Got Rice?

I am getting conflicting info on when to start cereal...
I called our pedi and one week the nurse said 6 months, them I called again the following week because our boys (4 months old) have been EXTREMELY fussy and a different nurse said 2 months... I spoke with the LC in the same practice and she said 6 months.
[] When did you start cereal?

 

We did cereal at 4 months with both the twins and my oldest son. Olivia (twin A) took a week to really get the hang of it though. I think that its really up to you. Some people say 4, some people say 6 months. Do what you feel is best for you and your kids.

 

I agree with the PP...whatever works for you. I started solids at 6 months with all of mine but started with veggies instead of cereal. None of them "got it" until closer to 7 months...up until that point it was just spit back out.

 

With all three of my kids I waited until 6 months old. I'm a reader. When I want to know when or how to do something I read up on it, a lot. My reading convienced me that 6 months was the way to go.

 

We did 4 months but really they don't "eat" enough to really count for anything. Hannah still has days where she just nurses bc I can't find time to fit it in and the boys didn't get the hang of it until closer to 5.5months

 

We did four months. They say it's better to wait due to allergies, etc. But we started at four months, and like a pp said, it's just practice. They really aren't getting all that much. Not to mention, it took *me* awhile to get the hang of it-let alone the two of them! So some days I would give it to them, other days I just ran out of time. By six months, I was consistent though! :laughing:

 

We tried at 4 months, but our boys were not able to handle even small amounts - stomach ache, gas, suddenly not sleeping, refusing bottles, etc., so we waited until they turned 6 months and tried again and they did great. Our pedi asked about signs of readiness - not satisfied with formula, watching us eat, etc., but despite having all those signs, their digestive tracts just weren't ready, so we waited on all solids until 6 months.

 

We started practice feeding once a day at 4 months. One of them was ready, the other didn't get into it until 6 months. Now at 8 months they are both the same at eating

 

The recommendation is 6 months, however 4 months is considered ok as well. You just need to look for readiness signs like sitting up assisted, showing interest in your food, not seeming satisfied with formula, losing the extrusion reflex (when babies push their tongues out of their mouth). We started at 4.5 months with the ok from our ped. E was not satisfied at all with the amount of formula he was getting (and it was a lot! averaging over 40oz a day). It took about a week for them to get used to it. Now they're really into it. Our ped said solids at this point are just for practice and getting used to different tastes, and that 100% of their nutrients are supposed to come from formula at this point. Like PP, at this point, some days we do solids twice a day, some days once a day, and some days not at all.

 

We tried at four months with little success. Then we waited until 5 months, and they did much better.

 

The recommendation from our ped is 4m for formula fed babies and 6m for breastfed babies. We are in the first camp. At our 4m visit, the nurse (who saw us before the doctor) instructed us to begin other solids as well, but the dr said wait until 6m on those.

Actually, we started doing thickened feeds around 8 weeks. That is where you add a small amount of rice cereal to their bottle (1tsp per 1oz). This was only for the nighttime bottle. We knew they were not allergic, so we could jump right in with the cereal from the bowl at 4 months. One twin didn't like it at all, the other one loved it. Now the first twin eats too, or sort of. She bites the spoon and then most of it oozes out. The 2nd twin who loves it, she is thrusting with her tongue. So she likes the cereal, but hasn't completely figured out how to use her tongue for solids (or there is a problem...)

I will say that once we began the rice cereal, the sleeping situation improved. One baby who had been sttn off and on since 8w began doing so much more regularly, and the other baby who would wake up 1-2 times per night went to 0-1 times per night.

 

Our pediatrician had us start rice cereal at 4 months, mainly for practice. We started with really small servings, nothing larger then a tbsp.

 

Whatever works for you. It doesn't matter what anyone say, you're mom and you know best. If you think they are ready then they prob are. So in answer to your question, my oldest was 3 months when I started solids, I started him with veggies though because of his eczema. The twins were 4.5 mnths old when I started them.

 

We started around almost 4 months, it was one week b4 they turned 4 months! It is really just practice anyways! Its ok for them to have it now. I think every pedi and nurse gives different advice! As all of us moms do too!!

SO I say try it,, they do well, keep it up1 THey dont then try it again later!! nO harm done! GL

 

I gave mine rice cereal only in their last bottle of the day starting at 4 months. I think around 6 months I added it to each bottle.

 

Thank you all for your feedback!

The more I read, the more I feel as though I should wait until closer to 6 months.

However, the boys are not sleeping as good as they once were, and seem to be more hungry throughout the day. This is a sign to begin feeding them...I see the pedi this week, I will speak with her again about it.

To those of you that did wait 6 months- did your babies' sleep pattern change (did they sleep good,then not so good until you started food, then good again)...were they more satisfied during the day?

Thanks to all!

PS-My babies are Breastfed.

 

My boys were breastfed as well. I started because they were eating ALL the time, and I mean like 40+oz a day. I pumped as well as nursed.

 

It did not change how our boys slept at night or naps, but it did make them more satisfied during the day - they were able to go longer between feedings, and gradually begin to cut back their formula a bit (with pedi approval, of course). Michael was eating 36-40 oz a day before we started solids and was ALWAYS hungry - adding the cereal made him go from eating every 3.5 hours to every 4-4.5 and he wasn't so frantically hungry all the time.

 

We were at the PEDI last night - twins turned 4 months on Friday of last week. SHe checked their head control and their ability to sit up assisted, and gave us the OK for rice cereal and fruits & vegetables. Good luck!