How young is too young for a cereal bottle?

Question

My baby boy is only 5 weeks old and he is such a good eater! sometimes I feel that he might benefit (and mommy too) from a cereal bottle at night so he will feel fuller and sleep longer...My husband says that he is way too young for that yet....What do you say?

Answer 1

You should never put cereal in the bottle.

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/tipcerealinbottle.htm

Answer 2

Ok. Let me start by saying cereal in the bottle is actually pediatrician recommended if your baby has reflux. Second, it is not too early. Some people claim it is a chocking hazzard, although I have never heard that from a professional doctor. I actually was looked at strangly when I asked if it was. My son has had cereal in his bottle since he was born and he does great! We give it to him at night.. throughout the night. However, if you are doing it just to make him sleep longer I wouldn't do it. Usually cereal in the bottle is for feeding problems such as reflux. You are a mom and I am sure a great one. Go with your gutt. I do not always go with what people including the doc tell me. I am his mother and only I know best. Same to you. Good luck.

Ohh and the weight gain thing.. My child is 3 months and has dropped from 95th % to 50th.. he actually is gaining perfectly .. not too much and not too little. He is not chunky whatsoever.

PS. We just started cereal with a spoon and he is doing GREAT! He is 3 months!

Answer 3

5 weeks is way too young for anything other than breastmilk or formula. The Dr.s say nothing but milk until 4-6 months. Starting foods too early can contribute to allergies. You should not ever put cereal in a bottle because it can choke a baby. Only feed baby cereal off of a spoon. At 5 weeks your baby just went thru a growth spurt and is gearing up for another one in a week or less. Baby is just going to seem hungry right now...because he is. :-) Wait, it won't last long. Things will probably be leveled out in a couple of weeks. Good luck!

Answer 4

When my little girl was 2 1/2 months old, she went from 5 oz of formula to 7oz and still was not satisfied, I gave her a bit of rice cereal on a spoon and she was a pro. I talked to her doctor and he said that the text book say wait till 4 months but if shes not satisfied on just formula then a bit of rice cereal will not harm her, she obviously needs it. I started giving it to her in the morning and shes doing awesome, shes now 4 months and perfect. If you feel that you want to give your baby cereal so he will sleep all night, that doesn't always work. My daughter started sleeping all night at 2 months. I know its hard to get up through the night to feed your baby, especially since you want sleep, but remember, he is waking up cause hes hungry, and when your hungry, what do you do? You eat. Your baby can't do this yet, he depends on you to help him, its a joy having a baby, and as stressful as it is losing sleep, its worth it. Just take one look at your baby and you know its worth it. Putting it in the bottle, I have heard a lot of people doing it, I think 5 weeks is early but don't do it becuase you want sleep, do it because your child is not being satisified with a regular bottle. If your baby cries after you feed him and wants more, try giving another oz or 1/2oz, if that doesn't work then talk to your doctor about adding something else. But do it for him, not for you.

Answer 5

Babies are not ready for cereal until they are at least 4 months old. Giving cereal before that can cause allergies and excessive weight gain. It is also recommend that you never give a baby cereal in a bottle but wait until they are old enough to eat with a spoon. When they take it from a bottle they eat took much too fast and don't realize when they are full. I know it is tempting to give them cereal early for the sleep benefits but it is really not what is best for the baby. Hope this helps.

Answer 6

He is way to young for cereal and I agree cereal should not be put in bottle ever, but given on a spoon. At 5 weeks your asking too much for your baby to sleep threw the night, or even half the night, at that age those feedings are important and you should be using that time to bond. If your tired try napping when baby naps to catch up on your sleep.

Answer 7

I didn't put cereal in my sons bottle till he was 4 months, to early and he can choke on it and his body might not be able to digest it properly. That is why most doctors say to way till atleast 4 months. Ofcourse i have known others that have given their babies cereal at 4 weeks and they were fine. It depends on your baby and alergies might come into play also. So that is a judgment call you are going to have to take. Some are saying to never put cereal in a bottle but my doctor was the one to tell me to put the cereal in the bottle and to feed it to him. My son was fine.. i didn't have to cut a bigger hole in the bottle for my son to eat it.. he drank it fine and he hated it on a spoon.. he loved it in his bottle and he didn't mind at all.. i made it runny for the first month then at 5 months i made it a little thicker.. until about 2 months ago... when he has finally gone off a bottle I have put cereal in his bottle.. and he is now 18 months... he is in the perfect weight area and has never been chubby... or close to being overweight... right now he weighs about 24Ibs and the docs say he is perfect, no allergies, no being overweight, no nothing... so everyone who is over reacting please stop, if your doc says it is fine then go ahead.. but I do think 5 weeks is way to early.. and one person was right.. your child does need to be waking up to eat every 2-3 hours until they are full enough to sleep through the night...

Answer 8

Cereal should only ever be given in a bottle if the child has reflux and the doc has suggested it. Otherwise it should always be fed on a spoon.

Solid foods (including cereal) should not be started until around 6 months of age. The child does not have the enzymes present in his tummy to digest anything other than formula or breastmilk prior to the middle of the first year.

Starting solids too early can lead to increased risks of allergies, diabetes and obesity.

Cereal helping baby sleep through the night is an old wive's tale.

A 5 week old NEEDS to be waking frequently to feed. They are eating constantly at this age and that is NORMAL and to be expected. They are going through lots of growth spurts very close together. They are working hard to double birthweight by 6 months of age.

Answer 9

Babies who are fed ceareal from a bottle can gain way too much weight and fast. I have given this advice many many many times and everyone who doesn't listen usually ends up with an over weight baby in about a month. read the side of the box for first feeding.they need to be able to sit up before introducing cearel.And the frst feedings should be pretty runny and from a spoon. they will just suck it up and get a little messy.I know you prolly can not wait to give your child food but just wait 5 weeks is way too young. plus it would prolly cause harder stools than the baby can handle causing pain. right now the digestive system is very sensitve. You should never put that stuff in bottle especially when they have not had food yet it can cause choking and it clogs the nipple. it is just all kinds of bad! I was reding other answers i can not stress enouph to wait to introduce any kind of solid food in any way until the child is starting to sit up and things otherwise the little bavy can not burn the extra calories at all.

Answer 10

I would suggest doing it from a bowl with a spoon as they say it`s not good to put it in a bottle,it definitly won`t hurt the baby.My friend had to give cereal at 2 weeks,her daughter was born at over 9 pounds and was very hungry.

Answer 11

It is not recommended for a baby under 4 months to be given cereal. Mainly because his little tummy is not mature enough to digest the cereal. It could cause digestive problems or just a tummy ache. A cereal bottle is also a choking hazard.

I would ask your doctor for advice.