Should I put my newborn on infant cereal?

Question

My baby girl is eleven days old and eating every hour and a half to two hours. She eats 3-4 ounces at a time and it seems she's never satisfied. Its been suggested I should start giving her a little cereal with her formula. Any one had the same problem or have any ideas or opinions?

Answer 1

No, I wouldn't do it yet.

The schedule your baby is on actually sounds ideal. 3-4 ounces every two hours is about what babies do, hon. It's hard to keep up with the demands of an infant (being every two hours), but, it sounds like your baby is fine with that. If you give her cereal now, she'll come to expect it, and all it's doing is filing her up with things that may be too hard for her to digest just yet. You'll expand her tummy, which could lead to problems later. Remember, she's on a liquid diet right now, and liquid digests quickly, which is why she's wanting to eat so often. It's normal. Even more so with breastmilk (digests even quicker).
Just ride it out. Pretty soon, she'll be eating more, and sleeping longer.

Good luck! Keep the doctor informed!

Answer 2

You should never put cereal in a bottle... ever.

So the only way you should feed your baby cereal is with a spoon, which your daughter is MUCH too young for.

My son is 4 months old, and we are just starting to feed him a little cereal. I would have waited until 6 months, but my son is eating 6 ounces at every feeding and is still hungry sometimes. You should wait until she has doubled her birth weight, or until she is 5 or 6 months old.

Try feeding her every hour. If she still isn't satisfied, talk to your doctor.

Also, some babies just like to suck more then others do. She may not be hungry, but still wants to suck. Have you offered her a pacifier? If not, I would definitely give it a try.

Good luck!

Answer 3

NO!

Babies shouldn't have any solids - including cereals - until they are closer to 6 months of age. They don't have the enzymes needed to properly digest anything other than breastmilk or formula prior to the middle of the first year. Starting solids earlier can increase the risk that she will develop allergies, diabetes or obesity later in life.

NO SOLIDS.....NO CEREAL.....especially for a baby so young that you're still measuring her age in days!

She eat frequently because she is a tiny young baby. Her tummy is only the size of her little fist. She is growing extremely fast.....trying to double birthweight by 6 mos of age. She needs frequent feeds to grow. She is also going through a lot of growth spurts very close together at this age. Feed her more often or feed her more breastmilk/formula but DO NOT start her on solids!

Answer 4

No,babies have growth spurts commonly at 2 weeks and then at frequent intervals in the first six months.If she really acts hungry give her an ounce more and she may be satisfied and go longer stretches between feeds but if not she calls the shots as she knows what her body needs.Dont even attempt any cereal or food until she is 4-6 months old.Older family members and generations will tell you their stories of how it helped their babies sleep longer and made life easier....ignore them...they have also proven that starting babies to early on food increases their obesity as older kids.

Answer 5

NO, you should not start infant cereal until your baby is at least 4 months old.

The reason your baby is eating that much that often is because she NEEDS it. Breastmilk and infant formula has nutrients that aren't in infant cereal and if you add in cereal, she won't be having as much formula which means she could start lacking nutrients that she needs. She's only 11 days old...she'll start eating more and going longer between feedings soon, you just have to be patient, that's how newborns are.

The whole point of infant cereal is to start learning how to eat foods other than formula. When you add the cereal in to the formula, your not teaching them how to eat solids, your just teaching them that their bottle now satisfies them longer for some unknown reason.

Answer 6

Try a pacifier if needed but the poor thing is hungry she is so new and her tummy is very tiny. Here is a bit of advice about giving rice cereal in a bottle from Dr. Greene

It is interesting to note that children who begin solid foods with rice cereal in their bottles don't learn the instinct of stopping when they are full. This is because deceptively large amounts of calories come in without much increase in volume. As a result, kids that are fed rice cereal in a bottle tend to have excessive weight gain, both as infants and later in life. Other than that, children are very good at regulating their own intake. By starting with a spoon, resting between bites, and stopping when your child is full, you will be laying an excellent foundation for good eating habits throughout his life.

Answer 7

You should most definitely not give an 11 day old newborn cereal. Wait six months. You should never put cereal in a bottle either. It is normal for a newborn to eat that much.

Answer 8

No, that is too young. Unless she has reflux and you have the dr's permission, I would wait on the cereal until she's at least 4 months old, but preferably 6 months old. All she needs right now is her milk. Her eating pattern sounds normal for a newborn. Their tummies are really small right now, so they have to eat often.

Answer 9

Giving her cereal that young will only mess with her stomach, she's way too young to digest it. Just give her breastmilk/formula until shes at least 4 months. Sounds like she is going through a growth spurt, when they are in a growth spurt, they'll be hungry all the time.

Answer 10

Your pediatrician is the BEST person who could answer this question...these days they don't recommend cereal until they are a bit older, eleven days is way too early in my opinion to start her on cereal, her belly is just getting used to things and this could create a problem down the road.