Feeding Rice for the First Time

spoon feed him - I don't know if they still make them but I used one of those reclining bouncy seats when mine were tiny - he may make a mess but keep trying and eventually you will get more in than on him

Both of my children were 5 months when I started the rice cereal. I tried it watery and neither one of them liked it. So I made it thicker like a pudding and they loved it. I would only start with breast milk and cereal then work up to other foods.

I also started them on a sippy cup at the same time. Just one of the small take in toss. By nine months they were off the bottle and feeding them selves.

When I started my daughter with rice cereal, I just put a little in a bowl (maybe a teaspoon) and mixed it with breast milk or water (enough to make it runny).

My daughter now loves to eat and would rather eat than breast feed or have a bottle. Best of luck and don't give up if he doesn't take to it right away.

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Do not feed baby from a bottle! Most recommend against that. Make sure he's six months old and make sure it's liquidy enough to drip off a spoon. He'll start out with just a small amount. If he pushes it out with his tongue, he's too young. Try again later. And if he seems frustrated, make sure he's not hungry when you feed him. Until he's a year old, your breastmilk is the primary source of nutrition for him. He doesn't NEED any other food. We feed our babies at around 6 months to get them used to tastes, textures, the idea of food and feeding, the developemental milestones involved in that, socializing with the family, etc. So if he's not ready, no need to push it. Good luck!

My suggestion is to skip the applesauce. Just very dilute rice cereal. Applesauce tends to be too harsh on the tummy. C.

I started to feed my sons rice in their bottles but I can see where you wouldn't want to do that. :) Just be aware when you mix the breastmilk with the rice cereal, the breastmilk will break down the cereal to a thin liquid. I don't know how many times I mixed a bowl of rice with breastmilk before I figured that out. So if you don't mind spooning a thin gruel, go for it.

L. - Spoon feeding to start out is fine especially if you are diluting with breast milk. I would not recommend the addition of applesauce as newborns need to have new foods introduced one at a time to look for any negative reaction such as an allergy. Also, depending on his age, his system may not be able to handle the fiber in the apples.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out!
J.

I just started feeding my twins rice cereal this weekend and went directly to spoon feeding. I put a 1TBS of cereal in a bowl with lots of breastmilk and spoon fed them. I sat them in a bumbo chair with a bib at the kitchen table and just went for it. My daughter still hast the tongue thrust reflex and kept giving me weird faces but my son loved it. Definitely do it in a relaxed atmosphere and realize more will get on them instead of in their mouths but it's a learning experience for them. I thought it was rather fun and funny. Good luck, I'd love to hear how it goes.

For first time feeding you should only give breastmilk and the cereal. The applesauce should be added later when you know there are no problems with the rice. New foods should be given for at least 4 days with either breastmilk or other foods that have previously been tried to rule out allergies. Hope this helps!

I have heard that putting rice cereal in a bottle can cause food allergies. When I first gave my daughter rice cereal, I used a spoon and made it really watery. It took her a week or two in the beginning to get the hang of it. I was more or less spooning liquid in her mouth but eventually she learned and I continued to make it thicker. My daughter liked cereal with breast milk or formula mixed in the beginning and I then went to just water later on. I would not put applesauce in it. If you start doing that now he will get used to sweet flavor and you may have a hard time getting him to eat it without. Good luck!

The first time I fed rice to my son I made a small batch and put it next to me while I was nursing. I nursed on one side, sat him up and fed him, then nursed on the other side. He had no problems and as a very good eater. I also did it a night. Good luck!

I started my son on cereals at 6 months and just mixed cereal and water in a bowl and he took it right away! Good luck!

Hi L.,

How exciting for you and your husband. I remember clearly feeding both my children rice cereal and my husband videoing it. After fertility problems with both everything you do with them is a blessing so enjoy!!

Now, to answer your question. I'm going to recommend an absolute awesome book that really helped me and all of my friends. "Super Baby Food" by Ruth Yaron. It easily breaks down exactly the what, where, and when to starting "solids" with your baby. She even gives you a list of fruits and veggies to add each month. You did not mention how old your son was but she recommends starting at around 4mths not earlier because babies digestive system is too immature. She also says waiting as close to 6 months as possible. Six months being the "ideal". I started both mine on their 6 month birthdays. I'm glad to hear that pediatrician are recommending the same. When mine were babies which was just 4 years ago with my last that was not the case. Sometimes they say it's OK at 3 months!! Anyway about the book, I loved everything about the book it even showed me how to make my own baby food! Which I did for both of them and saved some money!! Plus it was so much healthier for them. It was Really, really easy!! Now, don't get me wrong, I did buy some baby food jars and cereal for "back ups" but I did not have to buy as much since I made just about everything.It also has ideas and meals once they become toddlers and even an Arts and Crafts Section towards the end of the book. You can't get this book quick enough it will answers all of your questions and then some! I would photo copy some of the pages and take it to the grocery store with me because she made such a awesome feeding schedule. It literally was my bible for feeding my babies! Enjoy and Happy Feeding!!

A. Merrick

L.,
For the first time with rice cereal I wouldn't add the applesauce. Just make sure you dilute it with either water or your breast milk. He probably won't like it at first and will proabably gag a little but no worries just keep trying it. He will eventually getit and some day soon be eating you out of house and home. Good luck to you.

B. Garcia
Himamlayan GoChi Juice representitive
barbgarcia.com
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HOw old is your baby? Has he had applesauce yet? It is usually a good idea to start on one solid food at a time (for at least 3 days) before moving to another. I.E., Rice cereal for at least 3 days prior to starting applesauce. I mixed the rice cereal with breast milk alone for the first few feedings for my 4 kids. The 3 day rule is to be able to know if your child has a bad reaction to a food, which food it was and in my experience- 3 out of 4 of my babies got very loose, watery stools from applesauce until they were over 1. I started mine with a spoon also, just make it watery and gradually start thickening it. Good luck!

How exciting for you! Those "firsts" are always fun as parents! I would recommend that you feed him the cereal with a spoon. At this age the 'feeding' for them is more just to get them used to it as opposed to feeding them for quanity and nutrition. There is a great book called Super Baby Food that we lived by when we were introducing our kids to solids. It gives great ideas for the order in which to introduce, the reasons for intruducing different foods at different ages as well as some recipes, freezability ideas etc. I would highly recommend it! My husband called it our "Bible" when we were in that stage with each of the kids.

It is recommended that you start them between 4-6 months, as close to six months as you can get. Breastmilk really is the ideal food for babies under 12 months, it changes as their needs change so it really is perfect at meeting their caloric needs as well as their nutritional needs. Basically other foods at this point are not given in a quantity that will hold much nutritional value for the baby, so they are j ust taking up tummy room where he could otherwise be filled with breastmilk.

That said, when you mix his cereal (start with the single grains and give each one for several days before moving on to the veggies, then fruits) That way, if he gets purple and orange spots, you'll be able to tell which food he reacted too :) You can mix it with expressed breast milk, that will add a hint of a familiar taste for him as well as adding nutrion. For the first while, you want it to be runny when mixed, remember his tummy and mouth have never digested anything solid before, so it will be easier for him to swallow if it is runny.

Have fun! Don't forget your camera and video camera! :)

I started with a teaspoon of rice - like, 3 infant sized spoonfuls - and fed it before milk, while baby was hungry. That's enough to start. Then breastfeed.

It take a few days for them to get the hang of it, then you can start making bigger servings.

Hi L.-
Before you give him any cereal I would ask how old is he? Most pediatricians nowadays do not want you to introduce rice cereal until 6 months. I would think if this is his very first food being cereal do not give him apple sauce yet. Just the rice cereal with breast milk will be completely fine. And you do want it to be watery and on a spoon is fine. He doesn't know how to eat yet it is a complete learning process for him be patient and watch him learn it is sooo much fun. Good luck.

HI L., First of all, how old is your son? While I am a chiropractor, I've done a majority of my post-grad work in nutrition over the past 6 yrs. I also worked with a lot of babies over the past 15 yrs and have found that generally it is not good to give babies rice or rice cereal until they are 10 months of age.

The problem with feeding grains (which rice is) to a baby is that their digestive tract is not ready for that type of food. There are many doctors who believe that digestive problems in kids and allergies may come from feeding these types of foods to kids too early.

When my daughter was an infant, I breastfed her primarily, but started feeding her "food" at 5 months. I started her with strained carrots, sweet potatoes and avocado until she was about 9 months old. If she was constipated I gave her strained pears, but tried to keep the fruits to a minimum.
Carrots and sweet potatoes are great foods as they are rich in vitamins and minerals and great for development of the eyes.
I hope this helps.

N.

Put 1 tbsp. of dried rice cereal in a bowl and mix it with 5 tbsp. of breast milk, formula or water. This will make a very runny rice cereal. Your baby is just learning to swallow solids, so you'll want to start him out slowly. The first time you feed your baby rice cereal, he will probably not take very much.

I just fed my breast fed baby girl rice cereal with breast milk mixed in. No applesauce at all. I have been told numerous times that putting rice cereal in a bottle can cause adult obesity. My baby was 6 months old (the recommended age to start solids) and she took to the spoon like a fish to water!!! Good luck!!!

I gave my first daugther rice cereal the day she turned 4 months (diluted with breast milk) and after a couple of weeks she started having a serious reaction to it- she threw up a few hours after giving it to her. I would wait a month or two and then try again to the same problem. Luckily she is okay with rice now. I think I'll wait a bit longer this time.