Health visitor says no baby porridge at 16 old any opinions pls

[isobel79]

Hi

My HV has said no baby porridge for my lo who is 16 weeks tomorrow. He is on 7oz of milk. He weighed 15lb on 16\6.

Any opinions would be gratefully received. I feel like he needs something more. He's on pepti 1 and it doesn't seem to fill him up.

Thanks all

Nope, you're damn touchy though. Vinegar for the chip on your shoulder?

Dept of Health advice was 4 months until 2003 when it changed to 6 months.
Personally, i was glad to be able to start giving solids as my babies were both very big (meaning 98th centile by weight and hungry) and were taking 500ml by 4 months. They are now very healthy pre-tenn / teenagers with no signs of allergies. Putting them on solids - which I did on HV advice - was one of the easier decisions I had to make in bringing them up. (Wait until you've got bullying to cope with, and the peer pressure not to snitch - then you have a dilemma!)

I think just milk is enough especially as he is over 15 pounds already

It was 4-6 months from 1994, changing the official advice from 4 months. You can look up the department of health publication.

Thanks all

My first needed more than milk from about 4 1/2 months. I didn't realise, nor did the HV. Tried hard to keep going to 6 months with just breastmilk. He would drink a lot, settle, then fuss after 10 - 15 mins. Stopped gaining weight. Started waking a lot in the night wanting milk.

In desperation I gave him some baby porridge on day (feeling guilty!) and he settled immediately. Happier, slept better at nights, started gaining weight. His poops got a lot nastier though!

Lovely HV actually apologised for not picking up he was one of the uncommon babies who needed more, though I don't think she needed to - I wanted quite badly to keep him on milk.

Second baby did it by the book, he was fine until 6m when we started weaning.

So 6 months -should- be okay, but it's worth keeping in mind that the occasional baby does seem ready for more, earlier. I hadn't heard of Hungry Baby Milk then, or that would have been the next step.

The older has always been tiny though, very low percentile, and the lack of weight gain was a real worry.

SeaEagleFeather thank you for your tip

On the subject of closed gut: scienceofmom.com/2016/05/03/whats-up-with-the-virgin-gut-do-babies-really-have-an-open-gut-until-6-months-of-age/

Sweden and (I believe) many other European countries are still advising 4-6 months.

And btw the sit up unaided advice is not set in stone unless you are doing BLW. Some babies do not sit until 8+ months but are otherwise fully developed; absolutely no reason why a late sitter should not be allowed to sit on somebody's lap and try solids at say 6 months.

Swedish doctors, looking into coeliac disease, recommend that weaning starts at four months, including gluten, so that the baby is still taking in lots of breast milk when gluten is introduced.

There was a big increase in coeliac disease when weaning was pushed back and researchers in Sweden think it was because mothers weren't breastfeeding as much later on in the baby's first year and so the 'protection' against a reaction to gluten was diminished,

There is no evidence for 6 months being a better weaning time than 4 months. The recommendations here in the US are reverting from 6 months back to 4-6 months.

Give your baby what you think is best.

I have a suspicion that the "4 month sleep regression" is actually about babies wanting to eat food, not just milk. In cultures around the world, parents give babies chewed-up food at 4 months old both to amuse them and to help them sleep a little longer.

Actually there is a lot of evidence. It's just that there is also a lot of evidence that 4 months on is a good time too.
Science is great like that!

Ah we did BLW so that's why we were told when she could sit up! Didn't know if was different if you spoon fed

The people saying they gave their kids food early and they're fine now how old are your kids now?
I am 32 and I was given food at 3 months. I have Ulcerative Colitis but I didn't find out I had this until I was 18.
My brother is a year younger than me and also found out he has UC and he only found out in 2014!
I'm not saying we have gut problems because we were given food early but it's about as relevant as saying your kid is fine and you fed it early.

We began weaning our premature dd at around 4 months, with the full support of the hv's. However we began weaning because she was grabbing for food on our plates as opposed to in an effort to keep her full. She was playing with foods for a little while and milk was still her main source of nutrients.

Our DD is only 11 months and milk was her main source of nutrients until she was 8 months and is still BF

DD was born in 2004. 20 weeks was the minimum guideline then as I recall.

HowLongTillTippingPoint Fri 01-Jul-16 18:23:15

"The people saying they gave their kids food early and they're fine now how old are your kids now?
...
I'm not saying we have gut problems because we were given food early but it's about as relevant as saying your kid is fine and you fed it early."

Yes, if you are looking at individuals. The sensible thing would be to compare whole populations: either see if colitis has decreased in the UK since the new rules, or if Sweden, which has different guidelines, has a higher rate of colitis.

As long as you're not debating pesto and tomatoes I think you're ok ha ha

For those people convinced breastmilk has more calories than anything in the world - I found the absolute best thing for my rapidly-dropping-percentiles baby at 4 months was baby porridge mixed with breastmilk. The calorie values on the side are for if you mix it with water.

Kid was staunchly refusing any more milk but mix it with porridge and offer it on a spoon and, thank god, he took it.

Thanks all
LO isn't grabbing for food but he watches everything I eat as if to say where's mine! !! I think he is beginning to learn the concept of food to mouth cause he always seems very intrigued. dunno if it's his thing atm or whether he is grasping the whole eating thing???

Da scientists just make it up innit. U no best hun. Ur baybee ur rulez. Xx I gave big Mac blended in a milkshake at 6 weeks hun.

You've had loads of great advice on here.

Babies are intrigued by anything we do...like watching up drive and following out hand as it goes to gear stick and back. Doesn't mean they are ready to try driving. Same with food.

My dd is nearly 21. She was weaned
at 6 months- as I was advised by
my health visitor. And supported
Interestingly, by my mother, who
weaned her children in the 1940s and 1950s.