What should my seven month old babies' feeding schedule be like?

Question

My daughter just turned seven months and at she has only gained one and a half pounds since her four month check up. SHe is breast fed and started solids and infant cereal in the morning and before bed since she was four months, but what is an averange 7 months old feeding schedule like? We have been practicing with a sippy cup already and she can hold her spoon and bring it to her mouth, but how many jars of what should she have each day? I am just going by her appetite now, I am not force feeding her or anything, I am just wondering if she has a lower appetitie than the average baby and if that would explain her slow weight gain these past few months, she is only 14 pounds and our pediatrician said it was fine, that it was in the 20% and as long as she isn't losing, that she is fine. Just curious!

Answer 1

It is perfectly normal for a 7 month old to eat NO solids. Mine didn't start eating solids every day until recently. And even then it may only be three bites once a day. He is mostly breastfed. He is a chunky monkey too at 28 lbs at 10 months.

You may want to consider doing one of two things:
1) Offer no solids. Nothing has as many calories or is as nutrient dense as breastmilk.

2) Do child-led introduction to solids. Have you tasted baby food? I wouldn't eat it. Let her eat regular food. I have been doing this since my baby started solids at around 7 months and while he may not eat every day some days he can sure pack things away. He loves food with garlic and spices. The other advantage of letting your daughter eat from your plate is it forces you to eat more fruits and veggies and less fat, salt and processed food.

More about "how much"

0 - 4 months Breastmilk only Breastmilk only
4 - 6 months Breastmilk only Continue nursing on cue.

When your 4 - 6 month old baby is learning to use a cup, giving him a few sips of expressed breastmilk or water (no more than 2 ounces per 24 hours) a couple of times a day is fine and fun.

6 - 7 months Offer solids once a day, at most. Many start out offering solids every few days or even less often. Continue nursing on cue. Solid foods should not replace nursing sessions unless you're actively weaning.

Limit water to SIPS from a cup with meals.

Juice is not necessary for baby's nutrition. If you offer juice, limit to sips from a cup with meals and introduce it gradually just like any other new food. It's best to dilute juice with water and limit total juice intake to no more than 3-4 ounces a day.

7 - 9 months Watch baby's cues - this is particularly easy if baby nurses beforehand and most/all of the solids are offered to baby to self-feed. Increase solids gradually if baby is interested, with a maximum of 2 meals per day.

9 - 12 months Watch baby's cues - this is particularly easy if baby nurses beforehand and most/all of the solids are offered to baby to self-feed. Increase solids gradually if baby is interested. Aim for baby getting no more than 25% of her calories from solids by the age of 12 months (some babies eat less than this at 12 months and that's also normal).


But honestly just let her pick how much she eats and when (of healthy choices) and she will be fine!

Answer 2

First off, every baby is different and the most important question to ask yourself is, "Is my baby healthy and happy?" If the answer is yes, then I wouldn't worry too much about statistics and schedules.
If your daughter nurses until she is satisfied she should be getting everything she needs, The World Health Organization determined that breastmilk is sufficient nurishment for the first year. Anything extra right now is more for practice than for sustenance. How much of the baby food she eats also depends on how often she eats and how often she nurses.
As to her slow weight gain... she is probably moving a lot more now (crawling, possibly standing) and this will cause her to loose some of her baby fat. This isn't a bad thing, it's normal. You also have to consider how tall she is. Is your family petite? Is she petite?
Just remember not to stress out too much.

Answer 3

The Dr. is right. Just offer her a variety of healthy foods. My kids hated baby food they ate regular food except for cereals right off the bat pretty much. They liked mashed potatoes and carrots together, applesauce, mashed banannas and scrambled eggs. I had a small food grinder that I used to puree our food for them to eat and they ate meals with us and other healthy snacks in between because mealtime wasn't always that meaningful. A meal while they slept was a rare occasion so I never woke them to eat. So, just make sure to offer many foods at her age. Just be careful about things they can choke on, puree everything that you can until she has teeth and is chewing really well. Always have thebaby toast or crackers for her too, she will or is alreasy teething and that will help. Just keep an eye out when she's eating those, in the high chair. Good luck.

Answer 4

If you are concerned about your babies weight gain, then you are definitely a "thinking" mother and that is good. Listen to everyone but be sure and make up your mind b/c you will get many answers that conflict with what you know is good. I had 4 babies and fostered 12 newborns awaiting adoption. Each one grew well and were happy and healthy and thrived so well. My ped. gave me an wonderful schedule that all of our family and friends have used including thousands of families in Georgia. She showed us how to have easy to care for happy babys that were well rested (along with rested parents!) Its a bit detailed, yet not complicated at all and I'd be glad to send you a copy from my Microsoft Word. I think you can email me thru my Avatar, but not sure how that works. God Bless.

Answer 5

I hope you aren't feeding her only what she can get to her own mouth with her spoon ! she's way too young to be feding herself. at seven months my baby was having three meals a day with two things at each meal, and a half sippy-cup of formula with the meal. For example, lunch would be a jar of veggies and a container of yo-baby baby yogurt, with the milk. He also had a full sippy cup for a "snack" after his long afternoon nap, and another before bed. He weights 20 1/2 lbs. right now at 8 months.

Answer 6

My 7 month old eats one food processed bananna in the morning. Has a 6oz bottle of formula a few hours later. Has a jar of stage 2 baby food for lunch with 4 oz of apple juice. Another 6oz bottle of formula before nap time. Then another jar of stage 2 baby food for supper and a 6oz bottle of formula beofre bed. She was born a premie, but now weighs 20lbs. She loves to eat!