When can I start giving my daughter baby cereal?

Question

My daughter is almost 4 month old and I've heard a lot of people telling me to start giving her cereal already.
What age should i start her off on the baby cereal? and how much can I give her the first few days?
i need some help this is my first daughter so I dont exactly know much of this

Answer 1

I started giving my daughter rice cereal before she went to bed at 6 weeks. She's completely healthy and perfectly fine. My pediatrician said it was good that she was already eating cereal, he had no complaints. You hear several different things, people saying not to feed anything but the bottle until their 6 mos. old, but I disagree. My daughter loves cereal, and knows when she eats after wards it's time for bed. She sleep anywhere from 8-9 hours at night. It's all up to you when you start. Good luck!

Answer 2

If she can hold her head up well and is looking at you when you eat like, "What is that? What are you doing? I want some too...!" then she is ready! My son was a little over three and a half months when I first gave him rice cereal, and we went really quick from there. He will be 5 months in two days and he will be starting Gerber 2nd foods this week. He loves everything! My family has no history of allergies though, so I wasn't real worried about that. I would try giving her some. It has been so much fun to give him food! He gets oatmeal and fruit in the morning and rice and veggies at night. I breastfeed him mostly, but this will help so I don't have to give him iron supplement since the cereal is fortified! When you start her just try about 2 tablespoons or so and make it pretty watery ( I used breastmilk, you could use formula or water)...they have to learn how to swallow the thicker substance. Oh you'll love it!!!! And she will too. Babies at this age are so interested in new things! You are really looking forward to a great month. My son has just come alive this last month. By that I mean that he is really developing a personality. Your baby will grow so much developmentally this month....well you'll see! Look forward to it!

Answer 3

You can start feeding a baby solids from 4-6mths of age.
Usually you just start with 1-2 tablespoons at most and make it something bland like mashed potato or pumpkin or if you want you can buy baby cereal for a 4mth old.
If you want to start with a little potato then just give her some from your dinner. At this age its just to get them used to a spoon and the different texture. You shouldn't be feeding her enought to replace a milk feed and always give solids after a milk feed for the first few months.
She will probably just spit out the food the first few times and if she is tired or irritable she won't open her mouth either.
Remember not to add salt or anything else to any homemade baby food, keep it natural and avoid sweeter foods (apple, pear etc..) for the first solids otherwise they will not accept the bland foods. (that's why vegetables are usually the best first foods)
You should also try the same food everyday for one week before introducing another food so you can see if they are having a reaction to it. So start with potato, then a week later try pumpkin, if that goes well you can put the two together and introduce a new food like carrot or brocolli.
Making baby food in bulk and freezing it in an icecube tray is perfect as its just the right portion and easy to pop out and thaw/gently heat.

Best of luck. Starting solids is heaps of fun, just remember to put a large bib on her to cover her top half!

Answer 4

Usually between 4 and 6 months you can introduce cereal. Talk to your pediatrician at your daughters 4 month check up. He or she will be able to tell you how much to give your baby to start and also what to look for so you know your child is or isn't ready for cereal.

Babycenter.com is a great source of information too. I use it a lot since I'm a first time Mom as well.

Answer 5

I think I read that they (the medical community) has changed the recommendation from 4-6months to 6months before starting solids. Another thing to consider is...is she satisfied with her bottle or is she acting humgry sooner, are there any allergies in your family. Rice cereal is supposed to be the least allergenic but it sometimes is helpful to wait and let her intestines mature a bit more. Are you ready for the time committment it takes to start solid? Bottles/breast is much faster. Don't let anyone rush you into it. I waited until 7 months to feed my 2nd daughter (because life was so hectic at the time and it kind of crept up on me) and she is very healthy.

Answer 6

We started out son at 6 months. He took to it very easily. I am not sure what other people do, but I just add the cereal to 2 oz of formula. I chose 2 oz because it's easy to measure and he eats it all. And I have also added fruits or veggies along side that. You could start with 2 oz and see how much she eats. I just added the cereal until it was kinda thick but still a litte runny, As he got older, I just added more rice until is got more like oatmeal consistency.

Answer 7

There is so much debate going on about cereal and when to start, honestly i started my daughter at 10 days old [pediatrician recommended it] i wouldnt change it my daughter is 2 months old and very healthy weighig 12lbs 10oz. she was spitting up and cereal stopped it completely, she has it with all her feedings. I wouldnt recommend it to your daughter im not a doctor but consult with him before. If he says go for it which im sure shes 4 months old go with your gut usually its a ratio of 1;2 1 teaspoon for every 2 oz something like that. a little more a little less depends on the consistency you want it.

Answer 8

I started my son when he was 4 months. As long as she has good head control, she can start. Make sure it's runny so she doesn't choke. Regular cereal constipated the heck out of my son. I switched to whole grain cereal and it cleared it up. It has more fiber in it. If this happens to your daughter, Beech Nut and Nature's Best has whole grain.

Answer 9

You'll need to decide when you think she is ready. There is a ton of information on the internet if you google feeding baby solids. Follow the checklist of ways to know when your baby is ready. It's usually between 4-6 months.

Answer 10

I have a 7 wk old and justt 2 nights, I gave him cereal{rice} and he loved it. He also has acid reflux and the thickness helps w/ the feedings. I also have 2older children ages 10 and 12 .. They did not have acid reflux and I gave it to them at the same age. They loved it. They are perfectly normal children. Do what you think is best.. besides my son was so hungry and sleeps much better.