Friend feeding 12 week old porridge.

[easterbunnie]

I went to visit a friend today who's recently had a baby. When I asked how DS sleeps, she replied " well " and then proceeded to tell me she feeds DS porridge at night before she puts him down.

DS is 12 weeks. I didn't say anything as it's not my place but I'm wondering if this harmful?

what porridge? baby porridge?

Well actually there is such a thing called science and research. A baby's digestive system isn't yet mature enough at 12 weeks generally. Is it really relevant what you did when you were a child and that you were OK? Anyone can say that about anything 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Nope not just me, millions of others too.
I'm really glad you put the word generally in … that’s exactly the point I was making. Generally speaking the current advice is to wait. However each baby is different and some will benefit from baby porridge or baby rice earlier than others. Some may not benefit or need solids until much later.

But because a mum isn’t following the general current advice you’ve made a very extreme comment that some people shouldn’t be allowed children. A very extreme and superior and unwarranted comment. Really no need for it at all

When I had my children, 20 odd years ago, weaning at 3mths was the norm.
Baby rice, farleys rusks and fruit purée initially. My two are perfectly healthy. I wouldn't worry.

Yes that's true you're right. This was the third thread I've read where people seem to just go against recommend advice which I find so frustrating why you would unnecessarily do things that might harm your child now or later. Then so many comments like "well I did it 20 years ago and I was fine" because so were alot of things. I also don't see why OP can't nicely tell her friend who might appreciate the info, I know I would. The problem here that if a child's digestive system isn't properly developed, it can cause harm to them, particularly as an adult.

I was born in the 70's, when my first child arrived my mum told me I was given formula with weetabix smooshed into it as a drink and fed via a bottle with larger holes in the teat from some crazy early age... I think that was normal

Giving some sort of cereal was common at 3 months when mine were babies, and a DSis started giving some sort of purée to her very hungry son at 2 months. He’s 50 now, perfectly healthy, and has never been remotely overweight.

Surely it depends on the baby? Why would all babies need the same thing at the same age?

We were advised by DD's paediatrician to wean from 16 weeks as she had severe reflux and CMPA and were hardly able to get milk into her. She is nearly 9 and is fine.

I'm sure the baby is fine. It used to be advice from 6 weeks and all them babies are alive I presume

I did exactly this at around 14 weeks with both of mine, albeit 20 years ago. They slept great!
My mum told me the midwife gave me purée rusks at three days old to stop me crying fifty years ago. Not sure how true that is.

Young babies aren’t meant to ‘sleep great’. Frequent waking is a protective factor for SIDS.

The guidelines changed to 6 months/24 weeks as my eldest was being born nearly 20 years ago. So health visitors were still ok with introducing from 20 weeks onwards. I did a lot of research and whilst it all definitely said not to introduce before 3 months, there was nothing saying it was harmful from 4 months onwards. I also think think the guidelines will be reviewed as there are definitely more allergies in children since the guidance to wean from 6 months has embedded.

Early 2000's my DD had blood sugar issues at birth, had reflux & vomited after literally every feed. Didn't make any difference whether breast of formula. By 4 months she just wasn't interested in milk and getting even a couple of floz. was a battle. She was still quite low weight. HV advised to start weaning very slowly. Literally overnight success. It was amazing what difference a couple of baby rice/porridge meals made.

12 weeks does admittedly sound quite early.

Maybe so. But the weaning advice was different then.

DS started on the baby rice at 11 weeks on the advice of the paediatrician which was a whole week earlier than the 12 weeks that was recommended at the time

The UK is one of the latest recommended weaning ages I believe. The rest of Europe and the US recommend it starts at 4 months old.

DS is now 6ft 5 and perfectly fit and well.

My first child was 8 weeks premature, by the time I got him home he had an insatiable hunger as he was growing so fast.
I kept him on milk as long as I could but I did include solids before the guidelines suggested I should.
They did finally settled him and regulated his hunger far better than milk alone ever did.

Interesting, mine was 8 weeks early too and was beyond ready for solids at 16 weeks, practically grabbed the spoon off me!

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor yep, there was no way milk would have cut it until 6 months! He was taking a full bottle and screaming for another one an hour later, he was definitely hungry as he drank every drop of milk in every bottle I gave him.
I understand guidelines are there to keep everyone as healthy as possible but every* *baby is different.
Sometimes we have to use our common sense/instinct and do what is best for the baby we have rather than the hypothetical baby in the guidance.

@QueenBee1234 , a friend of mine with a very hungry baby of only about 7 weeks (2 full bottles at every feed) was told sternly by her HV to ‘treat him like an alcoholic’ and restrict his feeds (or he’d be overweight).

Of course she ignored the wretched woman, and her baby never was overweight then or later - just a big (tall);hungry baby/toddler/child.

@GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER that is awful, I can't believe anyone would think treating a 7 wk old baby like an alcoholic was acceptable!
I was thoroughly told off at the time by the health visitor/midwives for introducing solids when I did - they didn't have to listen to my poor baby screaming every hour because he was so hungry!!!
Most people try to follow guidance as best they can, we all want healthy, happy babies. Sometimes we don't get a baby that knows it should be following the rules though!

When I was a baby, apparently giving newborns baby rice mixed in to a bottle was the norm. I was appalled to hear that when I had my first. I followed all guidelines. Interesting to note, in the hospital, they gave babies glucose in water in little bottles between feeds (this was not uk, nurses kept babies in a nursery).

Here in uk, when I had my second, followed all guidelines and belonged to NCT. I had to go back to work 3 months after giving birth. I could not get my baby to take a bottle. She’s been exclusively breast fed and was doing so well.

had both breast feeding counsellor and the health visitor trying to get her take a biggie, breast milk, baby milk, different bottles, me leaving the house etc. but nothing was working.

both suggest and instructed I give her carer breast milk and baby rice to give her and continued to try the bottle.

so my baby had baby rice from 12 weeks. She is 22 now and no problems.

My ds was a milk refuser. We had to give him yoghurts from 12 weeks.

Hes 29 and 6ft 4 now. No health problems.

If a poster started a thread saying “should I give my 12 week old porridge” then the sensible response is to point out the current guidelines and very good reason for them.
but that’s not this thread. The ops friend has already been doing it. The friend hasn’t asked for advice and can’t go back in time to undo it. If the thing they were doing was indeed “very dangerous” then the op would probably be right to bring it up, risk harming the friendship and making the new mum feel like shit. But as many posters pointed out it’s not “very dangerous”, it’s “not advice”. Very different.

My nephew went to see a specialist because he struggles with textures, and she said she'd seen a huge increase in food refusal since the 6 month guidelines have come in and she firmly believed there is a 4-6month period where food texture learning was now being missed.