Just a question about how much feed my 4 month old should be having?

[shellmc]

Hi my ds has been having a little bit of rice or rusk the past few weeks along with his bottles.
He is a hungrey baby and have gradually been giving him little bits of dinners and puddings from the jars as he was just hungrey all the time and polishing his bottles off he is having 8oz bottles now.
Im just wondering if anyone could help me as to how much food and bottles he should be having at this age, im a first time mummy and dont want to overfeed him as mush as i dont want to underfeed him 2.

Thankyou any help would be grateful x

[pooexplosions]

Why do people ask if they are so convinced they know better.
The question was how much food should a 4 month old baby have, and the answer is none. Its not difficult, but since you know better, do whatever you like.

[GirlsAreLOud]

My DD was hungry all the time, she was 9 pounds 11 at birth. I breastfed her a LOT! If it seems like a pain in the arse to make a bottle every two hours then imagine having to breastfeed for hours on end with only breaks of up to half an hour in between.

I weaned DD onto solids at 6 months, despite the helpful advice of my 'friend' who started her DS on sloppy rusks (boak) at 11 weeks and insisted my DD would reject all her food and be a picky eater as a result of leaving it too late.

Both babies are 13mo and my DD is happy to eat anything of any texture, her DS still has to be spoonfed slop from a spoon.

[shellmc]

Hi sarahken- your dd sounds soo much like my ds, he is too on stage 2 milk for hungrier babies has been from he was 6 weeks, we were feeding him every 2-3 hours and it is time consuming.
He has just gone 4 months and 2 weeks ago is weighing 15lb 12oz, im not taking away his milk at all, we are giving him his usual bottles and if we feel he is needing a little more giving him the exyra milk and also like you he has tried the petit flou yoghurt, and his rice mixed with milk in morning and mayb a little later in the day.
I know like alot of people say on here it is best to leave the weaning till as late as possible but if your baby needs it they need it and along with the health visitors advice, you know your baby.
As in the question how much food should a 4 month old have maybe i wrote it wrong how many feeds should they be having?? I have looked on the back of the milk formula and for his age he should be having 5 bottles a day 6oz in each, my ds takes 6 bottles a day at 7oz and sometimes 8oz.
Thanx again

[mummywhodrinks]

But babies do feed every 2/3 hours, its what they are supposed to do. Its normal and healthy and good for them to feed frequently.

[pooexplosions]

So now you are not just asking but advising others?
Its time consuming to feed them milk? Thats called parenting....

Better hide this thread, its making me too cross.....

[bangandthedirtisgone]

Time consuming? What else don't you bother doing because it's time consuming? Nappy changes?

[QueenOfFuckingEverything]

I do understand that there are stages when the feeding seems endless.

But it doesn't last forever. They are only tiny once. It might be 'time consuming' but surely its worth spending time feeding your baby? I can't think of anything more worthwhile.

Milk is, honestly, the best food for a baby so young. If a baby is sleeping 12 hours at night, and feeding every 2 hours when awake - well, thats only 6 feeds a day. I don't get why that is not worth doing, in order to give them the best start?

[LIZS]

"I'm not weaning her off milk, just supplmenting her calorie intake by offering it after she has had her bottle feed."

sarahken, I would recheck the labels of the porridge and petit filous - it is doubtful that these foods are any denser in calories than milk.

[QueenOfFuckingEverything]

Petit filous probably is - its full of sugar

[shellmc]

Im not convinced i know better, that is why i came on here just to see how other parents and babies are feeding?! MN is a great site and i have been on here a while now, throughout my pregnancy and was offered lots of great advice any concerns or worrys i had were always answeared. It also helped me through after my miscarriage last year. That is why i turned to this site again.
I am a bit upset that some people on here think i dont have time to feed my baby ie time consuming i was agreeing with sarahken who too is the same as me and is noticing her dd is a hungrey baby and having feeds very frequent. I love feeding my baby i know babys have frequent feeds that is why sarahken introduced the porridge and petit flous, i was agreeing with her that it is exactly as my ds son was. We are both being advised by HV to try the little bits of prorridge, baby rice, rusks ect.
pooexplosions and bangandthedirtisgone your making me feel soo bad i apriciate your opinoins and thankyou i know you mean well and you make sense babys should just be having more milk if they are hungrey my baby does have milk and more milk its only been on a few occasions that he has had the rice ect, i dont give him it all the time and instead of his milk. I dont find anything time consuming including his nappy changes!!!
Im a good mum and i wont be told any different i love my baby he means the world to me, i love taking care of him all i was doing was asking for advice which i now have.
I keep getting comments saying well you know better so go ahead but i dont know better. Im a first time mum like many others out there, we all need to ask for help at some point in our lives.
Sorry if i have made people cross i didnt mean to.

[bangandthedirtisgone]

Great, now that you know your baby doesn't need solid food yet are going to stop giving it to him?

[sambo2]

Shellmc - please don't be upset by their comments or rise to the bait. These mothers seem to enjoy stirring things up and think that their decisions/choices are superior. You, nor I, are the first and last to wean at 4 months. You are NOT damaging your child. I sought ALOT of medical advise when weaning (as I have detailed in this thread) and it was not a flippant decision.

They don't agree. That is fine. There are plenty of threads which I don't 'agree' with, but I don't make a point of upsetting the mother who started them by making childish, school ground comments. They have made their points and should have left it at that. Ignore them.

I am sure there will be a few who will continue to make bitchy comments - be 'flattered' that they seem to have so much time to respond .

[pooexplosions]

Yeah, don't listen to us. Only listen to people who agree with you, even when they are wrong.
You wouldn't want to actually learn anything or ever change your opinion. Have a big group hug and validate your choices instead.

[sambo2]

I thought you were too cross to still be watching this thread...

Get over yourself and leave her alone.

[Ineedsomesleep]

Sambo2, exactly where did you seek your medical advice?

Have you got a link to the research that says its benefical and necessary to wean before 6 months?

If you have, I'd love to see it.

[sambo2]

1. A Harley Street Paediatric Dietician (who I was referred to by my GP)
2. A Gastro-Paeditrician at The Portland (he practices on the NHS, but I can't remember where)

I have detailed the published paper earlier in the link - I have googled it, but it is not online. Sorry!

[Ineedsomesleep]

Seems a shame that the World Health Organisation are apparently completely unaware of this elusive paper.

There advice is not to wean before 6 months.

Shellmc are you aware of the risks associated with giving wheat, ie rusks, before 6 months?

[Ineedsomesleep]

That should have said Their obviously.

[sarahken]

I'm not claiming that I'm feeding my dd puree's because bottlefeeding it is 'too time consuming', I love feeding her. It is because my daughter is failing to put weight on even though she is having 25-30 oz's a day. She cannot physically drink anymore milk and if I try she is simply sick, that is why I have been advised to give her some food to boost her calorie intake. I know the puree's don't contain many calories, but I'm just doing what my health visitors has advised because they are concerned about her lack of growth and her failure to maintain her weight on the 25th pecentile.

My doctor has suggested both my children may need tests (for what I have not asked), as my son only weighs 30lbs and he is 4 next month (he weighed 28lbs on his 1st birthday), and he is on the 9th line for weight and height. I'm not going to apologise to anyone for simply wanting to do what's best for my dd and by wanting her to put weight on as milk is obviously not providing everything she needs. I just feel hounded from all sides- for feeding her too early and if I don't feed her puree's; health professionals questioning her inability to put weight on, I'm in a catch 22, as is Shellmc and some people just need to understand not all baby's are the same, and sometimes benefits may outweigh the disadvantage of early weaning. Most people my age were weaned at 3-4 months, and I don't know anyone with any digestion/bowel disorders

[LuluMamaaaaarrrrr]

giving a baby of 12 weeks anything other than food is plain wrong UNLESS under paediatrician advice.

your health visitor was absolutely 100 % wrong to advise that

as has been stated current guidelines are around 6 months to wean and never before 17 weeks

giving rusk , which contains gluten before 6 months , is not a good idea.

i am sorry you feel jumped on, but weaning too early, without correct medical supervision could cause problems with your baby in the future

you can do no harm at all by waiting to wean, but there is a tiny chance you could create problems by weaning early, that is not a judgement on you as a mother, you went on the advice of your HV, which you should be able to trust

however, she was wrong, and why advise you to wean with a particular brand? you can mnake your own food much cheaper.. methinks she has had some undue influence!

sambo2 weaned under 2 specialists, you are weaning under the incorrect advice of a HV

a bottle fed baby of 4 months needs more milk, he is taking less milk as his stomach is full of food, and milk should be the main source of nutrition for the first year., so reducing milk intake at this age is wrong.

the physical signs of gut maturity and ability to digest safely, food other than milk, as milk is a baby's food, are :

sitting unaided
good head control
loss of tongue thrust reflex
pincer grip
ability to pick up, chew and swallow a piece of food

if your baby is showing those signs, then carry on ! but not with any products with gluten in, if not, then stop

you asked how much food a 4 month old should be having , the answer according to the NHS and the DoH is none

following bad advice from a HV does not make you a bad mother

ignoring the correct advice, well, it's up to you, but your baby might simply not be pysically able to digest food and you might not know if there are any problems for 10 or 20 years down the line

also, do not ever add anything to the bottles, whether rusk or rice, however sloppy

[LuluMamaaaaarrrrr]

"anything other than milk not food ! ooopss!

[LuluMamaaaaarrrrr]

a child who is not gaining weight, who is being weaned under paediatric advice is different from the OPs baby, who is a big healthy strapping baby, in need of nothing other than milk!!

[BiscuitStuffer]

What is wrong with being on the 9th percentile?
Those height / weight charts get the HVs all in a tizz and they're based on 100 scandinavian babies who were all formula fed.

I think if your baby is growing and has energy, then being anywhere on the charts is fine surely??

[shellmc]

I dont add rice or rusk to my babys bottle i mix the rice using his milk from his bottle.

My healthvisitor asked me what milk he was on i told her cow and gate so when we were discussing giving a little extra she used cow and gate as thats what milk im using.

My ds has had milk for the past 2 days alone with no rice or rusk, and is guzzling 8oz 6 aa day. It hasnt done him any harm but did wake twice tru night and took feeds, where he has been sleeping well. Can i just add i havent been feeding him rusks and rice all the time from when he was 12 weeks!!! he has had these a few times and small amounts.

Anyhow i have taken advice and ds has been having milk alone for last few days i will continue, to see how he gets on im bk at |HV on 6th oct soo will discuss these comments with her.
Thanks to sarahken and sambo2 for your kindness, and you both have helped and your comments are the same as the advice i was given and by my 2 close friends.
Thanks to everyone else for your opinions.

[LuluMamaaaaarrrrr]

8 oz 6 times a day, including 2 night feeds is a normal amount, and not indicative of a terribly hungry baby!!

i am seriously shocked at the outdated and frankly , inaccurate, wrong and possibly harmful advice your HV is giving out.

weaning at 12 weeks is just not advisable at all.

i am glad you have decided to go back to milk only, you and your baby have a long time ahead to get on to solid foods!

milk , milk and more milk is the safest, most nutritious and calorific food you can give a baby of this age. growth spurts do tend to occur around 16 weeks/20 weeks which can make oyu think they need something more than milk, but withouth the physical signs of readiness, i would stick with milk