almoste five month's and wondering about rice cereal

Mel - posted on 06/20/2009

it may be because alot of babies will not rice cereal because it tastes terrible i started mine at 3 months on pureed fruits and vegies so maybe you could try that. our daughter has a dietitian and she never mentioned anything about starting on rice cereal

Saima - posted on 06/20/2009

try putting him on the hungrier baby formulas? keep to the same brand your using though..

Melissa - posted on 06/20/2009

well he took a bad allergic reaction to his reg. formula so now i have him on soy infalac...of course with the advice of my dr. he is wicked active so he burns it off more than other babies

Alana - posted on 06/20/2009

What I did was my son was put milk in his bottle. It will get them use to it. Then when they get use to it then start giving him whole cereal. also if you get those little gerbers fruit, and mix that with the cereal i find they eat it better because it has flavor :)

Katie - posted on 06/20/2009

Have you tried a formula made for under weight babies? I give my son Similac Neosure its made for babies that are preemies and under weight, you would want to talk to your dr. before switching to it though.

Amber - posted on 06/20/2009

does he spit up alot afterwards or anything like that?

Melissa - posted on 06/20/2009

i actually tried to feed him more often and he seems to drink less this way,
( like ill feed him his 9oz bottle and then 3 hours later ill try again then he'll drink only like half a bottle so then he's hungry again in like 2 hrs but since he ate two hours ago he will only eat like 3-4oz) he's a bit under weight but will still consume like 9oz usually i will make another bottle with a couple oz in it

Amber - posted on 06/20/2009

Quoting Tamara:

Quoting Stevie:

keep on trying maybe try oatmeal or something or maybe try for a little while by putting it in a bottle until he gets use to haveing something like that or you could feed half the time bottle and then the other half spoon that might help him get use to having a different way to eat

You NEVER EVER EVER EVER put rice cereal in a bottle unless at the direct instruction of a specialist for a reflux or GI issue.  Its DANGEROUS to do so otherwise.  At almost 5 months, the OP's baby is still too young to take solid food.  It is best to wait until a minimum of 6 months of age.

This is true my daughter has acid reflux is why they said to start the cereal so early and she also has promblems with weight gain is why shes started everything earlier then normal. She also took to the spoon the first time so i have no advice for getting them used to spoon feeding. Maybe feed him in shorter time increments.

Amber - posted on 06/20/2009

Quoting Tamara:

Quoting Stevie:

keep on trying maybe try oatmeal or something or maybe try for a little while by putting it in a bottle until he gets use to haveing something like that or you could feed half the time bottle and then the other half spoon that might help him get use to having a different way to eat

You NEVER EVER EVER EVER put rice cereal in a bottle unless at the direct instruction of a specialist for a reflux or GI issue.  Its DANGEROUS to do so otherwise.  At almost 5 months, the OP's baby is still too young to take solid food.  It is best to wait until a minimum of 6 months of age.

This is true my daughter has acid reflux is why they said to start the cereal so early and she also has promblems with weight gain is why shes started everything earlier then normal. She also took to the spoon the first time so i have no advice for getting them used to spoon feeding. Maybe feed him in shorter time increments.

Amber - posted on 06/20/2009

Quoting Tamara:

Quoting Stevie:

keep on trying maybe try oatmeal or something or maybe try for a little while by putting it in a bottle until he gets use to haveing something like that or you could feed half the time bottle and then the other half spoon that might help him get use to having a different way to eat

You NEVER EVER EVER EVER put rice cereal in a bottle unless at the direct instruction of a specialist for a reflux or GI issue.  Its DANGEROUS to do so otherwise.  At almost 5 months, the OP's baby is still too young to take solid food.  It is best to wait until a minimum of 6 months of age.

This is true my daughter has acid reflux is why they said to start the cereal so early and she also has promblems with weight gain is why shes started everything earlier then normal. She also took to the spoon the first time so i have no advice for getting them used to spoon feeding. Maybe feed him in shorter time increments.

Katie - posted on 06/20/2009

My little one was the same way, he just wasn't used to the texture of it, you just have to keep trying maybe just once a day but don't force him or he will be really reluctant to want to take it at all, also it takes time for a bay to get the reflex needed to eat from a spoon they have to learn to pull their bottom lip he just might not be ready, but your ok to try your not too early my Dr. told me to start to introduce single grain rice cereal at 4 months if I wanted and then veggies at 6 months then fruits when they get used to the veggies, but formula or breast milk should be his main source of nutrition.

Melissa - posted on 06/20/2009

well my doc said once he is eating a full bottle and wants more it's okay to give him some rice cereal but im thinking he's just not ready, and im not forcing him to eat or tricking him once it was apparent he wasn't swallowing i gave up

Tamara - posted on 06/20/2009

Quoting Stevie:

keep on trying maybe try oatmeal or something or maybe try for a little while by putting it in a bottle until he gets use to haveing something like that or you could feed half the time bottle and then the other half spoon that might help him get use to having a different way to eat

You NEVER EVER EVER EVER put rice cereal in a bottle unless at the direct instruction of a specialist for a reflux or GI issue.  Its DANGEROUS to do so otherwise.  At almost 5 months, the OP's baby is still too young to take solid food.  It is best to wait until a minimum of 6 months of age.

Kate - posted on 06/20/2009

Many doctors are NOT aware of current infant feeding research and guidelines, so that may not be your best answer. You should never put cereal in bottles because it forces babies to eat it. It also will not really "solve" any problems you are having -- night waking, reflux, etc. Little babies need to eat frequently and you shouldn't mess with that.

Keep giving your son the milk, and consider maybe an extra bottle or two. Like, if he's eating every 4 hours, try giving him a bottle after just 2 - 3 hours to see if he wants it. Or, at 5 months, you could try offering him a drink of water in a cup to see if he is thirsty, especially if it's hot where you are. But you should NEVER trick or force a baby into eating.

Stevie - posted on 06/20/2009

keep on trying maybe try oatmeal or something or maybe try for a little while by putting it in a bottle until he gets use to haveing something like that or you could feed half the time bottle and then the other half spoon that might help him get use to having a different way to eat

Amber - posted on 06/20/2009

my doctor had me put plain rice cereal in her bottles at 2 months a tsp per ounce and she started spoon feeding cereal at 3 months, and they said to start her on baby food at 4 months like peas. So have you asked your pediatrician?

Tamara - posted on 06/20/2009

Quoting Melissa:

well he still drinks his bottles (9oz) and wants more after the bottle so i thought if i gave him some rice ceareal he would be more satisfied...he seems to be hungry but wont open his mouth for it and when i get him to smile and put the spoon in he makes a horrid face and spits it back out..is it safe to give him other thing than rice cearal?

Only formula at this time.  6 months is the MINIMUM age that a child should be given solid foods.  Right now, just keep giving him more formula.

Kate - posted on 06/20/2009

He doesn't need it yet. If he won't eat, then he isn't ready. One sign of readiness is being interested and eager to eat food. Also, when he IS ready -- try soft, mashed banana or avocado. Babies do not need cereals, our diet as Americans is way too grain-heavy already. By giving cereal first you are setting up a reliance on grains, plus most babies don't have the enzymes to properly digest the grain until age 18 mo. Better to start with ripe, fresh fruit instead.

Melissa - posted on 06/20/2009

well he still drinks his bottles (9oz) and wants more after the bottle so i thought if i gave him some rice ceareal he would be more satisfied...he seems to be hungry but wont open his mouth for it and when i get him to smile and put the spoon in he makes a horrid face and spits it back out..is it safe to give him other thing than rice cearal?

Tamara - posted on 06/20/2009

He's not ready for it since he's refusing to open his mouth for it. I'd simply wait until he is 6 months and than try with some nice soft finger foods.

Shereen - posted on 06/20/2009

keep trying...he will get the hang of it soon! have you tried other solids during the day? what do u mean he's not satisfied? Formula should still be his main source of nutrition at this age