Cereal @ 4 months?

Question

My 3 month old eats no less than 50 oz of formula per day, sometimes a couple of ounces more. Should I anticipate my doctor recommending cereal at his 4 month well baby check up? At our last appointment he told me NOT to start cereal before 6 months, but said we'd review at our next appointment.
The reason I'm most curious is that my son is showing many signs that he is ready - watches people while they eat, mimics chewing, drools, chews on tongue, and I don't know if that should be encouraged or just left alone.
He is sleeping 7 hours a night before waking up for a night feed, is gaining weight steadily(born at 9lb2oz, now around 15lbs), and is content, so there really is no issue except for the excessive formula consumption.
Any ideas? I'm really excited to get him started on solids, but don't want to take that step until he is absolutely ready. Obviously, I'll go by what my doctor says, but I'm curious to hear what others in the same situation have been told.

Answer 1

Sounds like you are doing a great job of studying up on what is best for your baby. You already know that 4-6 months is the window for starting cereal. You also know the signs of a baby being ready. Listen to your doctor, but then act with your instinct. It's an educated one.

Answer 2

I recenty started feeding my 4 1/2 month old solids. Her doctor recommended starting by mixing 1 tablespoon of apple juice with enough rice cereal to make a slurry, as he called it, twice a day. The reason he said to use apple juice instead of formula was because the combination of cereal and formula had a binding effect and could cause constipation. He said after a week, add a third of a jar of a fruit--banana, for example--at each feeding. Go through two jars of that fruit before switching and trying a veggie. Go through 2 jars of that then switch to another fruit and so on. The reason for going through 2 jars is to watch for allergies. My daughter seems to like trying these new flavors and textures.
But, go with what your doctor says. He is, after all, a doctor and, I would imagine has a better grasp of childhood nutrition and development than a previous response to your question indicated.

Answer 3

My daughter was eating rice cereal by spoon at 2 1/2 months. Formula was not enough for her, the doctor was fine with it. Some doctors say to start cereals at 4 months, some say 6 months. There is no reason you can't give him a 1/2 tsp of rice cereal by spoon now, give it to him at breakfast, mix it in a bowl with some formula. Spoon feed him, never in a bottle. At 6 months start veggies and fruits. My daugther is 6 months and is the right size and weight, so there was no big deal with starting cereal early, just satisfied her, and thats what is important.
Remember that formula is the most important, as excited as we are to give solids, the best is formula, so just give little bits of solids.

Answer 4

The signs he's showing is an indication that it would be okay. My baby gagged on cereal at first; she didn't like the texture. There's no hurry, but I know what you mean about them watching and drooling, and four months isn't too early to try things. Just don't expect him to get nutrition from it. Continue feeding him exactly as before, just trying a little soupy cereal if you want.

Answer 5

My daughter is currently 9 months old. She started on cereal around 4 or 5 months old. We started by mixing cereal into her bottles so that she would be introduced to the taste. After a couple weeks of that, I introduced her to a spoon. I made the cereal with breast milk (or formula) first. It took a while for her to get used to the spoon. Don't get frustrated! Just keep trying. My doctor recommended starting cereal around 4 months. Every doctor has an opinion on the matter. I think that every child is different therefore a doctor's opinion should change depending on the situation.

Answer 6

Try using a small amount of cereal mixed in with his bottle, just enough to thicken the formula slightly, so it will still flow easily out of the nipple. The main idea of delaying the introduction of "solid" foods is to delay or prevent the development of food allergies. But if you think your son is ready for some cereal, try him on it. At 4 months old, he's just entering the stage where he will be able to digest small amounts of cereal. It may take him a couple of months more to accept whole cereal (prepared according to directions), but the addition of cereal to his formula may help in that transition. It may also lengthen the time between feedings at first.

Answer 7

Studies have shown that feeding solids to infants can lead to food allergies. Many children show signs that they are capable of eating but proper digestion is something else. The longer you can put off solids the better.

Having said that, I know plenty of kids who were fed cereal at what I would consider "too young" of an age and are fine. And I know plenty of kids whose parents waited until 1 year to feed any solid and they are also fine.

Beyond suggesting that you not rush things too quickly, I would say go with your instinct. Moms usually know best.

Answer 8

All peds are different. My dr reccomended that I start at 4 months. Yours may just prefer to delay solids. I don't think there's any "right" time. If you want to try cereal, go for it.

Answer 9

He could very well be ready. If u want to start cereal..U start w/ single grain rice cereal because its the easiest to digest. Ive started addin that 2 my sons formula (not a lot tho) bc of his acid reflux. He is almost 4m.

Answer 10

Feed the boy.I started all my kids before doctors said it was ok and I just started my grandson.We started him at 3 months