infant cereal

I'm wondering if my boys still need the cereal now that they are a year old? They've been getting two servings a day of 4 tbsp each. But I'm wondering if I can cut that out now? Or do they still need those nutrients?

 

My boys havent gotten cereal regularly for about a month now. They do get it the odd time for breakfast when I need to be somewhere at a certain time and dont have time to wait for them to feed themselves.

 

Thanks. I think I'm going to finish off what I have and then drop it. I may keep some around for a quick breakfast, like you said. I think our LO's may be alright with things with milk in them now (we have been testing some foods and so far so good) - so that opens up a lot of new things (pancakes, french toast, etc.).

 

The only thing infant cereal is good for is the iron supplement. I started feeding them regular oatmeal and I still use leftover baby cereal to thicken up smoothies and things like that.

 

No problem! I do keep some on hand more for William though. He is my picky eater and if there is a day where he has barely eaten, I do give it to him for supper so I know he goes to bed on a full tummy, and of course for the reason I stated above.

 

I was just going to ask the same question. I was at the store getting them puffs and bought a couple more bags of the infant oatmeal and wondered how much longer to we need this stuff versus giving regular oatmeal??

I've been giving them oatmeal/yogurt or pancakes (alternating days) and fruit and so far so good. I have to say I hope that your boys can eat dairy soon, it really opens up a whole new world!! We eat cheese and yogurt A LOT around here.

 

I pretty much stopped giving my guys infant cereal soon after they turned 1 and started to eat more finger foods. As long as they're getting a varied diet, they really don't need the special cereal. :good:

 

Thanks. So far so good! They are each getting a cup of yogurt a day for their snack, and they are up to 4 oz. of milk a day, and no problems yet. They have also had things with cheese and eggs in them, but I haven't tried scrambled eggs again yet. I'm just glad the milk is going well! After this, though, we have to test the soy - that is one that I have to be really careful about. It is in many premade things (frozen waffles, breads, etc.). It's a real pain!!

 

I gave it to mine for breakfast as long as they would take it (maybe 13-14 months at least). I figured it was really healthy for them and we would always mix a baby food jar of fruit in. The regular oatmeal packets have a lot more sugar in them (I think) even though that's what we give them now. Mine are almost 2. I tried to give them regular oatmeal too every once in a while during those months so they would develop a taste for it and get used to the texture. I was recently thinking of putting together a whole bunch of ziploc baggies with the old fashioned oats and some other ingredients like cinnamon, raisons, etc. so I can just easily have them on hand to make oatmeal in the morning for my kids. It will be healthier than the instant and cheaper that way and more convenient for me if the packets were all ready to go.
Shannon

 

I stopped before they turned one, as they didn't want me to feed them anymore, but they weren't good with a spoon on their own yet. Now they do eat regular oatmeal on their own, but it is still pretty messy. We don't do the oatmeal packets due to the sugar content.

 

I finally dropped it a couple months ago but I also kept it on hand to mix with yogurt, applesauce, and other things. They always loved the cereal...it was a great fall back.

 

They never "needed" it.
It's handy and convient and highly processed. If that works for you, give it to them. If it doesn't don't.
Don't confuse cultural norms with needs. Most of the babies in the world have never tasted the stuff and they are growing up fine.