Should I add another meal?

Question

Should I start giving my 4 month old 2 meals a day.....here is the situation. I started her on cereal 1 week ago by doctors orders and I been giving it for dinner which is usually around 6pm and I was wondering if I should add in another meal maybe give her cereal for breakfast and baby food for dinner or should i stick to one meal? Im a first time mom so this is kinda hard to know what I should do. Last night was the first time in a while that she woke up wanting fed again so this is why I was thinking more food

any advice will help? well actually any advice other than saying no solids yet cuz i get that alot and I am going to continue with solids she is doing good with it and loves it

Answer 1

if your baby is happy AND your GP is happy then i dont see why not as long as she is also getting the right amount of milk as well,

i fed my first child at 4 months and pretty much played it by ear, fed him more than once a day if he seemed hungry as well as giving him milk, 4.5 years later he has turned out fine, he is a good eater and not obese

( HV keeps saying this is what will happen if i feed my baby before 6 mnths, something to do with the digestive system not being mature enough, thats the reasoning theyre giving here,  but again this time im playing it by ear, i know loads of kids who started eating at 4 months an turned out fine, so good for you and good luck on being a first time mum,

Answer 2

You really shouldn't add another meal of solids.  At this point (and up until closer to 12 months), formula or breast milk needs to be her primary source of calories.  If she starts decreasing her intake of formula or breast milk in favor of solids, she will not be meeting her nutritional needs.

Answer 3

4 months is too young for solids.

If your baby is 'ready for solids' then give her fruits and veggies; rice cereal is pointless: it dosen't offer any nutrition that isn't already found in breast milk or formula. It also causes constipation.

Answer 4

If she likes to eat it, I'd let her eat til she is full. I started giving my daughter cereal at 4 months because it helped to control her spit up reflex and she had some at lunch and some at dinner. It really helped her to gain weight.  

Answer 5

I have 3 kids. My oldest is 5 and my youngest is 10 months.  All 3 ate solid foods starting 4months told to whenever they figured out how to eat off a spoon. I never put cereal in a bottle. By age 5/6 months, they have a bottle when they woke up, about 2-3 hours later cereal with fruit (real fruit, or baby food fruit) and then another bottle a few hours later and then baby food or real food (depends on what everyone else was having) and then a bottle few hours later then dinner was baby food or real food (again depends on what everyone else was eating) and a bottle for bed.  

All 3 of my kids slept through the night from week one so I am not sure how to judge if yours is still hungry or just in a routine.  

I would feed her baby food or adult food.  Blenders and food processors work great for meat and hard foods.  I would stay away from fish, peanut butter, pork, syrup/honey and chocolate though.

My youngest loves mashed potatoes/gravy, ground up chicken or hamburger, rice, bananas, applesauce, toast (yours is still a little young for that) cheerios (again yours still a little too young).

Hope this helps!

Answer 6

My only advice would be to discuss any meal changes with your doctor BEFORE you actually do it.  He knows whats best for your daughter - not us.

Answer 7

I started my daughter on cereal at 4 months of age too!!! And our pediatrician suggested giving her 1-2 tablespoons for breakfast, and for supper. He also told me that if she wants more, to give a little bit more until she is satisfied!!!

If you feel that your baby is still hungry, its not going to hurt her by giving her a second meal in the day :-) ... just watch for constipation with cereal... sometimes that can be a problem until you introduce fruits and veggies!!!