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Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

Rashes and weaning

3 replies

NessInKew · 01/04/2008 08:44

4 days ago I started my 21 week old DS on baby rice (Organix First Wholegrain Babyrice) mixed with breastmilk. He now has a violent rash on both cheeks. He doesn't seem in any pain/discomfort - and of course it could be totally unrelated - but I was just wondering if anyone else had similar experiences? Any thoughts on what it could mean? Perhaps 21 weeks is too early (?) but he seemed to be hungrier than my bfing could satisfy, and was waking up earlier and earlier. Not sure if I should stop the babyrice, change brands (I tried Cow and Gate for one meal), try other foods, or stop weaning altogether. Any thoughts..? Thanks so much.

OP posts:
RuthChan · 01/04/2008 13:13

I have no personal experience of the rash you describe, but 21 weeks does seem rather young to start him on solids.
His digestive system is still very immature and it would certainly increase the chances of him developing allergies.

Waking earlier is not a surprising symptom in such a young baby.
Is he waking unreasonably early?
Can he not be satisfied with extra feeds?
Is it definitely due to hunger? (Could it be due to something like the lighter mornings...?)

NessInKew · 01/04/2008 21:07

Thanks so much for your input. You're right, it could be due to the light. However, he is also putting everything in sight into his mouth (which made me think my bfing wasn't not enough). He's such a big baby for his age (98th centile) so I wasn't sure I was producing enough milk for him. Do you think I should just move to formula to supplement bfing (can I go back now I've started weaning?) or should I battle on with the baby rice? Or maybe try a different weaning food like pureed fruit? Thanks so much for your help.

OP posts:
RuthChan · 02/04/2008 00:10

It's natural for babies to put everything in their mouths, but this is not necessarily a sign of hunger.
They use their lips and tongue (which are very sensitive) to explore objects and gain extra sensory information.
You are probably noticing that your DS does this recently because he is gaining control of his body and is therefore able to find his own mouth better.

For signs of hunger:
Does he cry more often for food?
Does he feed for longer?
Does he seem upset during a feed or at the end, as though he's not get enough to satisfy him?

If the answers to these questions are 'no', then your milk is probably satisfying him.
If he's in the middle of a growth spurt, it is possible that he will want to feed more often, but as long as those extra feeds are satisfying him, there's no need to suppliment your milk with solids or formula.

Your body is designed to increase your milk production in line with the volume he's drinking, so you should find that you can satisfy him, even as he drinks more.

Another factor could be teething.
Although it is unlikely that he will start cutting teeth in the very near future. (They usually start coming through at about 5-6 months) it is possible that the teeth are starting to move inside his gums. This could be causing him pain, which may disturb his sleep or cause him to feed more for the comfort.

If all this has made you think that maybe he doesn't need the solids afterall, I would strongly advise you to stop feeding them to him and to try again when he is closer to 6 months old.
(For more information about solids, you can see an article I wrote here)

If you still think he's hungry, then take it very slowly, and you may want to consider discussing it with your HV.

Good luck.

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