When to start baby on CEREAL / rice ??

Martha - posted on 03/25/2010

Some babies are born with teeth. lol
Its different for every baby. My friends baby had 2 teeth by 3 12 mos and 4 by 5 mos, my daughter had 2 at 6mos and didnt get her top ones until 12mos. As long as she isn't in extreme pain, there really isn't anything to worry about. if she seems uncomfortable ask your pedi if theres anything you should do. :)

Tamara - posted on 03/25/2010

THANKS LADIES!!
She is not EVEN (but almost) three months and alredy has teeth coming in..is that normal?!

Martha - posted on 03/25/2010

agreed. No solids until 6mos. Baby cereal is junk that will probably cause more problems than anything. Like constipation and it also blocks the natural (better) iron thats in your breast milk from being absorbed. Its kinda gross. And you should never NEVER give solids in a bottle. Its a serious choking hazard. We never did baby cereal. We never did jarred baby food. I started out with lightly smashed avocado. And until this day it's still my daughters favorite :)
ALSO when you do start solids ALWAYS nurse before you give solids so that the baby does not fill up on solids. They need your milk for nutrition until a year old and you have to make sure they get breast milk over anything.

LaLasha - posted on 03/25/2010

6 months from what I have read and what my doctors told me I just waited until 6 months and I didn't feed just the rice cereal I did the buckwheat/whole grain baby cereals, malto meal and cream of wheat but anyway I would mix in no added sugar apple sauce mashed bananas pear puree ect to make it yummier and start the day off right with a serving or fruit I also made my own baby purees I didn't buy the jar stuff my youngest child wouldn't even eat it the one time I did have to give her some store bought.

Jennifer - posted on 03/25/2010

The current AAP recommendation is to start solids at 6 months. When you do start, they should be offered on a spoon.
Rice cereal is a traditional 1st food but does not have to be. My daughter's 1st food was sweet potatoes and she loved them.
If you do decide to start with cereal any brand will do.

Hannah - posted on 03/25/2010

I agree with Sara. I started my daughter on solids at about 7 months old. I skipped cereal and went straight to veggies. Her first foods were avocado, hummus, and squash. The only time I ever used infant cereal was to thicken her pureed foods if they got too watery.

Three months is quite young to start a baby on food, so I would say to stick with breastfeeding, and wait for the readiness signs as Sara has stated below. Good luck!

*Fluffy Bunnies - posted on 03/25/2010

Honestly, I would skip rice cereal all together. It's nutritionally void and tends to cause constipation. If you do feed cereal always feed it from a spoon, not in a bottle. Go by signs of readiness when starting solids instead of age. The signs of readiness include:

-at least 6 months old

-sitting up unsupported

-lost tongue thrust reflex (doesn't push food back out)

-developed pincer grasp (can pick up food between thumb and finger)

-shows interest in food

-doesn't seem satisfied with just breastmilk (not related to a gowth spurt, illness or teething).



My daughter wasn't ready until about 8 months. Good first foods are avocados, bananas and sweet potatoes.

Here's tons of info on solids:

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids...