Bottle before or after solids?

Melisa - posted on 08/14/2012

my health nurse says bottle then 45 min later food my bubs is happy with that then at 9m old food them bottle mid morning mid afternoon afternoon then before bed :) ive had 4 kids so thats how i have done it :)

Rebecca - posted on 02/15/2010

Thank you everyone for your advice. At the moment i am only feeing him solids for lunch and his bottles fall at 11am so i give him his solids at 12 and he eats it all. in a couple of weeks i will introduce another meal.

Tanya - posted on 02/15/2010

I just started feeding solids yesterday (5.5 months) so still trying things out, but the first couple of times I tried breastfeeding first then offering avocado a half hour later and he wasn't really interested. The 3rd time, I offered the solids first. and he ate them right up. Now, saying this, he has only tried 3 times, so who knows what tomorrow will bring. Since I am only offering about 1/2 tbsp-1 tbsp of solids, he takes plenty of breast milk after, which is important for now.

I think you should just try and see what your baby prefers.

Diane - posted on 02/15/2010

I was feeding my 6month old daughter the baby food first but she was starting to refuse the bottle so i started cutting out the baby food until she would take the bottle and now i give her the bottle and then the baby food becase at this age breast milk/formula is very important to there groth and development more so then baby food is.

Rachael - posted on 02/15/2010

i think it depends on the baby as i've heard of it done both ways and it really just depends on how your baby prefers it. i think it generally works best if you feed them solids when they are hungry but not starving.

Kim - posted on 02/15/2010

I've been feeding him his bottles and waiting an hour or so and giving him his food. Seems to be working out pretty well- he's still getting the amount of formula that the doctor recommends. (or pretty close to it!) And he loooooooves his food! The break in between seems to give him a little time to digest and he doesn't seem to be spitting up as much. We feed him breakfast, lunch and dinner and try to feed him around the same times every day.

Tiffany - posted on 02/15/2010

Always milk first then solids - until at least 12 months. Try and fill him up on milk first, then an hour later offer him solids.

Dionne - posted on 02/15/2010

Definitely breastfeed him first then offer solids. Solids right now is just an experience for them and not the main source of nutrition. Also, look for the readiness signs

According to La Leche League, As your baby will signal that he is ready to nurse or is feeling full, he will also signal his readiness for ingesting complementary foods. Babies are typically ready for solids when they have reached six months old, are able to sit, unsupported, have lost the tongue-thrust reflex (baby does not push foods out of his mouth with his tongue when they are offered), and can pick up things between their finger and thumb.

Why are you wanting to end breastfeeding at 6 months?

Logan - posted on 02/14/2010

each baby is different. my girl has a bottle for breakfast because by the time she is awake in the morning she is so hungry that she doesnt want to wait to get the food fed to her, she just wants to drink it down quick. as for lunch and dinner she eats her baby food and THEN has her bottle. by 6 months your child has already gotten all of the main nutrients to help their body fully. the bottle is still good cuz it helps out, but to save on money for formula or to save on all your time breastfeeding, baby food helps alot. it hold them over longer because its able to settle in the belly instead of just run right out as a liquid. what i do if she is to fussy and doesnt want her baby food is a give her a little bit of formula enough to settle her "starving-ness" haha and then feed her the baby food.

Stacey - posted on 02/14/2010

I feed my daughter solids first and then make a small bottle after and feed it to her right away..in case she is still hungry! I guess try it all and see what works best for you and your baby!

Brenda - posted on 02/13/2010

The baby needs it's fluids the most during the first year, or else dehydration happens. So start with the bottle, like a normal feeding, then give the solids. It doesn't matter if he/she eats much, this is a time for trying textures and flavours, a time of exploration. My son will be 6 months on the 19th and he eats 1/2 a small jar of organic baby food after his bottle. Sometimes not even that much. I don't worry about it, as our daughter did the same thing and she is an AWESOME eater! Really good range of tastes too! Good luck!!

Kelly - posted on 02/13/2010

Formula or breastmilk is and should be their main source of nutrition for the first 12 months. I always BF first then 1/2 to 1 hour later give a solid feed. Rice cereal in the mornings and veges mixed with rice cereal for dinner. I BF about 3pm, then veges and cereal for dinner, bath about 6pm and BF before putting Kayne to bed. I have started to introduce a small drink of water in the afternoons. He is getting all he needs and I hope this helps with your question.

Yvonne - posted on 02/13/2010

I'm going through the same thing.. I thought i was the only one who was having trouble with that!! LoL.. So far what i've been doing is feeding my son one of the fruit gerbers and juice when he wakes at 10am and then around 1 give him his bottle.. Then again around 5 or 6 (depending on how hungry he is... Cause he nurses occasional) i give him a vegetable gerber and some water.. And before he goes to sleep at around 9 pm I give him his 8 oz bottle... Does that sound about right?? Or should i be giving more formula??

Emily - posted on 02/13/2010

We haven't started solids yet, but what I plan to do (what I did with my first) is just feed solids during the family's regular meal time. Whether it's before or after nursing isn't so much a concern to me because breastmilk should still be the main part of the nutrition. Solids will just be about learning for quite awhile, not really a "meal."

Elizabeth - posted on 02/13/2010

I always do bottle first. My little guy has come to liking the taste of solids more than formula. If I feed him jar food he won't want the formula...

Kerry - posted on 02/13/2010

i start my daughter off with her solids then she dont really want her bottle until at least two hours later and shes nearly 6 months but in the morning she have her fruity porrige and her bottle at the same time.

Hannah - posted on 02/12/2010

It's recommended to give breastmilk/formula first, then 1/2 - 1 hour later offer solids. You do not want a young baby filling up on solids to the expense of their milk feed. Until 1 year of age, milk should provide most of a baby's nutrition.

Ky - posted on 02/09/2010

Until he is closer to a year old, the majority of his calories still need to come from breastmilk / formula. Give him the formula first then give him the veggies. For right now, think of solids as baby desert

Bevan - posted on 02/09/2010

I do veggie and rice cereal about 6:30p then bathe time and a full 6-8 oz bottle of breastmilk @ bedtime btwn 7:30-8. He goes to bed with a full belly and sleeps thru the nght

Jess - posted on 02/09/2010

I give my daughter her solids first because unless she is hungry she just isn't interested in eating solids ! So I give her food and then wait about an hour and give her a bottle to fill up her tummy properly. If I don't do it in that order she just screams to get out of her high chair.... but when she is happy she eats all her food and say's "Num Num" with a mouth full of potato !

Nancy - posted on 02/08/2010

I like to give her a spoon of rice cereal and then a sip off the bottle to wash it down.

Alyssa - posted on 02/08/2010

i feed my daughter solids first, then wait about half hour to a hour and give her a bottle. shes a pretty big eater, even after rice cereal she will drink about 6-8 ounces.

Allie - posted on 02/07/2010

at first with all four of my children I try giveing the food to start but that is before they start throughing a fit for food. if they are already cring away i will feed half a bottle to calm them down then I give the food. after they get used to eating off of a spoon then i just feed them the food first then after they dont want no more i follow with a bottle if they want it.

Kait - posted on 02/07/2010

i start with solids, if he doesn't seem interested or starts fussing i'll go to nursing then wait a little bit and go to solids. but otherwise i feed him as much food as he wants (about 1/2 to 3/4 a jar) and then nurse. he'll be 6 mo on the 17th so i hope that helps!

Cathy - posted on 02/07/2010

Their main source of nutrition for the first year should be from breastmilk/formula so feed with milk first then offer solids. I do find that waiting an hour or so is helpful. At this age, the solids are more to help the baby learn about eating and different textures.

Alexandria - posted on 02/01/2010

My daughter will be 6 months on Feb 9th. I am breastfeeding and began solids at the first of January. I breastfeed, wait about thirty minutes and then offer solids at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Babies at this age still need all the nutrients from your breastmilk so you should make sure they are getting there fill of milk before offering solids. As the get older and use to the solid foods this can be switched so they are eating more solids and less breastmilk, but 5 and a half months is too young.

Rebecca - posted on 02/01/2010

My older two was bottle fed, I think when it comes to bottles u better off waiting until after u feed him solids cause he won't be fulling up on the milk first. So yeah even if you do give him a bottle an hr or so before feeding him solids. Just make his feeding time the same time every day.