January 2014 Moms

rice cereal at 6 weeks??

Hey all! I know there have been a few posts about our LOs having acid reflux & spitting up. So sorry if this seems repetitive. My pediatrician has suggested adding rice cereal to my sons bottles to help with the reflux. He is six weeks old and im just hesitant to do this since hes so young. Hes also currently on Zantac. Anyone have experience with the rice cereal? Thanks in advance!

Re: rice cereal at 6 weeks??

  • mrspharmdmrspharmd member
    edited February 2014
    My pedi suggested this today also, since Enfamil AR does not work properly when the baby is also on Zantac. I wasn't exactly thrilled at the idea, especially from what I have heard about giving it too early and in a bottle. But I bought some, gave him the amount the pedi said (1 tablespoon per 2 ounces of formula for a total of 4 ounces), and IMMEDIATELY felt incredibly guilty afterwards. I teared up and felt like a horrible mom and prayed he wouldn't choke on it or give him any digestive issues. That was the only time I've given it. I don't know about you, but I have a strong intuition that it's just too early for my LO, and I'm trusting that instinct. I'd rather have spit up any day than having something go horribly wrong.
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  • jeslillynjeslillyn member
    edited February 2014
    I know what you mean I had some sort of confidence then as the day went on i started feeling horrible then my sister started telling me she can't believe id do that the baby could choke blah blah & I don't know what to do.
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  • Babies spit up, it's totally normal. My LO just isn't bad enough to warrant the cereal IMO. Now if your LO spits up so much that they aren't gaining weight, I can see the need for thickened foods.
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  • Hes projectile spits up all day long his weight has been fine which shocked me cause of the amount he spits up
  • I would think 6 weeks is too young for their digestive systems to handle cereal? And too young to swallow correctly? I normally trust doctors but I would also trust your gut. Good luck!
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  • blue_elleblue_elle member
    edited February 2014
    My ped has mentioned starting the same. If that what we need to do so he doesn't spew every feeding and scream in pain from the burning, then we will absolutely do it. It's a pretty common suggestion for reflux from what i can tell.

    And while i generally avoid the "people used to" argument, i'm going for it here since rice cereal and baby anatomy hasn't changed. My sister and I were on rice cereal by 6 weeks. My brother was getting it at 4 weeks. We are all lean, healthy adults and suffered no ill effects. I realize this isn't definitive, but i trust my doctor and personal history offers some support to her recommendation.
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  • Our LO was spitting up a lot too and I could tell he was always in some kind of discomfort.  We took him to the chiropractor to see if he could tell us anything. He adjusted LO's hip, neck and upper back. Since then we've had minimal spit up and overall, is more content.  It may be worth a try.  

    You know your baby better than anyone. You can try the cereal idea and if you feel happy with the results keep doing it. If your gut is telling you something different don't ignore it. 


  • My mom told me that she gave us rice cereal at 1 month old due to spit up.... We're all here and fine. I know there are something's that have changed with how we raise our babies but if your pedi recommends it...
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  • I had to do it with Reid starting around 2-3 months due to projectile vomiting at every feed. His reflux was terrible and nothing else was working. I gave FAR LESS than what the pedi and pediatric GI doc at the hospital recommended. I did about a 1/4-1/2 oz (maybe 1.5-2 tsp) of rice cereal total in a 6-7 oz bottle. I basically did trial and error to find the bare minimum that I could use that worked. But my point is: it did work. We saw a huge improvement in his reflux, vomiting and overall demeanor. Unfortunately some babies just need it.
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    Carter Robert 7.18.08 | Brynn Sophia 5.24.10 | Reid Joseph 9.10.12 | Emerson Mae 1.27.14

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  • It's not letting me edit my post but I should add that Reid was also on Zantac and we used Similac Sensitive (I had to quit BFing bc it got so bad) with Dr. Brown's bottles. That combo, along with the rice cereal, worked wonders for him. He still threw up, but it was far less and no longer projectile.
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    Carter Robert 7.18.08 | Brynn Sophia 5.24.10 | Reid Joseph 9.10.12 | Emerson Mae 1.27.14

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  • I could be wrong here, but i thought enfamil AR was essentially formula with added rice protein in it....why wouldn't that "work properly" if the baby is on zantac? The rice cereal is not a big deal IMO as long as it's a small amount. My pedi recommended the same thing for reflux and said if it doesn't help then we would move on to medication. He suggested 1/2 tsp. per ounce, but like @mrsjenni suggested, I have been giving less, about 1/8 tsp. per ounce. We've been doing it about 4 days and the difference is already evident. She is not spitting up even close to what she was. Shes not showing me discomfort after eating, no more wet gurgling burps.. The formula is not visibly thicker, but i guess the rice adds just a bit of weight to the formula so it stays down better, and also, id imagine the starch helps calm the stomach acid. So I'd say if your pedi suggested it, then it's worth a try.


    our little flower born 01.13.14
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  • Taking a baby to a chiropractor. SMH.

    OP, I am glad you brought this up because we are dealing with reflux and I had no idea about this.
  • Are you formula feeding or breastfeeding? Reason I ask is, we formula feed and recently started having some issues with reflux/spitting up and I've found that the ready made liquid formula helps her quite a bit. My guess is where it's a bit thicker than just the powder. Worth a shot..If you formula feed that is.
  • mrspharmdmrspharmd member
    edited February 2014
    @pinkyxboo

    The rice starch in Enfamil AR thickens in the stomach once it mixes with stomach acid. When taking medications like Zantac or Prevacid, you are greatly reducing the amount of acid in the stomach. Thus it doesn't thicken. Trust me, huge difference in my LO once I started Zantac.
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  • This isn't something I'm familiar with, but why would thickening the formula slightly with the rice cereal cause choking? In adults/children with swallowing problems they often have to use thick it a product designed to make thin liquids thicker, this is done to prevent aspirating. Wouldn't the same logic work with infants?
    DD 1- born January 22, 2014
    Due June 25 2017


  • This isn't something I'm familiar with, but why would thickening the formula slightly with the rice cereal cause choking? In adults/children with swallowing problems they often have to use thick it a product designed to make thin liquids thicker, this is done to prevent aspirating. Wouldn't the same logic work with infants?

    This! You just reminded me. Speech and language pathologists will use a substance called thick it to help people learn how to swallow correctly because thicker substances are swallowed easier....


    Hmm... There's a dirty joke in there somewhere....
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  • I think it depends on the baby.  If your pediatrician recommended it, especially after other things haven't worked, I would certainly try it.  I would scale back on the amount given at first to make sure your LO can handle it though.

    My LO was/still is an avid eater and it was getting really challenging keeping up with her breastfeeding.  I had advice from all kinds of people telling me to give her rice cereal right away.  I didn't since she was gaining weight and not showing any signs of reflux but it was very common to add it early on when our parents had their babies.
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    Lilypie - (75Jo)

  • pinkyxboo said:
    I could be wrong here, but i thought enfamil AR was essentially formula with added rice protein in it....why wouldn't that "work properly" if the baby is on zantac?  
    @pinkyyxboo - We first tried Similac Sensitive for Spit-Up (essentially formula with rice starch) and it does not work as well as adding rice cereal yourself, so I can understand what she is saying about it not working properly. It basically did nothing at all for Reid.
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    Carter Robert 7.18.08 | Brynn Sophia 5.24.10 | Reid Joseph 9.10.12 | Emerson Mae 1.27.14

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  • My Dh has continued to add the rice cereal to the feedings but way less than what the dr has recommended. So far he has been splitting up way less, not gonna lie I have been watching him like a hawk cause im nervous about it but so far hes been fine and spitting up way less. To answer someones question he is FF and is currently on similac total comfort.
  • jeslillynjeslillyn member
    edited February 2014
    We didn't try any of the added rice formula s cause our dr felt the rice cereal would work better.
  • jeslillyn said:

    We didn't try any of the added rice formula s cause our dr felt the rice cereal would work better.

    My Dr said the same thing when I asked about cereal vs. The AR formula.


    our little flower born 01.13.14
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  • My parents gave us rice cereal at 6 weeks. None of us had issues and all three of us were slim/ are now as well. I personally go by my pediatrician because he's been doing it for 30 years ..and well I'm not a doctor. I've never had to do rice for my kids tho, so I don't know the reaction after.
  • Started Mason on rice cereal last night. We're starting at 1/2 oz cereal to one ounce formula. Unless you were doing a really high ratio of cereal I see no way he would choke. The milk was still smooth and flowed fine through an Avent size 2 nipple.
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    BFP 11.8.12 * EDD 7.17.13 * MC 12.20.12
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