Hello, my daughter teagan is 4 and half mo.and starting to eat less, we were feeding here every three hrs and now she wont eat every three. i try to feed her every three but she will eat an ounce and stop. she has been sleepin more, were shell eat all of her bottle like every other three, is this because we started feeding her cereal
No cereal in bottle.
She is too young.
feed on-demand... not a schedule.
The cereal is making her too full.
Leaving the cereal out of it (4 months is AWFULLY young for cereal except for certain medical conditions)...
My son would eat a TON right before a growth spurt, and then in the actual spurt itself, would barely eat at all and sleep all the time.
The age at which someone feeds babies cereal is really dependent on the baby, so don't worry about that. Is she pulling at her ears at all? Babies with ear infections won't want to suck on a bottle because it hurts, but then they will HAVE to eat sometimes because they're so darn hungry. I recommend having her ears checked. Good luck!
The feedings grow further apart as they age.
Personally speaking, I prefer to feed on demand (i.e., when the child shows signs of hunger). It is not a completely 'free' method because babies develop patterns, but it allows babies to eat when they are hungry.
You didn't ask this, but I think she is too young for cereal. Even a couple of years ago, they suggested it at 4 months, but now they are recommending you wait until closer to 6 months because of increased concerns that babies delicate tummies cannot handle it and also because there are studies linking earlier feeding of 'food' with increased obesity. technically, all a baby's nutritional needs can be met with breastmilk or formula until age 1.
She might not need to eat every three hours. She might be able to eat every 4 hours. It may be because of the cereal also. As babies get older they tend to be able to go longer between feedings (especially if they are eating more at each feeding). Try feeding her every 4-5 hours...go by her hunger cues. All babies are different and it seems like once you have a schedule they change on you again. Good luck!
My daughter is also 4 1/2 months. She doesn't drink as many bottles a day, but she has gone up to 6 oz. She also eats 1 container of baby food everyday, although the last week I can barely get her to eat half the container. She has been sleeping alot now too. I am pretty sure it is a growth spurt. This is what my boys did when they were growing, so your daughter is probably going through the same!
BTW: I LOVE the name Teagan! We found it was for boy or girl, so if our daughter would have been a boy, that was going to be the name! lol
Instead we have Kaelynn
Yeah once you start the cereal they are more full and dont eat as much and sleep more. Just keep an eye on her weight. Also kids will go through growth spurts where they eat more and then slow down again after the spurt is done. Just keep in touch with the pediatrician and her weight to make sure she is getting what she needs.
At 4 1/2 months old, by now she should be eating more at a feeding and less often and yes, if you are adding cereal to her bottle or spoon feeding it to her, she should stay fuller longer so you won't feed her as often. She really shouldn't need to eat every three hours at this age. Also, if she is sleeping more overall, she may be going through a growth spurt.
