Cereal/rice milk comments from family

Hi mommas!

Short story:

I’m perfectly happy with my decision to feed baby exclusively breast milk for as long as I can. The grandparents don’t understand why we’re not “supplementing” with formula to “help him and me get more sleep/keep him full longer,” and it’s frankly annoying me bc it’s not supportive or ultimately helping anything. He’s gaining and sleeping great.

Long story:

EBF FTM of a 7 week old! I am finding this group SO helpful because I don’t have much conversational support or tips from my mom and MIL other than them saying it’s good I can do this for him. I research a lot on my own and don’t have many close friends who EBF for long.

My mother, father, and MIL all had us in the 80s and have made comments about adding rice milk or cereal milk to pumped breast milk to help “keep baby full” or for him to “sleep through the night” when I talk about not getting much sleep. I’m not telling them that I don’t get much sleep because I’m looking for a solution; he’s 7 weeks old and his longest night stretch has been 4 hours. It’s just a fact of life right now. When we were babies, this was what they did. FIL gave formula bottle every night, and apparently my brother and I got cereal or rice milk, and formula.

I know everyone’s decision is their own with how to feed their children. I don’t feel the need to do formula. Baby boy is full, fed, and healthy. No supply issues. He has fussy times but not colic. I know his sleep is important, as is mine, but I can sacrifice and get broken sleep at this time in my life if I feel it’s for his benefit. Not trying to be a hero; I can do 3-4 hours stretches as long as I get naps.

From what I’ve heard, cereal/rice milk is a major no no now because babies can’t actually digest it when they’re little. Does anyone have any information or resources they could point me to which support this? I don’t want to “Dr Google” our parents or offend them. Don’t want to sound know-it-all as a new mom, because I’m certainly not. But how do I educately let them know that something they’re suggesting isn’t actually good? Or do I just say we’re not choosing to do that? Am I wrong? Are rice and cereal milk a thing? I don’t want to tell them it’s bad for babies and screws up their digestion and then offend them, especially if I’m wrong. But when I tell them my choices without a reason, they are judging and think I’m making my life harder than it needs to be for no reason. I need to give the reason.