3 Month Old and Eating Rice Ceral Already?!?

I started my third baby on rice cereal at 3 months. She was doing the same thing. Solved the problem and she has never had any eating concerns. Actually, she is a GREAT eater, will try any table food I give her and didn't really care for baby food or formula. She is 11 months and completely off of both and thriving. A very happy baby.

Chris

First of all, I want to congratulate you on keeping your baby, and raising him. I know you have a hard job! And to your mom, for helping you!

I started my son on rice cereal at 6 weeks. That was the direction of my pediatrician. I gave it to him before bedtime and he slept through the night!! Yay! So, your son is not too young for cereal.

I wouldn't feed cereal that early. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends waiting until 6 months, period. The only food I'd give at that age is breastmilk. Even formula is much more nutrient dense than cereal. It has much more of what he needs. Feeding frequently is normal.

Otherwise, sounds like you're doing great!

well my son is almost 3 month old and eats 7 ina half oz and eats applesause and ceral so i think all babies r didffrent ima 18 year old mom too so i dont kno alot but this to me is normal

I would call your peditrician but I think (mom of 3) that you should hold off giving cereal for a month or 2. Give him the bottle more often, he may be going through a growth spurt and it may be temporary. If you start giving solids too early, you run the risk of food allergies and they are not easy to deal with! It's much easier to not give a child something for a few months than keep them off of it everyday for months or years! Call your dr's office and at least talk to the nurse (it's usually free) or even try gerber.com
Good luck! It sounds like you are really trying to be a good mom! It takes alot to commit to a child and go back to school!

It is normal for babies to eat more when they are going through a growth spurt. I would keep feeding him more formula (or just more often) and probably within a week or so he will go back to his normal feeding schedule. 4-5 hours seems like a long time for a 3 month old to go without eating anyway, so more like every 2.5-3.5 hours might be more like what he needs at this point.

Most doctors recommend waiting until 4-6 months for starting cereal. This is because his tummy and the bacteria in it are not ready yet to digest cereal usually until around 6 months. Some people say 4 months is ok, so I would definitely wait until at least 4 months. Give him some extra formula in the mean time and see if he goes back to his regular amount soon. He's probably just more hungry from a growth spurt and it will slow down again.

Congrats on your new baby and way to go for taking on the responsibility! He sounds like a blessed little boy.
C. G.

G.,
You've gotten lots of great advice already. They grow up so fast...don't rush the food/cereal. I just want to wish you the best of luck and congratulate you on your little one. It won't always be easy, but you'll look at that little man and know its always worth it!

I have 3 kiddos and they were all ready for cereal at different ages. My mom (she had 5 of us!) started cereal at 7 weeks, I had one kiddo ready at 3 months and one that wasn't ready until 6-7 months- so go with your gut. If he's able to work his tounge well enough to keep the cereal in his mouth and get it down then odds are he's ready. Just make it really thin and gradually make it thicker until you find a good consistency for him. My daughter was a tiny thing, but couldn't figure out how to make spoon feeding work for the longest time (or maybe I couldn't! :) so I would add cereal to her bottles and get the bottle nipples with the largest hole so it could pass through - or I'd take an old nipple and poke a larger hole so the cereal and formula could all pass through. There's probably something technically wrong with doing that, but it worked and helped my daughter get the food she needed to keep her little belly full!
Every baby is different, so let him be your guide. You sound like a great, concerned, hard-working mom. Your son is lucky to have you.
God Bless!

I have heard that starting a baby out too early with food can actually lead to diabetes because their body starts producing sugar too soon, so you might want to check with the doctor on this. :)

At night when he wakes up see if he goes back to sleep without giving him food immediately. My doctor told me that kids get into a routine where they will start waking and wanting food just to be near their mommy, so I tried it and it was true, after about a week of not immediately giving him a bottle in the night he started sleeping through the night.

I want to say that I am proud of you for taking responsibility for your little one. I am thankful that your mother is there to help you out so you can finish your education. You should be proud of yourself for accomplishing so much. It would have been easy to give up, but you didn't. Take all advice given to you with a grain of salt and trust your intuition. Keep your doctor in the loop about what you want to do and they will let you know if it is not okay from a medical standpoint. Good luck and would love a follow up.

Feeding can be tricky for them at this age. Have you considered starting his day with an 8oz bottle? Once he wakes from the night for a feeding try doing a whole day with an 8oz bottle for main meals and then alternate with a 4oz bottle. He may love the cereal but not really ready for a spoon.Dont feel like you have to start the baby on cereal just because hes eating more, you may just need to get creative... 8oz first followed by 4oz in 3 hrs another 8oz in 3hrs. some babies develop a big thirst, he is just growing but that doesnot mean change his system to cereal right a way. Check with the doctor and start keeping a tab on how he is eating...You are already doing great by seeking advice.

Good Morning G., Congratulations on your sweet new son. I think he is definitely old enough for Rice cereal. Continue to give him the cereal and offer his bottle after a few bites. Alternate a little at a time. With our 1 yr old gr son, I would give him like 4 spoons of cereal then give him his bottle for a few sec's. then the cereal again. He will let you know when he is full. Or if he wants more cereal then a bottle. He is still at an age where he needs to burp also.

I admire you G. for taking care of your son and yourself. It's a hard job but very rewarding. God Bless your Mom for being able to offer support and help when needed.

He is a very Blessed little Man. He is very normal in every way.

God Bless you always
K. Nana of 5

Pediatricians usually recommend between 4-6 months for starting solids, so he's a little bit early, but if you think he needs it, it's probably okay. However, at this point, his main nutrients are supposed to be coming from breastmilk/formula, so I'd suggest making sure you give him his bottles first and then offer cereal a little later and not too close to the next bottle feeding, so you can make sure he's getting enough formula/breastmilk, since that's the best thing for them at this point.

Won't hurt him at all. He is just going faster than some babies do. The formula was not satisfying him then so you had to give him the cereal.They have a cereal feeder at the stores. I know you can find them at walmart for sure. It was like a suction cup almost as the baby sucked the bottom would push up to make sure no air just like the bottles that you had to push up the bottom of the plastic to make sure no air.

Call your son's doctor & ask what he/she thinks. I started my son on cereal when he was taking an 8 oz. bottle every few hours. Do not start him on baby food until he is about 6 months old because his body can not handle it yet.
I think it is awesome that you are taking care of your son & finishing High School! Keep up the good work!

God Bless!

Hi G., My son was eatting rice cereal in his bottle WAY sooner than that!! LOL!! So don't feel bad. He was just a bigger kid who needed more. I know all the doc say this and that, but i found out that sometimes you have to try different things to see what works and what does not work. I think your doing fine. My son is 13 now and so far so good!! LOL!! At least in Most areas!! LOL! Good luck!

Personally, if it were me, I'd hold off on the cereal until his appetite was insatiable. If he were eating that 8oz. bottle and still seeming not satisfied, then I'd give the cereal. But you're the Mom and you decide whats best. I gave my oldest cereal at 4 months to the day because of what I described above. I also think it's more normal for him to be eating every 2.5-3 hours as opposed to the 4-5.

Hi, G., congrats on your new son and for staying in school! I agree completely with Diane Z...my son was a HUGE eater from birth (still is!) and the formula just wasn't satisfying him, so I added cereal to his bottle at a few months old. I would try making it thin at first, just adding some to his bottle, or use the cereal feeder...one of the greatest inventions ever! LOL My son is now 20, has no weight issues or medical conditions...healthy as ever! So in my opinion, as long as he's not spitting it back up, he's digesting it just fine. Good luck to you and your new bundle of joy!

Hi G.,

Around 3 months is a natural growth spurt time for babies. It doesn't mean that you need to give him solids yet, just give him more milk. Starting foods earlier than 6 months has been shown to increase the risk of allergies.

His need for more milk should subside in about 24 hours.

Good luck!