How come you can't give your infant rice cereal at 6 weeks anymore?

Answer 1

Supposedly it puts them at a higher risk for SIDS....so yeah, I wouldn't want to take that chance!

Answer 2

My daughter is six weeks old and has reflux. The pedi suggested putting rice cereal in each bottle to help keep the formula down. By the 12th hour she had six poopie diapers and by the 24 th hour she was vomiting so bad she could not catch her breath (much more then her normal reflux). It was not worth it for us and very scary.

Answer 3

A babies digestive system isn't fully developed at that age and it's hard for their bodies to digest solid foods. Starting a baby on solids at an early age can also increase the chances of food allergies. They usually don't recommend giving solids until 4-6 months, when babies have total head control and can sit upright with support.

Answer 4

Because from about 2005-2006, approximately 921 infants have died from choking on rice cereal.

Answer 5

Rice cereal given to a baby that young will make her feel more full. People would give that to their children at night to help them sleep longer. A baby needs to be able to wake up. Actually them waking up cause of hunger actually helps prevent s.i.d.s. When I was first pregnant I did alot of research on that subject. Another reason is because it might upset their digestive systems. Talk about it with your doc.

Answer 6

They know now that the digestive system is not developed enough to handle that kind of digestion. What often happens is the child/infant - becomes very constipated or has diareaha. Keep on to the schedule the doctors tell you too - they do actually know something

Answer 7

Because mother nature very carefully made sure that no mammal eats food before they ready and putting cereal in bottles or on a spoon and placing it so far back in the throat they have no choice but to swallow goes against nature and can cause all sorts of problems, including, but not limited to:
-Anemia
-Malnutrition
-Allergies
-Weakened immune system
-Diabetes
-Obesity

Secondly have you ever read what is in modern rice cereal? It is a far cry from what your parent's fed you, and their parent's fed them. Older cereal was all natural. Modern cereal contains stabalizers, synthetic vitamins and minerals, oil, oil and more oil, and cow milk and milk protein.

Answer 8

I would talk to the baby's doctor first.I know most people say that baby's at that age are not ready for that but if your child eats like my brother did about 8ounces a feeding then you might want to talk to the doctor because that's what my mom had to do and they told her to put him on rice cereal. But do check with your doctor before you do that because if he's not ready for that it might hurt him more than it would do good for him.

Answer 9

It's best to wait longer, here's six reasons why

1. Baby's intestines need to mature. The intestines are the body's filtering system, screening out potentially harmful substances and letting in healthy nutrients. In the early months, this filtering system is immature. Between four and seven months a baby's intestinal lining goes through a developmental growth spurt called closure, meaning the intestinal lining becomes more selective about what to let through. To prevent potentially-allergenic foods from entering the bloodstream, the maturing intestines secrete IgA , a protein immunoglobulin that acts like a protective paint, coating the intestines and preventing the passage of harmful allergens. In the early months, infant IgA production is low (although there is lots of IgA in human milk), and it is easier for potentially-allergenic food molecules to enter the baby's system. Once food molecules are in the blood, the immune system may produce antibodies to that food, creating a food allergy . By six to seven months of age the intestines are more mature and able to filter out more of the offending allergens. This is why it's particularly important to delay solids if there is a family history of food allergy, and especially to delay the introduction of foods to which other family members are allergic.

2. Young babies have a tongue-thrust reflex . In the first four months the tongue thrust reflex protects the infant against choking. When any unusual substance is placed on the tongue, it automatically protrudes outward rather than back. Between four and six months this reflex gradually diminishes, giving the glob of cereal a fighting chance of making it from the tongue to the tummy. Not only is the mouth-end of baby's digestive tract not ready for early solids, neither is the lower end.

3. Baby's swallowing mechanism is immature. Another reason not to rush solids is that the tongue and the swallowing mechanisms may not yet be ready to work together. Give a spoonful of food to an infant less than four months, and she will move it around randomly in her mouth, pushing some of it back into the pharynx where it is swallowed, some of it into the large spaces between the cheeks and gums, and some forward between the lips and out onto her chin. Between four and six months of age, most infants develop the ability to move the food from the front of the mouth to the back instead of letting it wallow around in the mouth and get spit out. Prior to four months of age, a baby's swallowing mechanism is designed to work with sucking, but not with chewing.

4. Baby needs to be able to sit up. In the early months, babies associate feeding with cuddling. Feeding is an intimate interaction, and babies often associate the feeding ritual with falling asleep in arms or at the breast. The change from a soft, warm breast to a cold, hard spoon may not be welcomed with an open mouth. Feeding solid foods is a less intimate and more mechanical way of delivering food. It requires baby to sit up in a highchair – a skill which most babies develop between five and seven months. Holding a breastfed baby in the usual breastfeeding position may not be the best way to start introducing solids, as your baby expects to be breastfed and clicks into a "what's wrong with this picture?" mode of food rejection.

5. Young infants are not equipped to chew. Teeth seldom appear until six or seven months, giving further evidence that the young infant is designed to suck rather than to chew. In the pre-teething stage, between four and six months, babies tend to drool, and the drool that you are always wiping off baby's face is rich in enzymes, which will help digest the solid foods that are soon to come.

6. Older babies like to imitate caregivers. Around six months of age, babies like to imitate what they see. They see you spear a veggie and enjoy chewing it. They want to grab a fork and do likewise.

Answer 10

They do not have the digestive enzynes to break them down. Linked to causing allergies, stomach disorders ect.

Answer 11

I have read that feeding babies solid food before 4 months of age increases their suseptability to diabetes.