Cereal in baby's bottle?

Question

I have always wondered about this: Why do mothers put rice cereal in baby's bottle? Everything I have read says do not do this yet I am the only mother I personally know who did not do it. So why do mothers do this? Any insights? Thanks!

I never gave my baby cereal in her bottle and she was sleeping through the night before she was 2 mos old. I was just curious. Thanks for the answers!

Answer 1

Basically for selfish reasons...they put the cereal in the bottle even though they're not supposed to, so the baby will sleep longer. Not everyone puts the best interest of the baby first I guess. But you are right. Don't do it.

Answers:
Why shouldn't cereal be put in your baby's bottle?

* It is an old wives' tale that putting cereal in the bottle will help your baby sleep better at night. Babies should not go more than 4-6 hours without being fed because their stomachs are so small.

* Around 4-6 months, your baby will be ready to eat cereal from a spoon. This is a very important learning step for your baby. Putting cereal in a bottle may prevent your baby from learning this new skill.

* Cereal in the bottle can increase the risk of choking because you have to increase the size of the hole in the nipple to allow the cereal through. If too much comes through the nipple, your baby could choke.

* Putting cereal in the bottle may cause you to overfeed your baby.

Answer 2

I put cereal in my baby's bottle, slit the nipple just a tad and she did fine but didn't do this until closer to 4-5 months of age when she was able to hold her head up by herself and swallow well and eat off a spoon.

Reason why I did it was it helped fill her belly up and my mother did it and my mom has 5 kids and all are fine and no problems.

Some mothers do it b/c that's how they are taught or maybe their friends do it or whatever.

I know I was told by the WIC office not to do it but I kept an eye on my child and she never had choking problems of any kind.

Oh and by the way my daughter is now 2 and people are stating that by doing the cereal in the bottle doesn't help w/the skill of eating off the spoon..my daughter had no probs...she doesn't have bad eating habits or eat too much and does things earlier than most.

Some say for selfish reasons so not to wake up w/the baby at night as much...by the time my daughter did eat it she was sleeping thru the night.

Answer 3

I didn't either! I waited until they were 5 months old and when they had trouble sleeping through the night again I started with cereal on a baby spoon for morning and night.
I think some people do it because it is easier and has less mess to it. Also, they start their babies on cereal at a much younger age in a lot of cases. Not good for the digestive tract which shows later in life.
Just my opinion, but it worked for me and my kids- all 4 of them.

Answer 4

I've done it because my son had acid reflux and his doctor told me to put a little in his formula so he wouldn't be in pain and spit up constantly. Some people are very ignorant and think someone does it JUST to get a kid to sleep longer. True, some people may do that but some of us that are getting labeled "selfish" and other things are the farthest thing from it. And just an FYI....even with the rice in his bottle, my son didn't sleep through the night any sooner than any other kid, I just wanted to help the poor guy feel better without jumping to the Zantac that they prescribe kids with reflux.

Answer 5

People I know have done this as well, and for the most part they are concerned the baby isn't getting full enough from just the formula or milk. It's not necessarily a safe thing to do, it would be best to simply feed the infant cereal with a spoon. I think too, that some Mom's don't know how to handle the pressure of other people telling them what's best for their baby, so they do things they wouldn't otherwise, because someone else with more experience told them it was the right thing to do.

Answer 6

I never put cereal in my babies bottles...they ate their cereal from a bowl and had a bottle of milk afterwards. Many have the misconception that adding cereal to the milk will sustain them for a longer period of time. Not true. My first baby slept through the night at 3 weeks of age (yes I jumped out of bed and flew to her room the first time she slept through the night) and I didn't even start her on cereal until she was four months old. Milk was sufficient for her until she was four months old.

Answer 7

For different reasons. Some people do it to make the baby sleep through the night. Other people like me have to do it for medical reasons. My daughter had reflux and had to have cereal in her bottle to keep her formula down.

Answer 8

My grandma told me to put cereal in the babies bottle only before bed it will help them feel fuller and sleep through the night.

Answer 9

thats a good question!
if u honestly sit down and think about it doens't actually fill them up! it can somewhat but not drastically..the cereal is like a rice, its nothing whole enough to actually "fill" them up. Think about it, i know i'm not gonna get full eating a plate of rice..lol its just an easy way out for some people. cereal is intended to be eaten out of a spoon and not a bottle!

Answer 10

I would never do that and have always wondered that too? My kids weren't great sleeps but I still get up and feed them breast milk not cereal in a bottle. I have heard only do it if the pediatrician recommends it.