Can feeding your baby cereal out of a bottle make her gain weight faster?

Question

I started feeding my child baby cereal out of a bottle when she was about 2 months old. I was just wondering if that could have made her gain weight too fast? because my daughter is 4 and weighs 55lbs.

Answer 1

It can make her gain weight faster but they ( doctors) don't recommend it b/c it doesn't teach them how to "eat" the cereal ie chewing and swallowing and using their tongues. They say it will just make them fat. I just waited until my son was 4 months old then I introduced cereal. He's gaining weight just fine. I hope this helps and I didn't offend.  

Answer 2

2 months old should only be having milk - maybe around 4 months you can introduce the cereal.  Did you do this with your 4 year old.  Dont let history repeat itself

Answer 3

Yes.  Giving babies cereal through a bottle/infant feeder actually promotes obesity.   Here's an outtake from Dr. Greene

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. 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.

And it doesn’t even work. Scientists at the Cleveland Clinic studied the effect of cereal on sleep and found that adding the cereal did nothing at all to speed up the age of sleeping through the night. That first uninterrupted 6-hour stretch of sleep came no earlier in those who took cereal early.

People swear otherwise. I suspect the reason is that kids do fall asleep a bit more quickly, and some babies may even go a bit longer between feedings. There is no scientific evidence, though, to support the claim that cereal in the bottle will help an infant increase total sleep or decrease crying.

Drawing on the wisdom of experience and the latest scientific knowledge, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends against adding cereal to the bottle. It may be tempting after your 16th straight sleep-deprived night to cut a bigger hole in the feeding nipple to add rice cereal. But it won’t offer lasting help, and it may be giving your baby a lasting gift that both of you will regret.  

Answer 4

Yes most deff they will gain more weight that way, it is unusual to start feeding a baby cereal that young unless they have reflex or low birth weight.  Now, is that the reason she is over weight at age 4, prob. not.  I would ask you doc though because my 7 yr old son weighs close to that.  It could be genetics, her diet, or a medical reason, but whatever it is it needs to be addressed.  Don't stress about what you fed her as a baby, just think about helping her make good food choices now.

Answer 5

What is she eating nowadays??  

Answer 6

It's more likely what she's eating now that has brought her to that weight.  Does she eat well-rounded meals?  By this I mean meals that include veggies and fruit?  Are you feeding lowfat foods and staying away from a lot of sweets?  How often does she snack?  Does she drink fat free milk instead of chocolate whole milk?  Those are the kind of things that effect how much she weighs.

You might want to discuss diet with her pediatrician at her annual physical.  

Another thing to keep in mind... my kids always got more active and ate less around 4 years of age.  Therefore, they both actual thinned out a little around that time.  She may do the same.

Whatever you do, don't make her feel bad or embarrassed for weighing so much.  That can cause major issues to last a lifetime.  Make changes to her diet that are subtle.  Don't call her fat or chubby.

Good luck!!

P.S. You can't go back and change what you did with your daughter when she was only 2 months old... just focus on the 'now'... and don't beat yourself up over what these people say.  A lot of them like to be judgemental - don't feel guilty for anything.  Just be a good mom and help your daughter to get where she needs to be.

Answer 7

Studies indicate that yes it does have a connection to weight gain, I never understood why people feed babies cereal in a bottle. I'm not trying to be mean or rude, I am genuinely wondering. My kids drank their formula out of a bottle and it just never made much sense to me to have them eat cereal out of a bottle. I fed them the cereal so they could get texture and learn how to eat. The only other thing other than formula they drank from a bottle was water, during the humid summer days.

Answer 8

if you use to much to often and i do believe that 2mons is to early for baby cereal

Answer 9

Yes. Did your pediatrician recommend that? Terrible......

Answer 10

a 2months old baby should only take milk and no solid or any cereal at all... u should only start to intro solid to ur baby at 4months or even 6months if ur breastfeeding ur baby!