My baby is almost 6 months. We have been introducing solids to him for about 2 weeks now. I need some advice and tips if anyone has them.
-I'm not sure of how often I should be feeding him solids. He currently nurses after every nap (about 5-6 times a day) and eats solids once in the morning (fruit) and once in the late afternoon (veggie)... (usually a 2.5 oz jar).
-He loves to eat! Sometimes he will eat 4 oz jars or more because he just keeps asking for it. My doctor said to just follow his cues and if he wants more or less, give it to him. I just feel like he may be eating too much. He is recently spitting up...which he never does. He only spit up about twice when he was a newborn.
- He is SUPER constipated all the time. I've tried giving him the P foods to help... pears, peaches, etc. But it is hard as a rock, poor thing! I know that breastfed babies tend to get more constipated while eating solids, but I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong and feeding him too much or the wrong foods or what. I also try to avoid the foods that cause constipation.
- Typically he eats carrots, peas, apples, bananas, pears, mangoes, sweet potatoes.
Any ideas and any suggestions? It is obviously my first child and I have no idea what I'm doing, haha.
Thanks!!
Thanks everyone! I actually nurse him every two and a half hours and always nurse an hour before he gets any solids. He is by no means starving and lacking nutrition from breastmilk. for now im just going to maybe stick with pears and apples... only give him less haavy and less constipating ones.
I have 4 kids.
My little one is 6 months old and I feed her pears or apple sauce. And breast milk or white grape juice. I try water, but she doesn't like it.
I only give pears or apple sauce once or twice a day.
The breast milk is best.
I think he isn't ready for all that food at 6 months.
Maybe slow it down with all the food.
I wish you the best.
Banana's are constipating, try stopping those and adding prunes.
I'd seriously cut back on how much you give him to eat - solids wise and encourage more nursing, especially nursing BEFORE solids are given.
He's only 6 months and his GI tract is still trying to close and become mature - until that happens, anything other than breastmilk will cause irritation and inflammation of the GI lining.
Solids are just for practice now... and even if your son seems to be begging for more, he'll get better nutrition if you continue to breastfeed first and offer only small amounts of solids after. And if he's getting constipated that's a sign that his little tummy isn't ready to process the solid foods (in the quantity that he's getting them). So I'd say only allow 2 oz at a time, and definately not more than twice a day.
Sounds as if he is eating too much solid food, sorry. Just because he wants it doesn't mean it's best for him, no offense to your doctor.
The constipation seems to be a major sign of this, as well as the spitting up, he's stuffed. To eat as much as he is in just 2 weeks of eating solids is a LOT! Usually at the beginning they eat a few spoonfuls and no more than half a jar at a time. Offering them one food at a time for a few days is the best way to get them to like that particular food and see if there are any sensitivities to it. At this point you couldn't know if he has an allergy to anything, unless he only spits up after eating that particular food. And, I'd definitely cut out the bananas as they are a constipating food, and switch to prunes.
Your breast milk actually offers the majority of nutrients he needs, eating solids at this age should be to introduce them to the concept of eating food and moving it around in their mouth and swallowing, rather than just sucking and swallowing, not to have it sustain him. Always nurse him prior to his eating, offer him cereal (usually the first food offered) mixed with breast milk, and gradually introduce some fruit into it. Also try giving him water at this point, in a bottle or sippy cup if he's ready. Breast milk offers enough water on it's own, but the additional fiber of food needs water to go through his intestines, otherwise you get the constipation.
One last tip, make sure he's getting time to move and crawl around, you can help by moving his arms and legs like he's riding a bicycle, as the exercise will help get things moving through his system.
Mom to 3, Grandma to 7 : )
I'd just stop with the food and stick with breastmilk. See if that helps with the constipation. If it does, give it another month before trying foods again. They don't actually "need" the baby food. It's more for fun/practice. The nutrition they need is in your milk. Our second didn't get ANY food till 9 months and then still choose to only nurse some days. Our third is almost 9 months and we've tried baby food 2 times within the last month. He only ate 2 small spoonfuls each time. We prefer to just do bm. It's FREE! LOL. And it's what their little tummies are made to handle. But some babies do fine with food early.......
Good luck!
I did prunes every other day to combat constipation, worked awesome especially if you do just straight prunes not prunes mixed in something. At that age I did rice cereal and fruit in the morning and cereal in the evening along with a veggie. Then I just continued adding different types of food monthly. I think at like 7 or eight months I started a lunch meal as well. You can just follow baby's cues bc the breastmilk is still doing the job of nutrition so he is just learning to eat right now not eating for his energy supply.
Are you giving him his breastmilk first? That should be primary. I also gave my daughter just a little bit of water (like an ounce) now and then to help out. At that age, my DD was not eating that well. Does he eat really fast and maybe his stomach doesn't tell his brain he's full? Maybe feed slower if he seems to be spitting it back up. And try prunes. When my DD was constipated, prunes did the trick, and when she got older it was blueberries. Also, have you noticed the spitting up after certain foods? My DD is allergic to apples - but it's the raw ones that get her worse so it took a while to figure it out.
Babies under 12 months really thrive well on breast milk and cereal. Some of the other foods may or may not make her/him sick. Chat with your babies doctor about what is acceptable for little ones.
Babies start eating a tiny bit of solid food at about 6 months of age. They should not be even eating a whole jar of food a day. They should be getting their main source of nutrition from their formula or breastmilk.
Baby food has very very little nutrition in it. It is NOT a source of food, it is to teach them to chew, to swallow, and to get used to having something in their mouth.
Their nutrition comes from formula or breastmilk. Your baby is starving and therefore wanting more food because he is not getting nutrition. Stop feeding him so much and give him more of what he needs, formula or breastmilk.
Sorry if this upsets you but a lot of moms don't realize that baby food is not food, it's a supplement to teach.
The reason I know this for fact is I called Gerber or Del Monte about some stage 4 baby food I had been given. It was about a week out of date. The person on the phone told me that once baby food hits the lights in the stores that it starts loosing it's nutritional value and it barley lasts until the expiration date. That it has very minimal food value to it anyway. It is a tool to teach the baby to chew and swallow.
Actual eating for nutrition comes when the child is much closer to a year old and they are about to wean off formula and/or breastmilk.
