is it ok to put infant cereal in bottle for my baby at bedtime only?

Question

i'm trying to ween my daughter from her night time feedings. i think they are more a habit than a necessity. is it ok to add a little cereal in her bedtime bottle? she is 10 months old. oh and this is the only bottle i'm thinking of adding it to, is the one for bed.

serious answers only please.

first thanks for all the answers.

yes my daughter is eating solids. has been since she was 3 months. she is now at a point that she eats 3 meals, with various snacks in between and still has a few bottles a day.

she is also starting to feed herself with the spoon. granted she makes a mess but she's trying. so yes she's eating solids already and she is using a spoon herself.

oh and her last meal of the day is around 7pm. then afterwards she takes a bath. then we play a little. then she gets a bottle of formula and off to bed she goes. so her lasting feeding is usually about 30 minutes before bed. most of the time she has a bottle with her to go to bed at night.

i talk to her dr. she said it's ok to give her a little cereal in the bottle for the bedtime feeding. i just want the input of other parents also.

Answer 1

People add cerreal to the bottle to make the child feel more full so they'll sleep longer. If you think this is a habit and not a necessity, then how will adding food help?

If it's a habit to help her soothe at nighttime, then you'd want to replace that with holding her until she falls asleep, telling her stories or reading until she falls asleep, etc.

Answer 2

My son has cereal in every bottle he takes as prescribed by his pediatrician(he has severe reflux) and he is fine. She is around the age though that you could just feed her some cereal mixed with formula/breast milk with a spoon. But I know some kids just prefer the bottle! I don't see anything wrong with it, just watch her with it to make sure she's drinking it OK.

But, if you don't mind my sharing. I have an eight month old boy and this is how I get him to sleep through the night:

Feed him either baby food(that I add a small amount of cereal to so it's a little thicker. For some reason he eats it better.)Or just cereal that I mix with formula.

Let his tummy settle and make sure he's done eating.

Give a warm bath with the lavender bath products that are available. Rub down with the lotion afterwards.

Read a little book or tell him a story.

(Sometimes he decides he wants a bottle at some point after eating!)

Cuddle and rock him,sometimes he wants me to rub his back.


Sometimes establishing a bedtime ritual will help loads. That's what I've done with both of my kids and they always slept well(unless they weren't feeling well). Soon enough, she'll understand that it's time to sleep and she'll relax herself which will help her fall asleep better.

Answer 3

Yes! it is fine to feed a baby 3 months old or older rice cereal mixed in the bed time bottle. In fact a good hardy rice cereal and formula breakfast is fine too!

I mixed the two together (at the advice of my mother) for my first son at 3 months and plan on doing it again with my newest addition next month!

Not only does it fill the little buggers tummy but it also helps to reduce spitting up as the rice provides a more solid form of food for the babies tummy!

I have researched this very carefully and have not found any documentation that rice cereal mixed with formula has any bad side affects to babies over 3 months. But most do agree that 3 months is about the earliest you want to start this depending on your baby and how he or she reacts to it.

So if I was you, I would go for it and start with the night time feeding and if everything goes well (which I know for a fact it will) go to a morning and night feeding schedule with the rice and formula.

As far as their teeth are concerned you can give them a little chlorinated water afterwords to wash away the residue.

On a final note, when you make the formula/rice bottle you will want to make it the consistency of a semi runny milk shake and make sure you cut the nipples holes a little bigger to make the feeding a little easier on baby.
thanks

Answer 4

Your daughter should be sleeping through the night by age 10 months. Instead of adding cereal to the bedtime bottle why not give her a snack a little before bedtime. If dinner is early then she needs another meal before bedtime. Just stay away from the sugar.

Answer 5

I think this is a great idea. I have a 3 month old and she gets cereal in her bedtime bottle so that now she sleeps for 6 to 8 hours at night. I can get her up in between time to change her but she goes right back to sleep without another bottle.

Answer 6

An toddler desires to be developmentally waiting for cereal. If the newborn can not carry their head up and eat from a spoon then they don't look to be waiting for cereal. Cereal in a bottle is likewise a choking danger. Breast milk in uncomplicated words till six months of age is counseled.

Answer 7

She should already be eating cereal and baby food...... with a spoon. Maybe feed her a jar of baby food about an hour or so before bed time then give her a bottle just before you lay her down. that should have her sleeping all night. (Btw are you feeding her with a spoon yet?)

Answer 8

Everybody will tell you that it is bad for the baby. Her teeth can be damaged and so on. But I did it with both of my boys (4 and 2 now) and they are both absolutely fine, I promise. Their teeth are perfectly healthy and they sleep through the night all the time becasue they were full. Plus alot of people will tell you that it could make the baby gain alot of weight. Not true, or not with my boys. They stayed thin throughout their baby years and continue to eat like crazy and stay healthy. So in my opinion it would be perfectly fine to give your baby a little cereal in her bottle at bedtime only. Good Luck.

Answer 9

I dont think it will hurt her in any way. My son didn't sleep all night till I took away the bottle. He was 12 months. He was on formula and the doctor told me to switch to regular milk and to a sippy cup. By then, he was pretty much eating all solids anyway. I tell you this was the best advice. I went thru about a week of transition with the cup and after that he slept all night. It was like heaven after getting up and down all night for a year. You should talk to your doctor and see what he thinks. I usually get alot of advice from the nurses at my sons doctor's office.

Answer 10

I wouldn't recommend putting cereal in the bottle but maybe adding in an extra feeding during the day. She may wake up only for the soothing and not because she's hungry. You can try to give her something else other than the bottle to soothe her and see if that works....it's not an easy process but if you are consistant with it, it will work.