How do you know when your baby is ready for rice cereal?

Question

P.S. Not from a bottle, but a spoon.

Cause my son is 4 months and when I tried it last night he cried, but he is eating so much and I will not put it in the bottle. What should I do? Also, I tried giving him another oz. or so, but then he throws it up, as if he drank too much.

He is 15 pounds.

I kept the cereal a little bit runny, not too thick.

I kept the cereal a little bit runny, not too thick.

REAL ANSWERS PLEASE FROM MOMS

everyone is saying that rice cereal is good at 4 months, not anything else other then breast milk or formula.

I tried only rice cereal, not actual solid foods. I won't do that till later.

to iheartlaura, he didn't throw up the cereal, he threw up the milk. the cereal didn;t even make it to his stomach, cause he didn;t swallow it, cause his tounge acts like he is getting the bottle...

Answer 1

No solid foods (solid food is defined as anything other than breastmilk or formula - INCLUDING rice cereal, no matter how "thin" you make it) are recommended before 6 months of age. Prior to then, the infants digestive system is just not ready.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, and the World Health Organization both used to recommend 4 to 6 months to start, but it was changed to OVER 6 month a few years ago.

Answer 2

He's probably just going through a growth spurt. Let him be the guide in how many bottles and how much he drinks from each one. I'm pretty sure rice cereal is considered a solid food, even though it doesn't seem solid to grownups. Wait for a while before trying it again, maybe at 5 or 6 months. I think the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends 6 months for starting solids.

Answer 3

well sounds like you are trying about all you can. No you really dont want to put it in the bottle like you said, they need to learn the spoon, Now my daughter kind of did the same thing. So im guessing it was because she was hungry and so didnt have the patience to use the spoon. So what I did was give a few oz's of milk so that she is not full but not starving, and then tried to introduce the spoon. Now it took me trying every night for about a week till she finally got the hang of it and now she eats about 2 table spoons, She is 4 months as well and 12 lbs. But I would try that out, just be patient and dont give up, he is just not used to the spoon so it will take some time. just start out with a teaspoon so you dont waste so much!! Good luck!

Answer 4

My son is 3 months old & I give him baby oatmeal.... ( he didnt like the taste of the cereal)

At first , he did the same thing your son did- he would cry everytime I tried to put the spoon in his mouth... So I got a medicine dropper (one of the kinda big ones-I think its SafetyFirst brand) & I sucked up a little of the oatmeal into it, and put it in his mouth & he sucked it out(at first, he rolled his tounge around it like he didnt know what to do lol) ... After a few bites that way(so he could get used to the taste/texture), I used the spoon & he sucked it off the spoon!
Try that....My friend suggested it- Shes got 2 kids & is getting her degree in early childhood development.....
When you use the spoon- put a tiny bit on the tip of it, and put just that part in his mouth & hold the handle of the spoon upwards ( like towards his nose) so that he can 'suck' it off the spoon.... Thats the only way my son can do it!

Feel free to write me if you want to! I can give you tips on what I do! =)
Good Luck!

Answer 5

Hi there!

If he is taking 30+ ounces per day of milk/formula and still acting hungry, rice cereal is a good first food. Here is some more information that might help.

He may not take to it right away, just be patient and don't force him.

Also, be sure to mix it with his formula and not water...

http://www.drgreene.com/21_864.html

If you are not able to get the rice into him and he's acting hungry, bring him to the doctor or a check.

Answer 6

my daughter is 6 months and i started rice at 5 months she was sprouting a tooth and trying to grab at everything i was doing or eating!!! i had no problem with mine she loved it i strickly breast feed her shes never had formula so i didnt want to put fromula in her rice cereal!!!! i had 1 bag of breast milk still in the freezer and used that the first couple of times but i didnt want her to get used to the breast milk in the cereal because at this point i cant get anything out when i pump she can get it out when she eats but i cant with my medela!! so i knew it wasnt goning to be an everyday thing so thats when i started to just use water actually its called nursery water for baies u can get it at walmart!!!! the first feeding was runny but after that i would make it a little thicker ur baby needs to get used to solid ffod so that he or she can take to solids like carrots etc when u start those in a month or so!!!! just keep trying with ur baby it may look like they dont like it but they dont know any better!!! make the feeding time consitant so he can look foward to that time each day keep at it ur baby will get it all babies r different!!!! but stick with rice its the best!!!! also know cereal in bottels my doc said bad idea it confuses them the thickness of the milk he said it starts bad eating habbits!!! Whatever that means lol i just was told not to do it!!!!!! and never did

Answer 7

With my twins I notice that they were still hungry after 6 ounces. both of our familys kept telling us to put it in the bottle but I refused! I started at 4 months as well you just have to keep trying it may take a little bit. just keep trying the thin to thick thing. my kids hated it really runny so I tried to make is a little thicker and they loved it! best of luck!

Answer 8

He is ready when he looks like he is begging for a bite of whatever you are eating, can hold his head up, sit up supported, move the cereal to the back of his mouth (instead of pushing it out with his tongue), let you know when he is full (by turning his head away), & the list goes on. Just because he cried last night doesn't always mean that he didn't (or won't) like it. You need to try new foods a couple of times when introducing them for the first time. Good luck!

Answer 9

You arent supposed to feed the baby anything other than breastmilk or formula until they are 6 months old.it used to be ok for rice cereal at 4-6months.that has been changed to 6 months because babies arent ready for anything else.just keep feeding him breastmilk/formula.he doesnt need anything else.

i would think that if he was throwing up hes not ready for it.

babies eat alot.thats what they do.my daughter ate tons at 4 months too.when babies eat from a bottle they are compelled to eat until there is nothing left.try less formula

Answer 10

He should be ready for it. They say after there 4 months to start out with rice cereal, and then start on vegs. My daughter wouldnt take rice at all, so i started her with rice with bananas and she took it really well, she also is taking vegs. now. it helped her out alot as far as eatin alot of bottle. she weighs close to 14 pounds. and shes 4 months and 1 week old.