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Babies: 9 - 12 Months
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s/o BF babies, cereal, and iron

ncbellencbelle member
in Babies: 9 - 12 Months

I'm late to the party but I just wanted to throw this out there...

Kiddo has never had cereal or iron supplements.  I had read (I believe wholesomebabyfood.com has some info on this) that the iron in breastmilk is more readily usable by a baby than any other form.  So that while there is less of it, they can use more of it than they could if they were getting it from another source.

Pedi knew we skipped cereal/purees and was totally fine with that.  I asked her to check his iron at his 9 month just to be safe - she said he had one of the best iron levels she'd seen in a while.

My point is, a breastfed baby who doesn't get cereal or a supplement isn't automatically anemic.  And if you have concerns about your kiddo's iron level - a 2 minute test at the pedi can tell you if you have something to be concerned about.



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Re: s/o BF babies, cereal, and iron

  • eris1995eris1995 member
    DS had his iron levels checked at his 9 mo appointment too and they were good.  He gets oatmeal every once in a while - but he's been refusing to be spoon fed so it's very rare.
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  • adamwifeadamwife

    I posted in a response a little further down in the thread about the difference between heme and non-heme iron.  Basically, BM contains heme iron, which is absorbed better by your body.  Supplements contain non-heme iron coming from plant-based sources.

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  • whitehead15whitehead15
    I'm trying to find formula without iron added to supplement with.  Poor Z can't poo since we started some formula 2 weeks ago.  I feel terrible for him!
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  • madhatter2003madhatter2003

    true, but some women DO need to give cereal and/or iron supplements. My DS was anemic at his 9 month appt, so we are giving cereal 2 times a day, an iron supplement, and I'm upping my own iron intake.

     Turns out I was borderline anemic as well so I'm sure that was part of it. (doc tested me as well)

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  • tmp-493670500007520tmp-493670500007520
    this is most encouraging!
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