Mesothelioma

Rice cereal?

How early is too early to give your little one rice cereal? She gets very phlemy and raspy after she eats, and the Dr. said to put rice in her bottle. Question is, she's 8 weeks old. I didn't think you were suppossed to start rice until 4-5 months. Anyone?

Public Comments

1. I started my daughter on rice cereal at 6 weeks. She was fine and slept very well. If the doctor said, go ahead and give it a try.
2. Well my daughter didnt start untill she was 3 months old, and that was because the doc told us NOT to start feeding her solids untill she was that age because any younger and they just cant handle it. I wouldnt do it if i were you, maybe wash the milk down with half a bottle of water, but make sure it has been boiled and cooled down first :) Hope this helps Nicky
3. Is your doctor old? It sounds like the type of advce given in the sixties! Solids shouldn't be introduced till 4 months at the very earliest! would change doctors, or go and see a specialist. The only time that a doctor might suggest it, was if the mothers milk was extremely low, so the baby was still hungry. In that case - the doctors usually would suggest to express more often to increase your supply, or supplement with formula.
4. i started both of my boys on cereal at about 4 weeks. it helped my first one sleep and didn't effect my second son's sleep pattern. i have a friend who put cereal in her son's bottle ata bout 4 weeks because he spit up all of the time. you can also get formula with a rice additive but it is more expensive. i say go for it if your doc says it's ok. good luck.
5. Surprised he is saying that he should know better then that.ive started mine at 15 weeks. if she is hungry give her the milk 4 hungrier babys and see how that goes .or get a second opinion. coz it is to soon her belly wont be able to digest it properly and will give her an upset belly.hope that helps.
6. I've noticed a lot of people on this site feed their baby rice cereal early. I try not to be judgemental but I really advise not feeding it to your baby until she is 4-5 months old. Breast milk or infant formula supplies all of your baby's nutritional needs for at least the first 4 to 6 months of life, so don't be in a rush to start solid baby foods. Starting solids too early can cause your baby to develop food allergies. Your baby's intestinal tract is not as fully developed during the first few months and introducing solids at this time can be too much to handle. Another reason for holding off on solids is your baby's inability to swallow solids correctly before 4 to 6 months of age and this can potentially cause choking. And contrary to the popular myth, starting solids early will not help your child to sleep through the night. I would be concerned that your Dr. suggested starting solids so early since it goes against the advice of the American Academy of Pediatrics! I would seriously think about getting a second opinion for the phlegm problem!
7. I don't plan on ever giving my child rice cereal. It's junk; it's vitamin-fortified wallpaper paste. If I want to give her rice, I'll cook up some regular brown rice and smush it a bit. And, yeah, you're right -- it is too early. I have no idea what good your doctor thinks it might do. "Cereals started as an important part of a child's diet back when the infant formula companies couldn't get an absorbable form of iron into the formula. They then fortified rice cereal with iron and introduced the rice cereal early into the diet as a way to make sure the kids got the iron. Chances are pretty good that the eventual increase in sleeping at night that happens around six to eight weeks of age coincided with the introduction of the cereal, but not because of it. Now, all the infant formulas are fortified with iron and of course, breastmilk has an abundant and easily absorbable supply of iron in it, so we really don't need an extra source. If you take away the iron in the cereals, it's just starch. And if you buy this idea that rice cereal "sits" in the stomach, then we have to talk about that too. Nothing "sits" in the stomach (even when kids eat pennies and stuff, that stuff passes). It's a metabolically active organ always working to digest its contents. And at least one study has recently showed that early introduction of rice cereal (prior to 4 months of age) is a risk factor for the development of diabetes. Different types of food take longer to digest. Starch, which is what rice cereal is, is really easily digested. Starches are used as quick sources of energy. If we stayed asleep for however long our bellies are full (which I don't believe either or we would never sleep for 6-8 hours a night) then starch would be a poor choice. We would need to load our kids up with a Big Mac or something to get them to sleep longer since fat is the slowest food type to be digested. That's a long explanation to say that I don't really think the cereals are necessary-- they aren't a good source of nutrition and they don't make kids sleep and may, with the new info on the link to diabetes, be actually be harmful. The AAP says 6 months without solids...we are learning that the rush to solids foods is NOT a good idea." http://www.drjen4kids.com/myths/mythrice.htm
8. I don't really think your suppose to put rice cereal into bottles anymore. I know its sometimes practiced with reflux, but even then the evidence is controversial. Perhaps try getting another opinion from a different doctor. I find that many older practicing Dr. still give advice that they were giving 20 years ago. Adding rice cereal to baby's bottles has caused problems like obesity, choking and it doesn't help baby to learn to eat solids. Also early introduction can lead to diabetes as well as other issues (like allergies and eczema). Some people don't think rice cereal is a solid but it is. It truly is best to wait till your baby is showing signs of being ready for solids. Usually close to 6 months (but sometimes longer) I hope this helps.