When did you give your LO rice cereal?

Question

How old was your LO when you first gave them rice cereal? Did you give it to them in a bottle or by spoon? Was it recommended by your doctor?

Or- how old is your LO and why have you choose not to give them rice cereal yet? When will you give it to them? Bottle or spoon?

This is a very touchy subject in our family. Everyone has tried pushing it on us, and I'm against it at this age (7 weeks) because he doesn't have reflux and is gaining weight perfectly. I also want to give it to him by spoon instead of bottle whenever I feel like the time is right. But I'm just curious on how it worked for other babies and I wanted to hear from other moms!

Answer

You shouldn't give a child cereal until they are at least 4 months and that's if they seem ready for food. Some babies aren't ready until 5-6 months. Their digestive system is still very sensitive and you could do damage giving food too early. Rice cereal does have nutritional value because it's a good source of iron which at 4 months they start needing as they no longer have the iron you provided them and they are making their own new blood cells. You can do any kind of single grain cereal you like though, it doesn't have to be rice.

Answer

I gave it to her in a bottle at 3.5 months.  Her doctor recommended it for reflux.  She already eats Enfamil AR which has rice powder in it, so adding cereal was just too thicken it a bit more.  I tried giving her some using a spoon at 4 months, but that didn't go over so well.  I did give her oatmeal and whole wheat cereal after that, and she lives those two!  The rice cereal is kind of bland.  She is almost 6 months and is enjoying a bunch of different pureed fruits and veggies!

Answer

My daughter is only 6 weeks and we've been giving her rice cereal in her bottle since she was a month. She was always hungry and already taking 4 oz bottles and still acting hungry. We tried increasing her formula amount, but it was too much for her little tummy and she would spit up A LOT! Now we give her 4 oz bottles with one tablespoon of rice cereal and she loves it. It satisfies her, and now I can't even remember the last time she spit up. This was all done per her pediatrician by the way! Lol

Answer

It sounds like you've given it thought and know what you want to do. So don't get into a back and forth on it with family - just tell them you're following your doctors recomnendation and leave it at that. This is your kid and you get to decide! If they want to raise more children they can have them or adopt them, lol.

I plan on waiting until 6 months but maybe a little sooner if she starts showing interest in food.

Answer

Her ped said we could try on a spoon at 4 months, but she wasn't interested until 6 months. She's always hated rice cereal, it's got no flavor. You'd probably be better off skipping it.

Also, I wouldn't give it in a bottle unless your baby's doctor suggested it (like for reflux), because it won't help them sleep, it's easy for them to choke if given in a bottle, and it can make getting them off a bottle harder in the long run.

Answer

My little one is 13 weeks, I tried it out when she was 8 weeks through the bottle, it did nothing for her so we stopped. I'm giving it another try but by spoon this time, and just as something "fun".

Answer

We started at 3 months. He was just always hungry and I exclusively breastfeed. The doctor said its okay to give him a little of cereal. He has been fine with it I don't give him a lot he likes it. Haven't had any problems he's satisfied completely. He has always slept at night for 5-7 hours but during the day I give him a little cereal. He started watching us eat trying to literally get our food. It seems like he's growing so fast and doing to much but he sees his 2 big brothers and just wants to do what they do.

Answer

My LO is 7 months and hasn't had anything except breast milk, fruits, and veggies. The pediatrician hasn't even mentioned that we should do cereal (which is good since I wasn't planning on it anyway since there isn't nutritional value).  Don't let anyone pressure you into things you don't want to do. If your doc says it's ok then go for it, otherwise do what you want.

Answer

We did it with our first at four months. This time will likely be the same....MAYBE a week or two sooner because he is such a chow hound. Don't let others push you in a direction you aren't comfortable with. We have friends telling us to do it now....at 10 weeks...I just let them talk.

When did you give your LO rice cereal?

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