Questions about cereal and baby food

Question

Ok My daughter is 4 months old and her doctor gave me the okay to start cereal. Before anyone says anything about NO WAIT TIL 6 MONTHS.....she has to have the cereal now because while i was pregnant she stopped growing and now she has decreased in growing so he said we have to get her weight up. ok and anyways I started the cereal 3 days ago and I have been giving it at dinner only thats what the ped. told me to do but I was wondering about how much of that she should eat. I usually make 4 teaspoons but after I had formula to it its more and she is eating it all up....should i let her eat as much of it as she wants? and am I suppost to give her a bottle with cereal at dinner time or ? I have been giving her an ounce of bottle then cereal then another ounce of bottle and I do that to just see if she is full or not.....is this ok? also he said after she does good on cereal for 2 weeks to start baby food (so far she is doing really good on cereal) but once I start baby food do I do the same thing as far as letting her eat as much as she wants? and once I start the baby food do I still only give her to her for dinner

Answer 1

I am very puzzled by your doctor's advice.  I don't understand why he wants you to start cereal so young.  Babies gain weight at different rates. If she's eating all she wants, (of breastmilk or formula) then she is gaining at the rate SHE is supposed to gain -- and replacing milk (which has lots of calories and fat) with starch isn't' going to solve anything.  And if she is gaining slowly because she isn't eating enough, then better to offer more milk. (Try putting another couple of ounces in each bottle. If she won't eat more, try offering more often.)

But ... if you are going to give solids ... offer her usual bottles at the usual times. Let her take as much milk as she wants.  Then, AFTER her bottle, once or twice a day, offer some cereal or babyfood and let her eat as much of that as she wants. That way  you are sure that she's getting ample milk and not filling up on useless starch or low calorie fruits and veggies.

When you add fruits and veggies you can offer at dinner only, or at breakfast, or any other time that's convenient for you.  

Answer 2

Let her eat as much as she wants.  She will let you know when she's full.

Answer 3

if your child was loosing weight i would say let her eat!  my daughter was drinking too much formula so she started early on cereal, i mixed it with formula so it was nutritious, and she ate it up! as long as she is still breast feeding or bottle feeding then it is ok.  your doc told you to dont worry about any one telling you otherwise.  i made my own baby food and it was way less expensive and more healthy (in my opinion).  you can try twice a day once you start baby food unless your doc told you not to.  good luck!

Answer 4

try not to over feed her. their tummys are not that big and a tablespoon of cereal mixed with milk and a bottle should be enough for her. if she is eating lots at just supper, then why not giver her some in the morning and supper, that will help get her weight up and its not gonna hurt her especiall if she is eating alot at supper. You could also mix a little fruit in with it along with the milk...

Answer 5

First, there is no problem in giving her cereal at 4 months. I did with all of my kids. You don't want to let her eat as much as she wants or she will get fat. A couple of teaspoons is good to start and I would follow it with a bottle of formula. I would also give her some at lunch time, but only about half of the amount and also follow with formula. she may cut down on the amount of formula that she drinks but at least this way, she will stop drinking when she is full and you will know that you are not overfeeding her. When you start the baby food, I would do the same thing as well. To start with she will probably only eat a few tablespoons and gradually eat more.  

Answer 6

Keep following your peds advice.  I started my daughter on cereal at 4 1/2 mos once the doc gave the OK.  She is now 5 1/2 mos and eating cereal and fruit/veggie once per day.  Because I am choosing to make my own baby food I got the book Super Baby Foods.  At 6 months, babies typically get two servings of solids along with their normal formula/breastmilk intake.  Good first foods would be banana, avocado or sweet potato.  The banana and avocoado you can mash and add on your own, the sweet potato needs to be cooked and mashed first.  I would suggest adding one of these things to the cereal.  If weight is an issue, I would think your doc will be keeping an eye on weight gain.  If you are worried, I would give the doc a call.  Just know that you know your baby better than anyone else and you are doing the best thing for her.  Good luck!

Answer 7

I just recently took my daughter for her 4 month appointment and the Pediatrician asked me if i was giving her anything besides her formula and i was honest and told him i have been giving her some cereal for about a month and a half. So he said if she was doing good with that then we can start her on veggies. She was eating 6 ounces of formula. I cut that down to about 4.5 or 5 ounces and then in the morning with her bottle i feed her 3 or 4 teaspoons of cereal and then give her the rest of her bottle. if she doesnt finish it then thats ok. then i just feed her the formula throughout the day and then at night i feed her half a jar of green beans and then her bottle. and if she doesnt eat it all then thats fine. so if this is something you think could work for you then you should try it.  

Answer 8

I know lots of people who give cereal at 4 months..some because their children are underweight, some because they eat too much formula. Give your child as much as they want to eat. As long as they are not throwing up after it, they are ok. An yes do the same with the baby food. You want your child to be full.

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Answer 9

i would keep doing what you're doing...keep in close contact w/ the doc so he/she can advise more or less cereal/formula...if the doc is concerned about weight, he/she should have recommended how much to add to baby's diet!!! talk to your doc

Answer 10

no problem in giving cereal to baby at 4 months. u can try making some kind of baby food at home and try giving it in afternoon and cereal at night. like i do boil rice with potato, carrot and some amount of pulses in add salt to taste after fully cook blend it and give to ur baby. u can try varrious combinations of rice and vegetables. after some time u can add butter to this food.

its ur baby no one help u as much u urself can do. so try different foods see what ur baby likes then give that one.

babies r found of yougurts and curd try this also but don't mix this with milk.

good luck.

Answer 11

give her what she wants. i started with rice and then mixed a little baby fruit in with it and my daughter went nuts. (ps my daughter couldnt get enough breast milk and i had to start cereal at 3 months so dont worry about that) if she east more then give it to her because she is under weight. the reason i mixed fruit with it is because cereal can cause constipation and fruit has the fiber to keep them regular. wait a week between each new food. good luck!