rice cereal in bottle... what age?

Question

I have heard of people putting a little bit of rice cereal in their babies bottle at night to get them to sleep longer... I was wondering what age people started doing this? I have a 2 and a half month old... can I try this with her yet or no?

Answer 1

NO! the earlier foods are introduced the higher the risk of food allergies, obesity, diabetes and heart problems when older.
it seems harmless, and grandma did it, mom did it and their kids turned out ok...but its still a risk.
if your baby isnt ready to take it off the spoon then your baby isnt ready for the cereal. its just lazy to put it in a bottle

Answer 2

They usually do not suggest doing this at all... I guess it makes them want the cereal in a bottle instead of the spoon. To tell you the truth, i put a little in my daughter's bottle and she eats off of a spoon just fine.
I am not a doctor, but I think 2 and a half months is very little to have cereal. I would wait at least 1 more month. We put it in her bottle when it was ok for her to eat... about 3 1/2 months old. We waited because her digestion system is still maturing. Also, the cereal tends to give babies diahrrea.
Sometimes, you just have to do what you feel is right as a parent. Good luck!

Answer 3

My pediatrician told me four months is the earliest you should give a child anything other than formula, and then only rice cereal until 6 months. Your babies bowels are to small at this stage to give her cereal because it will block her intestines and she will have a very hard time using the bathroom. If your baby isn't acting like she isn't getting enough to eat it isn't time to give her anything but formula. Even if you are inclined to do this anyway never start your baby on a new diet before speaking with your pediatrician first. Babies at that age still get up in the middle of the night to eat, if I were you, and I know cause I have a five month old and a three year old, I wouldn't give her cereal yet. I gaurantee her doctor would discourage you also.

Answer 4

That is an old thing that people claim works but probably doesn't. Not to mention cereal in the bottle is a choking hazard. I wouldn't ever do it. Most babies start sleeping through the night at around 11 - 13 lbs. Some babies don't sleep through the night for much longer. Sorry, sleepless nights are just part of having a baby.

The American Academy of Pediatrics doesn't reccomend anything but breastmilk (or formula) until 6 months old.

http://www.drgreene.com/21_861.html

Answer 5

ok i'll give you advice, and not what i did. rice in their bottle getting them to sleep longer is an old wives tale. it does not get them to sleep longer. now in cases of relux, or when nothing is helping colic, some dr's may say to put half a teaspoon in a full bottle. but your child is too young. at 2 and a half months the digestive system is usually too young to handle this and it can constipate your baby or cause painful gas. sleeping longer comes with age. i suggest you establish a good bedtime routine at the same time each night. bottle, bath, massage, book and lullaby, and put in own bed. our child slept through the night at 3 months doing this. she did get rice in her bottle early, but it was because of severe reflux, and was used simply to keep the formula down. special meds and formula's like nutramagon did not work. i know you want some sleep. my suggestion if you have another person take shifts, or if you don't. sleep while your baby sleeps. you're a parent now and right now you are conforming to this baby's needs and this baby's schedule. and well i'm sorry but you're just going to have to suck it up. when your baby is hungry, they are hungry. welcome to parenthood, and many many sleepless nights to come still.



omg if my 1 month old had slept for 12+ hours i would have been in a panic. that little amount of rice should not allow a baby to sleep that long. unless the baby was like my daughter and so exhausted from being awake because of the reflux, or colic, depending on which dr. you asked, that they needed that much sleep for a few days. but in general i would be so scared, at that age. i welcome 12 hours now that she's a year old.

Answer 6

When my daughter was about 1 month old I was told by her doctor to put rice cereal in her bottle to help with her reflux. I put 1 formula scoop of cereal in a 4 oz bottle and it also helped her sleep through the night. She has always slept 12 hours+ a night because of the cereal. People say that cereal isn't reccomended for the bottle and for the most part it's true but her doctor told me it was fine. So you can start already!

Answer 7

NO she is too young for cereal of any kind. Besides rice cereal isn't recommended in the bottle anyway. A baby can choke on it in the bottle. The best way is to liquify it in a bowl and feed with an infant feeding spoon and that is started usually near the 4th month if the doctor recommends it.

Answer 8

I did that with my daughter who is now 2 1/2 at 4 months when cereal was recommened. However, I'm being told now that introducing cereal earlier than 6 months is bad and linked to things like food allergies. You definately shouldn't do it before 4 months if you're going to do it. (if your baby is 16lbs by their 4 month check-up most doctors will tell you to get your baby some food!) You can always call the doctors office and ask your doctor or a nurse to call you back and answer your question too.

Answer 9

I remember reading that the reason that baby rice and food packaging state that its from 4 months is because their digestive system isn't developed enough to handle 'solids' before 4 months and it is preferred that it is put off until 6 months... having said that, my great grandmother but baby rice in my bottle when i was 2 months old to make me sleep longer... but when i put my son on solids at 4 months it really upset his system and i took him off solids until 6 months and then he was fine... every baby is probably different this maybe check with your doctor?

Answer 10

I did with my three children. At around 3 - 4 months I started buying the jars of gerber cereals and feeding with an infant feeder. Rice at first, then as they got used to it, mixed cereal and then the gerber oatmeal. Those 2 am feedings with the cereal stayed with them a lot longer that just formula.

Answer 11

you can try but never put cereal in a bottle, always give it to them off the spoon. All three of my kids started cereal when they came home from the hospital, only my first liked it. They say to wait because it can cause allergies, my kids are 6.5, 3.5 and 2 and not one of them have allergies . Good Luck