cereal at 6 weeks, none of us have food allergies and are here to tell about it. Although the AMA says 4 months, I truly believe it is your call and as a mother you should be able to judge if it bothers your baby and if they need something else.

I say go with your gut and do what you feel is right for you and YOUR baby.
Good Luck!

Answer 4

You know people always shun other people whose ideas and views are not the same as their own. I have never in my life heard of anything awful happening to a baby who was given cereal at 4 months of age. My mother raised 6 children all of us happy and healthy and we all had cereal at 4 months and we are all alive and well and not one of us has any food allergies or any other allergies for that matter. People get so overbearing about things sometimes. I have always heard between 4-6 months as long as the baby can hold up their head, sit unassisted, has lost the tongue thrusting and seems hungrier than just breast milk or formula can cure.

Thats when I plan to do it regardless of what everyone else says. Good luck and I hope that helps.

Answer 5

My LO has been on rice cereal since just a few days before she was 5 months. I made my own, though, from organic brown rice put thru a (very clean) coffee grinder, and then I make it with almost boiling water & add a little cool breastmilk. She’s had no problems with it—she LOVES it. I don’t have food allergies, just seasonal ones.

Answer 6

I was giving my little girl cereal in her bottle at 3 months, she always acted hungry and the cereal made her fuller. And the doctor said it was fine as long as she wasn't spitting it up. Don't listen to everyone on here that is saying you need to wait til he is 6 months or older. It all depends on the baby and how he responds to it. Good luck!! Congrats on the new baby

Answer 7

He should not start solids until closer to 6 months, per the AAP. They can't digest it this early. Their main source of nutrition should be breastmilk or formula for the whole first year. Solids are started around 6 mos, but mostly for fun and practice. Starting solids too early could interfere with your milk supply. It could also increase his chances of allergies, diabetes and obesity.

He may be going through a growth spurt. Or he could just really like nursing.....it could just be relaxing to him.

You could also try doing breast compressions while nursing to help him get more hindmilk. Then maybe he'd be more satisfied.

Answer 8

It is unacceptable to feed any infant younger than at least 6 months any food except breast milk or formula (they cannot digest solid foods until that time)

The following organizations recommend that all babies be exclusively breastfed (no cereal, juice or any other foods) for the first 6 months of life (not the first 4-6 months):

World Health Organization
UNICEF
US Department of Health & Human Services
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Academy of Family Physicians
American Dietetic Association
Australian National Health and Medical Research Council
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
Health Canada
Most babies will become developmentally and physiologically ready to eat solids by 6-9 months of age. For some babies, delaying solids longer than six months can be a good thing; for example, some doctors may recommend delaying solids for 12 months if there is a family history of allergies.

Solids readiness depends on both the maturity of baby’s digestive tract and baby’s developmental readiness for solids. Although the maturity of baby’s digestive system is not something that we can readily observe, research indicates that 6 months appears to be ideal for avoiding the allergies and other health risks of too-early solids. After this point, different babies are ready for solids at different times -- developmental readiness for solids cannot be determined using a calendar. Most babies are developmentally ready for solids somewhere between 6 and 8 months.

Signs that indicate baby is developmentally ready for solids include:
Baby can sit up well without support.
Baby has lost the tongue-thrust reflex and does not automatically push solids out of his mouth with his tongue.
Baby is ready and willing to chew.
Baby is developing a “pincer” grasp, where he picks up food or other objects between thumb and forefinger. Using the fingers and scraping the food into the palm of the hand (palmar grasp) does not substitute for pincer grasp development.
Baby is eager to participate in mealtime and may try to grab food and put it in his mouth.
We often state that a sign of solids readiness is when baby exhibits a long-term increased demand to nurse (sometime around 6 months or later) that is unrelated to illness, teething pain, a change in routine or a growth spurt. However, it can be hard to judge whether baby’s increased nursing is related to readiness for solids. Many (if not most) 6-month-old babies are teething, growth spurting and experiencing many developmental changes that can lead to increased nursing – sometimes all at once! Make sure you look at all the signs of solids readiness as a whole, because increased nursing alone is not likely to be an accurate guide to baby’s readiness.

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/delay-solids.html

Answer 9

Most doctors will tell u not to introduce baby food until they are at least 3-4 months old. I have two boys one is 1 yr and the other 1 month. The both of them ate really large amounts as newborns ( my first was taking 6 oz at one week) I was concerned and called my mom, who does things old school, and she told me to give him 1/2 a teaspoon of cereal in his bottle and it worked. It was a lifesaver. My second son is currently doing the same thing with his formula and I am starting him on cereal also.

It depends on you. Use your judgment. I can say that neither of them have developed any problems and are in the correct percentiles and far as weight gain and growth. All babies are different. Some require baby food earlier than others.

Answer 10

your son is two moths old and is of course growing very quickly, however, it is not safe and babies begin to get collicky when changing sources of food to heavier ones. Since hes a growing boy, he will want to feed more often and may seem to never get satisfied. Since you are brestfeeding, if you pump try a little amount of baby cereal in the bottle if you already use that method. Just to inform you that baby cereal is recommended by doctors at 3 months and solids at 6. Do yourself a favor and try not to have a collicky baby. Good Luck!!!!