I plan to breatfeed. I've heard of mothers after the 1st month putting cereal in bottles...?

Question

In order to get their babies to sleep through the night, they put warm cereal in their bottles. How would I do this if I plan on breastfeeding? Do I just introduce the bottle after the 1st month? What do you think??

Answer 1

NO, NO, NO! First of all you have already chose to breastfeed, so why even use the bottle at all? I know for the times you may be away from your baby it is OK to pump and let someone else feed it from a bottle. My daughter in law chose to bottle feed and there was only one of her children that she had to add cereal to his bottle and it was a health reason and had nothing to do with her child sleeping all night. This is ludicrous to me. Most breast fed babies sleep all night any way because they are more contented, mine did and that may not be the norm for everyone who has breast fed. I think how ever it is more of the norm then thought. My sister also breast fed and her children slept through the night too. Even if there is a middle of the night feeding think how much easier it is then actually having to get out of bed and make a bottle. Not only the health benefits from breastfeeding but the fact is that infants digestive tract are not fully developed when Born to even introduce food other then milk into their systems. You have started on the right foot toward helping your child be healthy and fit continue to do so and don't fall for the easy way out because it might interfere with your sleep routine.American children are overweight and are having some very serious health problems. Be one of the future generation that says no more and continue to make healthy choices for you and your child!

Answer 2

It is an old wives tail about the bottle and formula. I think if your baby is full then you will get a good nights sleep for yourself. I didn't get a full 7 hours until my little guy was 2 1/2 months. He did what is called a cluster feeding 3 feedings in 3 hours. then he slept the 7 straight. Also if you do try the pablum in the bottle i would do it around 4 months if you find the baby is still really hungry after feeding.

Answer 3

Cereal should not be introduced until after 6 months. The baby's tummy cannot digest the cereal very well at only 1 month. Many doctors will tell you it's best to breastfeed exclusively for the first 6 months. Then you can start introducing other food items. I know you want to sleep more, but the cereal can cause constipation which can cause more sleepless nights.

Answer 4

You should not give a baby that young cereal. ALL they are supposed to have for the first 6 mos is breastmilk or formula. Starting solids too soon (which includes cereal) can increase the risk of allergies, diabetes and obesity. They don't have the enzymes needed to digest it properly until around 6 mos. It's a choking hazard in a bottle as well. And that it will help them sleep is an old wive's tale. Anyway, a one month old NEEDS to be waking at night to eat. They are growing SO FAST and their tummy is SO TINY (size of their fist) that they NEED to wake to eat overnight. PLUS, getting into too deep of a sleep can contribute to SIDS.

ETA:

NO breastfed babies DO NOT need water either. ALL they need is breastmilk. Giving water would make them take in less milk which can lead to supply problems and poor weight gain. Breastmilk is mostly water anyway! And giving a very young baby water is DANGEROUS as it can lead to water intoxication.

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/baby-water.html

http://www.stlouischildrens.org/articles/kids_parents.asp?ID=171

Answer 5

Babies don't need cereal until they are about 6months old. Doctors say it's okay to start getting baby used to cereal no earlier than 4months. Breastfeeding is the best thing, for now!
I'm glad you chose it. Really, it's an 'old wives' tale' about babies sleeping through the night better with cereal in their bottles. I did it with my 1st two kids & it didn't do a thing for them! My 4month old twins started sleeping thru the night and I'm just now really slowly introducing cereal to them, so every baby is different.

Answer 6

First of all, cereal will not help a baby sleep better or sleep through the night sooner. There is absolutely zero evidence that it helps, while the evidence is clear that sleeping through the night is a developmental milestone. It can't be rushed or changed. I'm not suggesting that mothers who have given their babies cereal and had their babies sleep better are making up stories, merely that it was, essentially, coincidental.

A baby's digestive system is not sufficiently developed to handle cereal so early and you should not introduce cereal to a one month old unless instructed by your doctor. (Because, while there is no evidence that adding cereal to a bottle helps a baby to sleep through the night, there is evidence that it can help reduce the discomfort associated with GERD (reflux), which is all too common among infants. Therefore, it is not uncommon for doctors to suggest adding rice cereal to an infant's bottle -- to help with reflux.) In addition, adding cereal to a bottle can create a risk of choking.

The sleep deprivation that comes with having a baby is anything but fun, but it's part of parenthood and as lousy as it is, it does pass, I promise. The majority of babies start sleeping through the night after three months. Some start earlier, some later. But note, too, that as another answerer said, "sleeping through the night" does *not* mean sleeping for eight hours; medically speaking, "sleeping through the night" means sleeping for a stretch of five consecutive hours. Hardly a full night's sleep for us moms!

If you're lucky, your baby will be "sleeping through the night" after just a month -- which s/he will if s/he's developmentally ready to do so, not because of any cereal.

Best of luck!

ETA If you breastfeed there is no reason to introduce a bottle unless you *want* to -- e.g. if you want to pump to allow your husband/partner/babysitter/whoever to administer the expressed breast milk to the baby, either because you will be unavailable or to allow you to sleep or just to give you a break...as you choose. If you want to, that's fine, if you don't want to, that's fine. My point is: there is NO reason to introduce a bottle to administer water to a baby. Young babies should not be given water, period -- all the water they need is already contained in the breastmilk or formula they are getting, they don't need any more. Further, giving additional water to a baby may be harmful, because it can 1) cause the baby to fill up on water, thus drinking less breastmilk or formula, which is where its nutrition comes from, and 2) it can throw the baby's electrolytes out of balance. It's fine to give a baby water after the baby is 6 months old but earlier than that, please check with a pediatrician.

Answer 7

A lot of things have changed since my babies were born 8 years ago, but I breast-fed and used Avent bottles with breastmilk, not formula. When it was time to start giving my babies cereal I started with a spoon. That was around 2 months of age. My kids were eating yellow veggies by the age of 4 or 5 months old. They are perfectly healthy, they never had nipple confusion, and they are not obese from over-eating. Nowadays, doctors are making mothers wait until after the baby is 6 months old. What their reasoning is I have no idea, but if your baby is staying awake because of hunger then a little bit of cereal will not hurt him/her. Keep in mind, you should always begin with a very small amount to make sure that his/her system can handle it. Your instincts will be very in tune with your child and you will know what he or she needs better than anyone.

Answer 8

cereal wont help the baby sleep through the night and if it does it wont be good for her...breastfeed for as long as your comfortable....dont put cereal in the bottle...for that u need to poke holes in the nipple which could lead to choking.as for sleeping through the night...that is up to ur baby and at 1 month her tummy is too small to go without a feeding.... part of being a mom is gettin up in the night... if ur with the father u can pump or get a little formula and get the daddy to give a bottle at night sometimes but be careful cuz some babys get nipple confusion...get a nurser bottle set.....good luck

Answer 9

I do not suggest giving your baby cereal after the 1st month. I believe doctors recommend giving cereal between 4-6 months. I strictly breastfed my baby then started feeding him cereal at 6 months. I think you need to talk to your pediatrician.

Answer 10

I planned to breastfeed also. I breastfed during the day at the hospital and let them take her to the nursery at night and bottle feed her. We never had a problem with nipple preference and she latched on fine. I am glad we decided to do this b/c after about 3 weeks my milk went away and we had to bottle feed her. I tried cereal and it made her VERY constipated b/c her little tummy wasn't ready and it did not make her sleep all night. She is now 7 months old, eats three meals a day, doesn't like cereal and doesn't sleep all night. I wish I had never tried the cereal b/c she cried w/ her tummy hurting.