When Can You Start Putting Cereal in the Baby's Bottle?

Infants stomachs are devloped enough to handle the cereal, it's their mouths and tongues that that need to learn the chewing movements.Cereal does have nutrional value with theh B vitamins and zinc and iron- get the forified stuff. I personally and I know of several pediatricians that don't think you should put cereal in a bottle. My mom did it for me and all that. I just put Mac in a bouncy seat (upright) and started him on milky cereal at about that age- he was totally ready for it and didn't have any problems. He is a great eater now at 19mths too! He eats everything! I know some pedatricians are concerned about weight gain if you put it in a bottle, but I don't know if that is really too much of an issu since YOU control how much you are putting in it. I just choose do it with a spoon so he could practice eating and get used to the texture and he thought it was a fun thing to try- he got to hold the spoon etc. I don't know if it made a difference, but he was way ahead of his daycare class (he didn't start until one year) at using utensils and eating on his own. So many of them still use only their hands- which is normal too- but he will mostly use his fork and spoon. I guess it's really up to you! Good Luck and keep a few old bibs hany for the messy stuff! lol P.

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It's never a good idea to put cereal in a baby's bottle. It's a definite choking hazard especially at naps/bedtime. I also don't recommend people ask their doctor about nutrition advice unless they've had some training in the area. Doctors are good at diagnosing illness and disease and prescribing medication. That's what they went to school for, not nutrition.

It's best for the baby's health to wait as long as possible to start them on solids (ideally you want to wait until 6 months, but some babies are ready for solids early) because their digestive system is not mature enough to handle solid foods under 4 months and even at 4 months you want to give them whole foods that they can feed themselves with like chunks of avocado or banana so they can self regulate the amount of food they eat. These are the also the "First Foods" Dr. William Sears recommends in his "Family Nutrition Book".

Another excellent book to read on nutrition for kids is "Disease Proof Your Child" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and his book for adults "Eat to Live". Buy them on Amazon or get them at your local library. These are not "dieting" books, but books to educate you about food politics and science based nutrition. The kind of information you should have learned in school at some point :)

G. G.
Certified Health Educator
Winter Park, FL
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I personally do not agree with putting cereal in the bottle. The cereal when eaten from the spoon at about 4 months teaches the baby how to start eating a different way. The only "advantage" to putting cereal in the bottle is to make them sleep through the night, but this does not work as well as the theory says it does. If it helps them sleep, it usually because it is not easily digested and sits in their intestines for a long period of time. It also can cause them to wake up in pain if they are not digested well. I would hold off until 4 months and give from a spoon

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The reason why all doctors have a different opinion on this issuse is because there isn't a "right" answer. Every baby has a different need.
At three months, your baby is probably eating 4-6 ounzes every three to four hours. If she isn't lasting that long between bottles, give her 8 ounzes in her bottle and see if that makes her last 3-4 hours between feedings. If it doesn't, something else might be going on. You shouldn't ever really "have" to put cereal in a baby's bottle. Sometimes we do it for different reasons like wanting the baby to sleep longer at night or to reduce spitting up, but normally you don't ever have to give a baby cereal in his/her bottle.

Be sure you are reading her cues correctly. If you fed her an hour and a half ago and she ate a normal (for her) size amount, then chances are she isn't hungry. Sometimes when a baby has gas or an upset stomache, they will seem to be hungry because they give us the same body language cues. The reason for this is because they think they are hungry because their stomache hurts and feels the same to them as when they are hungry. When this happens, she will accept a bottle because it is (sorta) helping the stomache issue. So be sure of what she really needs first.
If you are sure she is still hungry after a normal feeding, I would first increase the amount of formula in her bottle before I would add cereal. If this helps her last 3-4 jours, you know you've found the problem.
If you determine that she is ready for some food, try spoon feeding her the cereal.
I hope this helps...~C.

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never! Cereal should ONLY be given off a spoon after four months (or four months adjusted) and better for six months. If doctor is concerned about weight gain then he will suggest a higher calorie formula. The only time that cereal in a bottle is good is if you have a reflux baby. Cereal in the bottle leads to all sorts of problems, obesity, diabetes, food allergies etc...

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I.,
You can't put it in the bottle ever so my dr said. However, you can spoon feed it to her when she is four months. It's not that easy, but she needs to learn how to eat from a spoon.
God Bless,
R.

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My opinion is - never. Bad habit. I believe you can start spoon feeding your baby a little (1 teaspoon) of rice cereal a little before bedtime. I was advised many years ago not to feed my children through the bottle, that one of the things that are important is that they learn to eat properly and it starts this way.

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I've read in several places (and was advised by my doctor) NOT to put cereal in the bottle, but to spoon feed it to my baby. Sometimes they can choke a bit on the thicker formula, and this teaches them a new, fun skill! We started around 3-4 months with just a Tbsp. every evening.

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Hey, I.~ I have a 4 month old and am in the same boat as you. I read an article on www.babyfit.com that outlines things to look for to recognize when your child's ready for the next step with food. I thought it was very helpful because rather than it being a specific month, etc, you can see when your little ones ready regardless of age. There were a couple things I've noticed in Taylor. She's starting to eyeball my food and she seems hungry more often, so the 7 ozs ever 3 hours isn't cutting anymore.

My mom and I thought it's be cute to try and feed her applesauce on Easter.... yeah, well, it wasn't the baby applesauce and I had more white spit up/throw up on me than I have had to date with this little one. SO, avoid the adult apple sauce to begin with :)

Congrats on your new addition & take care!

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As a mother of 3 kids ages 16, 11, 9 I can let you know that all of them started on cereal between 3 and 4 months. I started with a night bottle and when I saw it did not cause any problems I increased to morning and night. Good luck and enjoy her, time passes fast.

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I don't know the official answer to the question but I started feeding my son cereal when he was able to swallow it. Somewhere around 4 months. I know some parents feed them cereal sooner but I would take the cue from your baby and try giving the baby a spoonful. If the baby swallows and wants more, I think she is ready. I tried at three months but he spit it out immediately.

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I read and heard from my ped. that you shouldn't put cereal in a bottle at all. I began feeding my son cereal from a spoon at about 6 months.

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I would not put anything in the bottle until the doc's say it's ok. My daughter was 4 weeks early and I did not give her cereal until she was at least 5 months and that was due to her acid reflux.

I have also heard that if you get cereal to early, stuidies have show it can be linked to obesity.

Hope this helps!

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If I remember correctly, around 4 months is when babies begin to eat solids -- let me rephrase, begin to LEARN to EAT solids. Their source of nutrients is still the breast or bottle. But you'll begin giving a little solid food (starting with the cereals) at breakfast lunch and dinner... a few spoonfuls each time. It is experimentation time! It's FUN! There is no need to add anything to the bottle. As their food skills improve (and they grow bigger) they will begin to eat more (quantity and variety) solids at their meals, and over time (months) will drink less from the bottle. I NEVER added anything to my kids' bottles and I NEVER had ANY problems with them waking during the night after the first 6-8 weeks (unless ear infection, cold, etc). Please don't think that you EVER need to add stuff to the bottle, bc you don't. Some people have done it thinking it will help their babies sleep better at night.. but if that is what you are aiming for, then there are other things you can try that work better. Some people do it b/c that's what their mom did, or their friend did, etc. People substitute with juice too, but that is TOTALLY unnecessary and adds sugar for no good reason. My kids never drank juice and still don't care for it. I have one who is 7 and STILL only likes water, milk, milkshakes, and gatorade. It's GREAT. No sodas, b/c she's not accustomed to her beverage being a sweet snack. Good luck.

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if she is just at the beginning stages of teething it is ok. for my boys we started when we saw that thier apetites were increasing. if you add it to the bottle then it will surpress her hunger for longer times in between feedings. by the time my boys were 4 months they started the first signs of teething and we started them on regular rice cereal. when you can feel new bumps in her gums that is how you can tell that she is in the first stages of teething.

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I.,

First I would start by saying what the Bible tells us in Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. Acknowledge Him in all thy ways and he will direct your paths.
I personally have two daughters and would wait and until her stomach has time to develop. She will be alright with the milk for now. I bottle fed one of mine and breast fed to other. And the doctors are right in telling you to wait. I hope that this is helpful and feel free to e-mail me anytime.

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I dont feel it will hurt your baby if you want to start putting cereal in her or his bottle. I have 3 kids and I started them all on cereal by the time thy turn 2 months I never had a problem.

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my advice to you is do what you feel you should do. You are going to get a lot of different answers for this topic. I started putting rice in my sons bottle when he was two months old, but they he started getting constipated, so I stopped. I haven't tried since, but now he is on baby food and he is 5 months. But, my advice to you is do what you feel is best for your baby. Only trial and error will tell you what to do. That is just one advice from one mother to another.

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I am an RN with a six year old. He had reflux when he was a baby and my pediatrician started putting formula in his bottle when he was six weeks old to thicken it. RIce cereal works best and we use the scooper for the formula: 1 scoop per bottle.

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My daughter is 11 months old now and I started putting formula in her bottle when she was around 3 months just so it would fill her up more before bed time. It did help her sleep longer. I didn't add it in the daytime until she was over 4 months old. I think it helped her transition into spoon fed cereal at 5 1/2 months because she was adjusted to taste.

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