Is She Eatting Enough?

At my son's 9 month check-up our pediatrician told us he should be getting at least 15 ounces of formula per day. More does not hurt, but less might. As far as solids, he said that kids at this age self-regulate. So, if one day they only want one Gerber container and another day they want 3, that's fine. He said we should be feeding him solids 3 times a day (our daycare suggests a snack in the afternoon too). That being said my son eats a ton of oatmeal with formula for breakfast, about 6 ounces of veggies for lunch and 3-5 ounces of meats/veggies/yogurt for dinner. He goes through three 6 ounce bottles of formula during the day and about 18 ounces at night. So, he's well over the needed 15 ounces of formula which is fine. I think the key thing is how your kid is on the growth charts. If she is healthy then whatever she wants is fine.

you know, i find that gerber.com and beech-nut.com are very helpful websites when it comes to wondering how much and what you should be feeding your baby. good luck!

When my son was 8 months even before that I would mix hs cereal and fruit together even mixed it with his bottles. I would only give him bottles at night. During the day he would eat a stage 2 of fruit and stage 2 of veggies with some juice. For dinner he would do the same stage 2 fruit and stage 2 veggies he would eat ALL of it and be full.

hi N.,
I agree,its a good idea to take her to the ped.every child is different depending on their size.christina just turned 9 months and shes a big girl.shes only about 19 pounds but shes tall..shes wearing 12 to 24 months in clothing..depending on the brands.christina started solids very early.shes had a very healthy appitite,to be honest,this kid would eat all day long if we let her...luckily we dont.she started stage 3 foods at 7 months,and shes been eating whats off our plates from before that..and now shes eating finger foods.does very well if shes given a gram cracker..no choking..but then shes got 6 teeth,that prob helps.if your daughter is a healthy weight for her age and shes not crying for more food,shes prob getting enough. christina lets us know when she wants food..she drinks at least 2 6 0z bottles a day as well..usually on waking up and going to bed.she also drinks choc milk occasionally as a snack as she loves it,and her stom does fine with it.so every childs digestive system really is on their own little timer.

N.,

The best thing to do is consult your pediatrician. I would hate to see her not get enough or worse get too much. Once they are used to eating huge meals, it's hard to break them. Trust me I am dealing with that with my 15 year old. I was afraid of the same thing when she was a baby, especially because she was a preemie. But now she eats way too much and is overweight. She has the worst time controlling her eating and now I have to worry about obesity problems such as diabetes. So ask your pediatrician - the experts are the best sources and not friends and family who may have created the same problems I am talking about.

Take care!

Ah, the never-ending food question. It's hard when they have no words to let you know if they're full up or still hungry. I have 2 boys - 6.5 years & almost 2 years - & I never kept track of baby food by ounces, always did it by jars or half jars. By 8 months both my boys ate about 2 - 2 1/2 jars per meal & some snacks in bewtween if they wanted. They were big eaters! How's your daughter's weight.....are you concerned w/it or is the doctor? If your daughter seems satisfied, then all is good. If she's still crying, or seems hungry then give her more. I dropped the afternoon bottle w/my first son when he was napping through it. Check w/your doctor but I think by 8 months they should be drinking about 24 - 32 ounces of milk a day which breaks down in to 3 - 4, 8 ounce bottles. Just go by her cues....she'll let you know somehow if she's done or wants more. Hope this helps!

N.,

My daughter will be 8 months next week I always think the sameway so I asked her doctor. She drinks 6oz of formula every 3 to 4 hrs still during the day and I give her 3 meals a day the same amount of cereal you do around I don't measure mine anymore and a half of 3.5 oz stage 2 fruit, for lunch I give her stage 2 3.5 oz vegetable or a chicken noodle whole thing then the other half of the fruit. For dinner I give her some cereal with formula again. I switched to cereal for dinner because she was getting really bad gas when I fed her veggies at night. I also give her a little bit of apple juice and fill the rest with water in her sippy cup. And I don't know what WIC program the other lady said they don't offer juice because I am on it and they started her on Apple juice they told me to put a little bit and then mostly water. They are against starting cereal until they are 6 months though.

Check out parentcenter.com They have all sorts of tips. Here is what they had:

Age: 8 to 10 months
Signs of readiness for solid and finger foods
• Same as 6 to 8 months, PLUS
• Picks up objects with thumb and forefinger (pincer grasp)
• Can transfer items from one hand to the other
• Puts everything in his mouth
• Moves jaw in a chewing motion
What to feed
• Breast milk or formula, PLUS
• Small amounts of soft pasteurized cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese (but no cows' milk until age 1)
• Iron-fortified cereals (rice, barley, wheat, oats, mixed cereals)
• Mashed fruits and vegetables (bananas, peaches, pears, avocados, cooked carrots, squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes)
• Finger foods (lightly toasted bagels, cut up; small pieces of ripe banana; well-cooked spiral pasta; teething crackers; low-sugar O-shaped cereal)
• Small amounts of protein (egg yolk, pureed meats and poultry; tofu; well-cooked and mashed beans with soft skins like lentils, split peas, pintos, black beans)
• Non-citrus juice (apple or pear) How much per day
• ¼ to 1/3 cup dairy (or ½ oz. cheese)
• ¼ to ½ cup iron-fortified cereal
• ¼ to ½ cup fruit
• ¼ to ½ cup vegetables
• 1/8 to ¼ cup protein foods
• 3 to 4 oz. non-citrus juices
Feeding tip
• Introduce new foods one at a time, with at least three days in between to make sure your baby's not allergic.

Melissa provided some GREAT reference information for you.

I would suggest talking to her Ped. at her 9 month check up if you still have concerns. Because my son was the size of a 14 month old when he was 10 months, my Ped gave me permission to start some other things before the traditional “1 year”, like whole milk. If she’s off the charts like mine was, then you CAN’T follow the regular “8-10 months gets this much food”. Think of it from the stand point of this: if Yao Ming (Pro Basketball Player) and Christi Yamaguchi (Pro Ice-skater) sat done to have dinner together, would you expect them to eat the same amount. They are both healthy, active adults, and (probably) somewhere in the 30’s. No, you would expect Yao to eat more, because he’s SO much bigger. So if she is bigger, maybe add an extra couple of table spoons of cereal to one of the “snack” bottle times. Maybe 2-3 table spoons of cereal mixed w/ formula; then when she's done eating that try a 3 or 4 oz bottle.

Just to give you a visual of how big my kid is, in Feb. he was 26 months. He was measured at 40 inches and 35 lbs. So basically he’s off the charts; and even if he didn’t get any taller or gain anymore weight between now and his 3 year check-up, he’d still be at 81% for weight and 91% for height. I have a BIG boy. People often think he’s an immature 3-4 year old because of how tall he his. Oh well!

Anyway, when in doubt, talk to her doc. That’s what you pay them for! Good luck, -J

Hi N.

I currently have a 71/2 month old daughter of my own and i had talked to her doctor on her diet as well he had told me that try to get her to have 8oz of milk. So right now my daughter has 4 oz of cereal for breakfast and about a hour or so later she has an 8oz bottle. For lunch she has a stage one fruit and an hour later an 8 oz bottle, and for dinner she has a stage one vegetable and again an 8 oz bottle before she goes to bed. I make it seem that she eats 6 times a day but with all of her solid foods I give her water to wash it down. She's been doing fine so far because she constantly believes that shes always eating so she's usually pretty full by the time she goes to bed. And when I asked her doctor about doing that he said as long as she keeps getting the milk that she needs for development she's fine. you could try the 6 mini meals for a while and see how your daughter does. Even my babysitter has picked up the habit when she watches my daughter.

I have read in a book that her tummy is as big as her fist. I have an 11 month old and I am not concerned about the amount he consumes, he will ask for it if he needs more. I think it should be the same with your daughter.

I would amend the previous advice about juice and avoid it. Your baby does not need juice at this age nor in the future. For the first year, breastmilk or formual should be the primary source of nutrition while solids are for practice.

But back to the juice... even the WIC program is being over hauled to take juice out. Offer water as a secondary drink and nothing else besides breastmilk or formula. You won't find that advice being offered up very much because popular baby media will lose their advertising dollars from the juice companies. In additions, pediatricians are also slow to get on board with new things as they are busy and tend to get set in their ways.

good luck!!