When to Start Feeding a Baby Food and Not Just Formula

Both of my girls started with rice cereal at around 2.5 or 3 months because of problems gaining weight. I began feeding my son rice cereal at around the same time because he was always hungry. My advice, feed with a spoon don't put it in the bottle. It takes time but in the end, it is worth the work. Good Luck.

I'm a rebel when it comes to this stuff.

My babies were huge eaters. When my son was 5 weeks old he was HUNGRY!! 8 oz of formula wasn't enough. I added the cereal at bed time. (Not a lot of cereal, maybe a teaspoon mixed with formula to make it soupy.) He slept the night with a full tummy. A few weeks later I added cereal at breakfast. Then a couple weeks after that I added cereal at lunch. He is now 6 feet tall and a happy healthy teenager.

When my daughter was 2 weeks old, my husband's father died. His family lives in Canada and I was left at home with a hungry baby and a toddler. I fed her cereal and she slept through the night. You do what you gotta do! She is now a happy healthy 13 year old.

My sister - now 30something - was fed cereal at 1 week.

I didn't add fruit or veggies until after the cereal was not making it all 3 meals and I started with carrots. No sweet stuff until they got used to some veggies. (Neither one liked the sweet potatoes!)

My pediatrician never said I shouldn't feed them. He recommended no peanuts until age 2. I didn't give any peanut anything until much later.

YMMV

i would wait til he was 6 months.babies dont know how to swallow well before then. and as far as having the baby sleep well at night all babies are different. food may help but if you feed him food you are taking away from the formula he should be getting and needs. baby food doesnt really have anything in it it's ment to teach a baby how to eat not sustain him. (baby food you would give a baby up to about 8 months is really just rice)maybe he just wants to suck on something have you tried a paci at night?

The AAP actually recommends milk only for the first 6 months of a babies life. Other than the allergies, which is controversial, it is a pain in the butt to feed solids to a baby. It doesn't actually help them sleep longer, no. A young baby has such a small tummy that you risk them not getting the proper nutrients if they are eating solids. The reason for that, is because there are both more vitamins and calories in formula than in solids. They need to be able to still drink enough milk to meet their nutritional requirements, in addition to anything they take in in solids.

Now, as far as it being a pain in the butt, at 2 months old, they still push foods out of their mouth, so it's very messy, and a waste of money too.

Personally, I've found that it's best to wait until the baby is reaching for food on their own. My first started solids at 4 months, and was eating baby food until a year old. My 2nd I didn't start feeding solids until she was over 7 months old. She started reaching for foods on my plate, and I would give her my softer foods. We startedgiving her baby food then, and she only ate baby food for 1 month before transitioning to table foods.

Hi J., congrats on becoming an Aunt! The latest research and recommendations out right now state that you really should wait until the 6 month mark until you introduce solids to a baby- even the baby foods say on them "from 6 months"- it has to do with the readiness of the baby's digestive system and the fact that starting solids too early has been linked to food allergies. Babies under 6 months do not need anything other than breastmilk or formula in their diet, and although it's a popular old wives tale that putting rice in the bottle helps them sleep, there's really no medical basis for it, and it might actually harm the baby rather than help him. two month old babies can't be expected to sleep more than about 4-6 hours in a row, if even that much. Their tummies can't hold enough food, no matter what kind of food it is. Hope that helps!

Babies can really exist on only formula for the first year. Most doctors recommend starting solids at about 6 months. Introducing solids too early can lead to severe food allergies. Solids really don't change the sleep schedule. If you're getting one 4-5 hour stretch at night that's probably about all you can hope for with a 2 month old. Enjoy that little guy!

Keep in mind that cereal in the bottle) can be a choking hazard for babies because they suck so fast. Even in the "olden days," they would spoon-feed little infants, but they are really not developmentally mature enough to eat it well and I think it is a frustration for them and parents.

Also is the question of allergies as discussed in other posts. I have a four month old and my doctor just told me cereal at 4-6 months depending on the size of the child (big kids might need more calories sooner - although adding a breast or bottle feeding may be prefereable to starting food too soon). Five months is probably perfect since there are studies in both directions - starting food too late or too early can cause allergies.

Also, tell your sister, it gets better!! Sleeping issues at two months are prerfectly normal as the baby adapts to being alive. They call the first three months "the fourth trimester" because the baby acts liek it does in teh womb. In another month or two, the baby will be sleeping much better and be waking up to the world so much more - smiling laughing etc. Don't rush the food if it is to make the baby sleep better - it does tend to happen on its own.

Enjoy aunt-hood!

The really really recommend waiting until 6 months. This prevents all kinds of allergies and strongly reduces the risk of diabetes and other conditions in later life. Doctors will sometimes recommend starting cereal only(not jarred vegetables or fruits) as early as 4 months but only for very large and hungry babies eating in excess of 32 ounces of formula a day. Under no circumstances should you feed a two month old baby food. Formula is complete nutrition, whereas baby foods are missing necessary vitamins baby's need.

Also some people do report that cereals help babies to sleep, many others say it has no effect, especially for children so young. If your nephew needs to get up multiple times per night it is really best that she does it rather than trying to fill his tummy with less nutritious food. I would highly recommend sleep straining - especially the book baby wise which will help teach you how to get the baby napping well and sleeping through the night (this usually happens between 3 and 6 months).

Your pediatrician will likely tell you that you can start feeding cereal at 4 months, but the current recommendation of the AAP is 4-6 and from what I have heard on mothering boards, the new recommendation will be 6 months.

Cereals are filler and are not as nutritious as breast milk or formula, which are adapted for baby's nutrition for the first year of life.

You can completely skip cereal and move on to fruits and vegetables directly, but again, 6 months is best.

A two month old is way too young to be feeding food. I have a three and a half month old and I'm not considering feeding him anything solid for another three months. Until they reach 4 months old their digestive tract is not fully developed, and feeding solids before that time can cause major health problems and obesity when the child becomes an adult even if it doesn't seem to be a problem now. The recommendation to wait until at least 6 months, however, is because before then eating solids can cause food allergies. Babies don't really need anything but breastmilk or formula until they're a year old, but you'll know when he's ready because he'll start reaching for food you're eating, and you also want to be sure he's lost the tongue thrust reflex.

Please talk to a pediatrician about the sleep schedule if you think there's a problem. At 2 months old you're lucky if you can get a good 4 or 5 hour stretch at a time, so there's probably nothing to worry about.

You shouldn't start feeding solids until the baby is 4 months old at the earliest. Solids are usually introduced between 4-6 months. 2 months is still very young and their digestive system is still immature. My 7 mo old dd is breastfed so she didn't start on solids until she was 6 months and it's been a slow process for us. My best friend formula fed her son and started solids at 4 months and he took to it like a champ, he also had acid reflux. Each child is different as you may already know. But don't start on solids just so he can sleep better, that's a myth. My dd is not the greatest sleeper, waking up 2-3 times a night and starting on solids did not do a thing for her sleeping pattern. Good luck!

Our doctor told us that babies can develop food alergies if you start feeding them too early. There is no corilation between feeding a baby food and them sleeping through the night. Most doctors will tell you not to start feeding babies rice cereal until 4 or 6 months, depending on the dr.
If you are worried about sleep habits, I have a great book suggestion for you. It's called, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby" It's the best book in the world. My 2 year old son sleeps great, and my 9 week old is a great sleep too.

Our son seemed to be constantly hungry from 1 month on. In his 2nd month the pediatrician said we could add some rice to his formula. It helped some. Finally at 4 mths old they said we could start to introduce solids to him so we started w/ vegetables. If you start w/ fruit they won't eat the veggies because the fruit id sweet. Just an FYI. I am not sure but I think the rice in his bottle helped w/ his sleeping because his tummy was fuller and heavier and it would take longer to digest. He was on and off w/ sleepingthrough the night when he started at 3 mths but I think by 4 1/2 - 5 mths he was fully sleeping through.
Good luck!

The pediatrician usually tells you when it is ok. YOu can add baby cereal to the formula when they are about 4-5 months old. This also keeps their tummies a little more full. At about 6 months I was starting to buy fresh veggies and amsh them up really really good with minimal seasonings and fee my kids. I only bought the jarred baby desserts and only bought the food out of the jar if I was going on a trip or would be out for the day.
Good Luck,
Annie R

No no no no no.... Do not start feeding the baby food at 2 months. His tummy is not mature enough to be able to digest it. It's recommended to start introducing rice cereral at around 4-6 months, my oldest started at 5, my youngest had no interest till 6. That said, by the time my youngest was 8 or 9 months he was completely off baby food. Good luck and God bless you for thinking of your nephew.

K. - SAHM of 2 boys, 5 and 2

Hi J.,

If you have a pediatrician, start there.

web sites are available, one is:

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/readyforsolids.htm

Hope this helps. Good luck. Blessings for being a caring sister and aunt. D.

Hi J.. First of all, the theory that introducing foods at an early age will CAUSE allergies has been disproven through several scientific studies, and the American Association of Pediatrics agrees. That said, while your child may not DEVELOP allergies through the introduction of foods, the symptoms that come with a food allergy may be difficult for a child as young as 2 mos to handle. The current recommendation from the AAP is to wait until at least 4 mos to introduce solid foods, unless a member of your immediate family (i.e. you, your husband or your children) has a food allergy. In such case, because allergies are genetic, your child is at high risk for allergies. You should then use caution when introducing new foods, and may want to postpone adding certain foods.

Also, both my kids started on rice cereal early b/c of severe reflux. I can assure you that the introduction of solid foods will not affect their sleep schedule, as neither of mine had improved sleep schedules after the introduction of solids (unfortunately!). You should start to see some kind of improvement in your baby's sleep around 3 - 3.5 mos, but it may even be later. My DS was sleeping through the night at 3.5 mos and my DD was sleeping through the night at 6 mos. It will get better! Hang in there!

J.,
I have a son who is almost 7 months old and I started giving him stage 1 baby food at about 4 months, per his pediatrician. She told me to start with yellow and orange foods first. Also start with veggies because if you start with fruit the child may get used to the sweetness and not take the veggies so well.
Your sister may want to introduce single grain rice cereal into the bottle. Use about a teaspoon or so per 3 ounces.

I don't think you are supposed to start on "foods" until they are four to six months old. (I heard about some study that said babies started too early had a higher probability of diabetes, not sure, but I didn't risk it) As for sleeping longer, I think a lot of babies sleep longer when started on solids because that time happens to coincide with the age that they naturally start sleeping longer. Good luck

gerber.com had their suggested timetable for feeding babies food. Usually, when they can hold their head up & sit supported by the chair, they can start eating cereal (beginning with rice because rice is easier to digest). Once the baby has mastered that, move on to oatmeal, or if you want, go to a veggie (1st foods). Make sure to feed them veggies first, since most babies, if fed fruit first, will not like veggies and will refuse them. So, the time that you feed your baby food depends on their developement, not their age. Check out gerber.com, and also, you get coupons & stuff from there if you sign up. I have 3 kids w/1 on the way. All of my children were eating cereal by 4.5 mos, possibly a little sooner (I can't remember exactly for my 2 oldest). As for the sleeping issue, I cannot comment, since all of my children were sleeping through the night no later than 6 wks old. Good luck & God bless!

Babies digestive systems are not as sophisticated as ours, so introducing foods (especially certain types of foods) can give your baby tummy troubles (which can make sleeping even worse). I firmly believe that it is an old wives tale that babies will sleep earlier if you start them on solids earlier. THAT SAID... one of the clues that a child is ready for solids is when they child who used to sleep through the night (or for very long stretches) starts waking up in the middle of the night hungry. That happened when my son was 5 1/2 months old and so we introduced solids and then he went back to sleeping through the night. General rule of thumb is that solids can be introduced between 4 and 6 months

Of course every baby is different, but my son didn't have a good sleep routine before 2 months and then all of a sudden he started sleeping longer stretches and was consistently sleeping through the night at 10 weeks. He just did this on his own, there was nothing really special we did and we didn't add anything to his diet.

I found the book Super Baby Food an invaluable resource in learning when my baby was ready for solids and info on different foods (what age they can be introduced, nutricional content, etc.

Whatever you do... do NOT put cereal in the baby's bottle. It is such a bad practice that messes up the child's natural ability to know when he or she is full (& studies have shown that it can lead to obesity later in life)

My understanding is that you shouldn't start feeding a baby anything other than milk until they're six months old. We had to start my youngest a month earlier because my milk was no longer enough, since he had already more than doubled his birth weight, so of course there are exceptions. But you start with rice cereal. Then next month you introduce vegetables, allowing 3 days for each new vegetable so you can identify what makes them gassy or if there are and allergies and get them accustomed to the taste. Then after a few weeks, fruit. I think 9 months is when you can add meat, but I would not swear to it. I'm sure that there are varying opinions on this but both my boys (my youngest being in the 75% for weight and height at 15 months, so he's not scrawny) were introduced to food this way and they are both very good about eating a variety of foods now. Sleeping schedule could just be due to the baby's individual "habits," my oldest never slept through the night once until he was 9 months old. Or, maybe the baby needs more milk...or gas drops, if they're crying...I would try those things before contemplating giving anything other than milk (be it breast or formula) to a 2 month old. I hope that helps!

Hi, J.. You cannot start introducing baby food until at least 5 mos old. It has been proven that if you introduce food too early, the baby can develop SEVERE food allergies and have digestion problems for the rest of their life. Please talk to your pediatrician for advice. Babies are all different. Our daughters did not sleep through the night until @ 13 mos old (lojng after we started feeding them baby food at the correct intervals). I know that getting little rest is trying.

somtimes a little cereal before bed can help. it didnt help my baby. some put it in the bottle if the baby isnt ready to feed w/ a spoon. just a tsp or so for about 4oz...not much. but its highly controversial. some say it leads to obesity, some say it leads to digestive issues later....
its all your decision.
personally i did no food until they were able to sit up assisted, so about 4-5month. i started w/ a little cereal/formula once then twice a day. at 6months we did food. i started w/ vegetables. i did beans/carrots, then pears/bananas. there really is no need for food until about 6months. babies do fine w/ out it.

Yeah,people told me that solids would help mine with her sleep. It didn't help at all.

Just wanted to reinforce what Jen L said below - I couldn't have said it better.
= )
Good luck!