7 month old daily diet

Angela - posted on 07/31/2010

I've been following the Baby Whisperer's schedule as it seems logical. Solid feels are in between milk feeds and naturally evolve into breakfast lunch and dinner. It's been working well. Our day (roughly) goes:

7am..........Bottle (always 220ml/7oz)
8:30..........Solids - becomes breakfast eventually
sleep
11am........Bottle
12:30ish...Solids- becomes lunch
sleep
3pm.........Bottle

5pm.........Solids - becomes dinner
6:30pm....Bottle
7pm ish....Bath then bed
10:30pm...Bottle
My baby usually sleeps through until 6:30am

I am currently phasing the late bottle feed by reducing the amount gradually. Currently last bottle is reduced by 1/4 and hasn't effected sleep! At the same time I have increased the solids throughout the day to compensate.

I also read you can eliminate the late bottle by bringing the time forward gradually. As it gets closer to the 6:30pm feed they are less hungry so take less naturally.

Good luck. You must have your hands full with twins!

Laura - posted on 07/31/2010

ive been quite lucky with my son, from 8 weeks hes slept 8pm till 8am and doesnt wake for a bottle, i have him on 4 6ounce bottles a day and 3 "meals" he'l have a bottle when he wakes, then porridge or weetabix at around 10, hel have lunch around 1 usually banana or egg custard or toast (he has 8 teeth but doesnt use them lol) witha beaker of juice, then dinner at around 5 or 6 usually mash and mashed veg then i give him a yoghurt at bedtime with his last bottle, i just give him his bottles as i think hes looking for one during the day , id try changing your twins formula to the hungry baby one thats what i did and it worked a treat, my other kids were very fussy eaters and my duaghter whos 9 now lived on nothing but bottles yoghurts and bananas for the 1st 2 years of her life!
I wouldnt worry just try introducing a little more variety bit by bit, try offering food instead of a bottle first, if they arent interested then go ahead with the bottle?
hope this helps :)

Kerrie - posted on 07/30/2010

My little girl is 7 months and is now having 3 meals (2 tablespoons per meal) and then a breast feed. She is still having wither 5 or 6 feeds a day- and I was thinking the same thing as you... however, over the last 2 days she has dropped a feed so maybe as they get used to having their solids as a main part of the diet they will also drop their feeds on their own. Good luck- I think you are amazing handling twins don;t beat yourslef up! :)

Kelley - posted on 07/30/2010

I would start by increasing their food at their current meal times, and not worry about the bottle thing. My son eats two-three full meals of 2-3 ounces of fruit with yogurt or veggie and fruit and I let him sip out of a cup of water while he eats. Then later I'll give him a bottle usually about 6 oz. He still drinks 4-6 bottles a day and with the heat of summer you wouldn't want them to get dehydrated, so I'd let them drink all they want! Better to give them good things like formula or B.milk than sugary juice. Water in the bottle might be a good idea too, sometimes babies are just thirsty!

I also let him try things off my plate in teeny pieces, like chicken and broccoli and carrot. He loves Pho` and rice and Sopa de pollo, and many other soups. My doctor reminded me that around the world people feed their children broths and then add veggies and protein, and their babies are happy and healthy. In the middle east babies eat hummus and many spicy rices and meats. Most of the jarred foods come from an american desire for convenience. Don't feel limited by what Gerber and Nature's Best have to offer. I love asking people of other cultures what their children eat and then when we try them out, it's like he's saying "WOW! that's good mom!" or " WOW, DON'T ever do that to me again!!"

When food is fun, kids eat!

Angela - posted on 07/29/2010

Actually WHO states breast milk (or formula) is only sufficient for the first 6 months of a babies life.



"(1) for the first six months of life to achieve optimal growth, development and health(2). Thereafter, to meet their evolving nutritional requirements, infants should receive nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of age or beyond. "

WHO Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding (WHA55 A55/15, paragraph 10)



WHO recommends that



"infants start receiving complementary foods at 6 months of age in addition to breastmilk, initially 2-3 times a day between 6-8 months, increasing to 3-4 times daily between 9-11 months and 12-24 months with additional nutritious snacks offered 1-2 times per day, as desired."

WHO Guideline to Complementary Feeding



Please be careful you don't believe everything you read unless you read it from the ACTUAL documents.



Nowhere in the document is a statement that breastmilk or formula is nutritionally sufficient to 12 months. In fact its quite the opposite and there is a lot of guidelines on malnutrition of babies from 6 months.



All the best :)

Kim - posted on 07/29/2010

At this age, the WHO recommends the milk/formula is the most important source of food until they are 12 months old. All other food is an introduction However, they should only require about 800ml of milk.formula.

If its the bottle you are concerned about, start introducing milk in a cup.

Anna - posted on 07/28/2010

all the advice given is great,just gradually cut out a bottle at a time and maybe introduce water or juice's to them to replace them so they still get their drinks,each baby is different have faith in your motherly instinct you know your babies better than anyone.good luck.

Annie - posted on 07/27/2010

I just read Amy MacGregor's post and totally agree, I do the same with my 7 mo DD. This routine also worked well with my now 3YO son. Do not take them off the milk/formula too soon, it' still their main source of nourishment. Good Luck Mama!

Emma - posted on 07/26/2010

also i wouldnt try giving them food first thing as some babies can be grouchy first thing in morning as they are too hungry to take some solid food and all they may want is a nice bottle!lol! wait until they are in good moods to try the solids!

Emma - posted on 07/26/2010

try to gradually cut one bottle out may be down to 5 or 4, my twins sleep 12 hrs at night 6 til 6 and have
bottle of milk at 6am 8oz
9am baby porrridge and drink of cooled boiled water
12 noon 8oz bottle of milk
3pm baby jar or some of my food with some cooled boiled water
6pm 8oz bottle of milk
luckily my twins just cut the night bottle out by themselves so i am sure your 2 will get there pretty soon! then i just cut there mid morning bottle out and gave them some solid food and also then cut there mid afternoon bottle out but you just need to do it gradually by giving them 1 meal a day to start with and cutting a bottle out! eventually they should be down to 3 or 4 bottles in a 24 hr period, good luck!

Kelly - posted on 07/26/2010

My daughter will be 7 months old tomorrow. She currently takes 4 6oz. bottles a day, and 3 solid meals plus snacks. When she wakes up around 7 she gets a bottle, then around 9 she gets cereal with a fruit. Lunch she gets a vegetable or yogurt. DInner she gets a meat/veggie dinner and desert. Throughout the day she snacks on teething cookies and gerber puffs and wagon wheels. She also gets one 8 oz bottle of juice throughout the day

Valerie - posted on 07/25/2010

I have been trying to give my son less formula throughout the day. Typically when I'm home and not working, I'll give him a jar of fruit baby food and then 4 oz of formula. (around 7:30am) He still gets hungry about every 2-3 hours so then I'll give him 7 oz of formula after a couple of hours and he'll usually take a nap. Once he wakes up around lunch time, I'll give him a jar of veggies and also a jar of fruit and he'll drink water out of his sippy cup throughout. (he loves using it!) The next meal will typically be just 7 oz of formula. Then in a few hours, I'll give him a jar of food either meats or whichever I grab and 4 oz of formula. Before bed I'll make a 7 oz bottle of formula but sometimes he'll only eat an ounce or two before falling asleep. (around 9:00pm)

Amy - posted on 07/25/2010

7 month olds are supposed to have 3 meals and 3 7oz feeds a day. it is suggested you give them breakfast when they wake, ie cereal and fruit. a milk feed mid morning. lunch, another milk feed mid afternoon, dinner and then a milk feed before bed.

I find this works perfectly with my son with him never going hungry, meaning i dont need to fill him on snacks.

Babies of 7 months still need to have about 18-21oz of milk in a 24 hour period to ensure they are getting enough iron and vitamins.

Chelsey - posted on 07/24/2010

My Daughter will be 7 months on the 28th, and she has been getting 3 solid meals a day for a month now, She has also been getting 3 snacks, through out the day. I try to save her bottles for bed time, one at around 8 or 9 when she goes down, a water bottle when she wakes at 330am and another formula bottle around 7am. She has been doing great with this, she would rather have the food than the bottle. Just take it one meal at a time for like a week. Week one cut out a bottle and give breakfast. Week 2 cut out another bottle and give lunch and so on until you can cut out all but bedtime and early morning bottles. Those will Phase out on her own. Also, My Pediatrician suggested that I start weaning my Daughter off the bottle at 6 months and start trying to give her Juice and Water in a Sippy Cup, as It seems to be easier to get them off the bottle before they get too use to it. A month later she gets her sippy cup through out the day. and Only at bed time does she get a bottle.

Angela - posted on 07/16/2010

Hi there,



I had similar thoughts with my 7 month old and talked to my Plunket nurse. She was great and offered heaps of advice so I hope this helps.



In NZ we call this stage 2 in starting solids - which basically means to aim for 3 meals a day by the end of 7 months.



So ... She told me (at the new meal time) to offer the milk (formula or breast) feed first and then introduce a tablespoon of solids after the milk working up to around 1/2 of a cup.



So our day goes kinda like this... :)



Breakfast - milk then cereal and fruit

Lunch - milk then veges and toast

3.30ish - snack - milk, toast fingers or baby yoghurt

Dinner - ours is late at about 6.30 - meat/fish and veges

Bed - 7.30 milk feed



Around 8 months (as a guide) we change to offering the solids first before the milk (formula or breast) and offer more water as well.



She told me to remember that you are the best to judge your children's appetite so let them lead you in adding additional meals.



Here is the Plunket NZ website link if you are interested :)

http://www.plunket.org.nz/your-child/up-...



Also the Watties For Baby website is great for info on the stages and the importance of good nutrition.



http://www.forbaby.co.nz/index.php?ageGr...



I found these websites really helpful (and no i'm not a shareholder ha ha)



I really hope this helps in your adventure with twins!



All the best xx

Jessica - posted on 07/16/2010

well im a first time mum and my son is 7 months he is drinking formula still but i always give him breakfast and mostly snacks in the afternoon but along with his evening bottle he has a full supper. latley he has been having some of my toast with me in the mornings and in the evening if he is still hungry but not bottle time for bed i give him banana in a mesh feeder. i think what your doing is fine just go with the flow, most babys are to be breast feed or formula fed for a year and only starting solids at 6 months. i started at 4 months so i feel like we are progressing just fine and you sound the same also:)