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When Can I Start My Infant On Rice Cereal?

My baby girl is 3 weeks old and she takes about 4 ounces of formula, but she seems to be hungry again for more in less than an hour. When can I putting in her bottle, or giving her jar food?

14 Comments

  • Sep 9th 201000:09
    by mystic_e

    Yes of course the solution to overfeeding is to give more food, that makes sense.
    Hope your goal is diabetes.http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids…
    In both studies, introduction of rice or gluten-containing cereals before 3 months of age increased baby’s risk for type I diabetes.http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/fit18.asp
    Starting foods too early can result in digestive or allergy problems later in life. We have learned that the old guidelines of 4 months are just too soon, and I am willing to bet that in ten years we will be recommending later than 6 months.http://www.drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&a…
    I’m much more concerned about a subtler issue. Babies are born with a wonderful mechanism for knowing how much food they need. During the early months, they take their cues from the volume of what they drink. Adding cereal derails this mechanism. It forces them to take in deceptively large amounts of calories. It teaches them to overeat.
    By starting with a spoon, resting between bites, and stopping when your child lets you know he’s full, you will be laying an excellent foundation for good eating habits throughout his life.
    A major study looking for the causes of obesity found that short-circuiting young children’s self-regulation of how much they eat is a major cause of later obesity.1 Cereal in the bottle does just that.
    Babies that are fed this way may appear to be unaffected – but those few weeks of added convenience may result in a lifetime of struggles with weight. This common practice may have contributed to our being the most obese generation in history.http://www.babycareadvice.com/babycare/g…
    For many babies the urge to suck is strong during these early months and your baby’s need to suck may extend beyond his need for nourishment. For a bottle fed baby there is an increased risk of overfeeding if his sucking urge is misinterpreted as a sign of hungerhttp://www.babycareadvice.com/babycare/g…
    Overfeeding is a common problem for bottle fed babies because many young babies cannot control the flow of milk though an artificial nipple and/or cannot indicate when they have had enough. A baby’s digestive system can become overloaded when it receives excessive amounts of milk from large volume feeds or frequent feeding patterns. The larger the volume of milk, the quicker it passes through the digestive tract. Large volumes of milk may pass through a baby’s small intestine too quickly for all of the lactose to be digested.http://ncane.com/vo5
    It is easy for a new parent to say that they won’t break these feeding rules; however, the reality is that the temptation to quickly quiet a crying baby in the middle of the night so that the parents can garner more sleep can overcome even the most diligent of parents. Even with the determination to never do it again, parents may turn to that late night bottle more and more simply because it works and allows the parent to go back to bed quicker. During the day when the parent may be too busy to take time out to calm the infant, the parent may give the infant a bottle, figuring that the child is hungry. To some, food is the quickest and easiest solution to quiet tears and screams.
    While the effects may not show right away, they can have an effect on the infant later on in life. Children who are overfed as infants have a greater chance of becoming obese as teenagers and adults. With the rising rate of obesity in children on the rise, it is best to try and curb this possibility when the child is very young. By prolonging the introduction of solids or any foods beyond formula until about six months, the parents have the best chance at keeping their child off the obese path at a young age. After the child is eating solids, it is best to keep away sugary foods. Young children do not need these empty calories as a part of their daily nutritional intake. Obesity, however, is the main concern for the future of the infant. Overfeeding can cause the infant to rely on food more constantly than the average child, thus increasing his or her food intake. If unnecessary, sugary foods are added to an infant’s diet, this too can add to the obesity factor.http://www.drspock.com/faq/0,1511,3764,0…
    ANSWER
    August 3, 2001
    Dear Dad,
    Yes, it is possible to overfeed a four-week-old infant since it’s easy to misinterpret a baby’s hunger and satiety (fullness) signals. When full, babies will stop sucking, turn their heads or push the nipple out of their mouths as a signal. Babies who are overfed often are uncomfortable and irritable. More importantly, they sometimes loose the ability to recognize when they are hungry. Parents will want to start out from the beginning to allow their baby to signal hunger and have it responded to appropriately.http://www.lpch.org/HealthLibrary/Parent…
    # The maximal amount of formula recommended per day is 32 ounces (1 liter).
    # Overfeeding can cause vomiting, diarrhea or excessive weight gain.
    [...]
    # The average amount of formula (in ounces) that babies take per feeding usually equals the baby’s weight (in pounds) divided in half (or equal to the weight in kg).
    # The average ounces of formula the baby takes in 24 hours is the baby’s weight in pounds multiplied by 2 (or kg multiplied by 4).
    # A baby’s appetite varies throughout the day. If the infant stops feeding or loses interest, the feeding should be stopped.http://www.clevelandclinic.org/health/he…
    Both Drs. Rome and Rogers say nature and nurture are driving the childhood obesity epidemic. If parents are obese, the chances of their children becoming obese are about 90 percent, says Dr. Rogers. Not only is the genetic potential greater, children are more likely to be raised in an environment that contributes to obesity. For instance, overfeeding is a problem. The practice often begins in infancy when parents (and grandparents), out of love or ignorance, overfeed with formula, fruit juice and baby food.
    Dr. Rome believes that even if parents are obese, they can help prevent their kids from becoming similarly endowed if intervention begins early. For instance with newborns and babies, parents should learn through trial and error to discern between cries that signal hunger versus those that signal discomfort (e.g., from wet diapers).
    Parents should consult with a pediatrician to make sure infants receive proper portions of formula and at appropriate intervals, because unlike with breastfeeding, babies do not self regulate intake of formula. Once they are off breast milk or formula, children should drink whole milk until age 2; after that, they can switch to 2 percent milk. Fruit juice, which is notorious for high caloric counts, should be restricted to four ounces a day in a baby and less than 12 ounces from toddlerhood through age 5.

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by Ginger

    DO NOT PUT CEREAL IN A BOTTLE!!!!!!
    I’ve started both my kids on rice cereal when they were 4 months old. A lot of people seem to have a problem with that. Whatever.
    For now, you are just gonna have to feed her more often. Her little belly wouldn’t be able to process solids anyway. And you may do more harm to her in the long run.
    My baby was eating (breast fed) every hour! Until I started her on cereal.

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by cathrl69

    At six months old you can start giving her cereal on a spoon. You never put cereal in a bottle unless she needs her bottle thickened for severe reflux and it is prescribed by a doctor. Give her rice cereal now and you massively increase her chances of becoming obese or developing diabetes or severe allergies.
    If she seems to want to suck all the time, give her a dummy.
    I know this sounds blunt, but your little baby is FAR too young for solids and you can damage her severely by encouraging her to eat them.

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by Katie Odom

    My baby girl is 3 weeks old and she takes about 4 ounces of formula, but she seems to be hungry again for more in less than an hour. When can I start putting cereal in her bottle, or giving her jar food?

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by *~*JoJo*

    are you kidding me? she is only 3 weeks old. most Dr’s wont let you start cereal till about 4 to 5 mo and baby food until around 5 1/2 to 6 mo. if she is getting hungry a hr after she is feeding then chances are she is not satisfied with 4 oz. make her a 6 oz bottle and she how she does. chances are its time to up her feedings. by the time she is about 6-7 weeks old she should be taking a full 7 to 8 oz. at least my kids did.

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by Nikki

    Your baby is too young, just give her more formula.
    No jar food or cereal till at least 5-6 months.

  • Sep 9th 201001:09
    by Noah's Mommy & Ava due 9/11

    Solid food should only be started at 6 months, with 4 months being the absolute earliest.
    It should NEVER go into their bottle(unless recommended by a doctor for reflux), though. It can lead to digestive issues as well as choking hazards and early allergies. If your baby cannot eat it from a spoon then they are not ready for it. Simple as that.
    Give her more formula at this point, nothing more. If she needs more than 4 oz., so be it.

  • Sep 9th 201002:09
    by Tracy M

    Never give rice cereal in a bottle. Rice is a solid food. It belongs in a bowl and on a spoon.
    Babies are biologically engineered to digest only breastmilk. They don’t develop the enzymes needed to properly/easily digest anything else until they are about 6 months old. The current recommendations are to give nothing other than breastmilk (or formula) until the baby is 6 months old.
    Your baby will still have a tongue thrust reflex. This is an important survival reflex for a reason. Trust biology.
    Rice cereal is basically overprocessed junk food; it’s an environmental nightmare, poorly digested, and a possible cause of carb addiction. Babies who start rice cereal are at high risk for diabetes and allergies.
    If you wait till your baby can sit up on their own, loses the tongue thrust, and is six months, you can start with adult food—you don’t need to buy one single jar of ‘baby’ food. Mash up whatever you’re eating. But you have a LONG time to wait.
    Also, make sure you aren’t mis-reading your baby’s cues. She may just need more sucking, which is another survival instinct. I have no idea how much formula is ‘normal’ to feed a 3 week old, because it’s actually not the normal way to feed babies, but first try another soothing method for a bit, then try more formula. Not rice.

  • Sep 9th 201003:09
    by Mommy of two beautiful ♂

    Are u crazy? she’s only 3 weeks, if shes hungry more add more formula… You need to talk to her doctors anything before you give it to her.

  • Sep 9th 201003:09
    by AP Mommy

    The closer to 6 months the better. Your 3 week old’s digestive system isn’t mature enough to handle solids yet. Adding cereal to baby’s bottle or any other way could cause you more problems than good.
    4 ounces for a 3 week old seems like an awful lot. It could be that she just needs some sucking comfort. Have you tried a pacifier?
    Between birth and six months of age your baby will need an average of 2 to 2.5 ounces of formula per pound per day. So, if your baby weighs ten pounds, she will need 20 to 25 ounces per day.
    Newborns may take only an ounce or two at each feeding
    One to two months: 3 to 4 ounces per feeding
    Two to six months: 4 to 6 ounces per feeding
    Six months to a year: as much as 8 ounces at a feeding

  • Sep 9th 201004:09
    by Love my baby boy!

    4-6 months…..give her more formula in a feeding, or just feed her more often. Also, she may be going through a growth spurt right about now, so she’ll be eating more. Also, I dont think you should ever put cereal in their bottles.

  • Sep 9th 201005:09
    by froggy

    Babies shouldn’t have solid food (cereal, jar food, etc.) until they are four to six months old. If your baby is hungry, feed her more frequently, or increase the amount of formula you feed her at her feedings. She’s way too young for solids. Her digestive system can’t handle it yet.

  • Sep 9th 201005:09
    by Laura B

    give her more formula if she seems hungry still…no solids until at least 4 months!

  • Sep 9th 201006:09
    by Sarah H

    You really should talk to her doctor before you change anything. Feeding cereal before the age of 6 months generally isn’t the best idea. Their gastrointestinal system cannot process it properly and studies have shown that children who were fed cereals before the age of 6 months have an increased risk of developing diabetes later in life.

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