Talk to Me About Rice Cereal

carebear08

DD just turned 5 months so we're going to give her some rice cereal! What kind did you use? Organic, brown rice, or Regular Gerber? I don't know why I'm making this in to such a hard decision for myself!  Also, did you start with once or twice a day?Thanks in advanced!

mssaint

We are waiting to introduce solids until 6 months (in about 3 weeks!), and I am currently debating whether to start with cereal or go straight into purees. I bought some of the Earth's Best organic brown rice cereal, though.

I am not sure if we'll be able to last until 6 months - LO almost broke my dinner plate yesterday by grabbing it and trying to drag it toward him (it almost fell off the table).

LMH1209

We used Earth's Best and Healthy Times cereals, but we only fed DS rice cereal a couple of times because I was afraid it would make him constipated. I just used it as a first food so I could tell our pediatrician how it went. We moved pretty quickly into fruits and vegetables, although we did use oatmeal and some mixed grain cereal on a more regular basis later on. Some people skip rice cereal altogether and go straight to something like avocado. Of course, saying that just adds another option for you rather than narrowing things down

Hey Jellisy

Once a day at first, it's just to get them used to eating.  I used brown rice with DD but they don't sell it at my grocery store, so for DS I bought regular rice.  They are all fortified with iron which is the important nutrient that babies need from their cereal. 

That said, rice constipated DS badly (DD didn't have any problems).  He does better on oatmeal and barley.

You don't need to start on cereal, you can start with fruit and veggies as well.   

LMH1209

And we waited until right before DS's six month appointment to try any solids.

smacb

We started with rice cereal and only used it for a few days.  It made DS really constipated.  If we have another child I would start with something easier on tummies like avocado.

WinesNot Whines

We did oatmeal instead of rice cereal. I've used two organic brands - Earth's Best and Happy Babies. I prefer Happy Babies because it contains more iron, and my LO is iron-deficient. But if that's not an issue for you, Earth's Best is a little cheaper.

carebear08

Now I'm worried about DD getting constipated! The peditrician suggested that we start rice cereal now and then add veggies at 6 months. I wonder how much of her suggestion was because she has been down around the 11th percentile of weight. Too many choices...Thanks for your help!

LMH1209

Rice cereal (or any other solids) won't do much for adding calories to her diet. It has fewer calories per ounce than breast milk (or formula), and your baby probably won't eat more than a tablespoon or so of solids for while. Here's a listing comparing the calorie content of various baby and toddler foods: https://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/vitamins/babyfoodcalories.html

 

LMH1209

I should have looked at my own list before i said rice cereal had fewer calories per ounce than breast milk or formula. It looks like KellyMom says it's the same per ounce or slightly higher for brown rice cereal. I still say adding rice cereal won't end up adding many calories to her diet, though, because she won't eat much of it. At most, you might get an extra ten or twenty calories a day (assuming she maintains the same intake of breastmilk or formula, which she should).

belizeitornot

we're starting this week (H just turned 6 months today), but with oatmeal. we already have poop issues - she only goes once a week. the pedi said to not even bother with rice because it would just stop her up more.

we'll probably do oatmeal for a short bit to get her used to things in the mouth, and then move on to avocado, banana (though this can also contribute to constipation), and purees.