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Gas from oatmeal cereal

amarie1504amarie1504 member
edited February 2016 in October 2015 Moms
Has anyone else noticed gassiness in their LOs when introducing oatmeal cereal? I've given DS oatmeal cereal the last few days, and he seems to be having gas pains. He's arching his back and crying out. He was restless last night while sleeping (not waking up all the way, but struggling to get comfortable), and has been a little fussier than usual today. The back-arching and fussiness while nursing is what makes me think it's gas. He always does this when he's gassy. Gripe water (our lifesaver) seems to help temporarily but not long-term. Just curious if anyone else has noticed gas when starting oatmeal cereal. If so, could it just be a result of his tummy getting used to it? He is EBF. Thanks!
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Re: Gas from oatmeal cereal

  • LaurenBee24LaurenBee24 member
    I would stop the oatmeal ASAP. Does he pedi know you started it? It sounds like he is not ready to process it yet. Most are not ready until about 6 months... Some earlier and some later. 
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  • amarie1504amarie1504 member
    Yes, his pedi told us at his 4-month appt we could introduce it. I think I am going to wait a couple weeks and try again. He doesn't love eating it yet either so might not be ready.
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  • VioletandRoseVioletandRose member
    My doctor also said at our 4 month appointment that we could introduce a single grain cereal. It's not unusual. We've been doing oatmeal as well, only once a day, very diluted with formula. How often are you feeding it, and what consistency? Are you able to specifically pinpoint that it's oatmeal? You could switch to barley cereal or try a different brand of oatmeal. Beech-nut oatmeal cereal is soy-free; your baby may not be able to tolerate soy yet. Or of course you can go straight to a fruit or veggie and skip cereal altogether.
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  • amarie1504amarie1504 member
    I've only been giving him about half a tablespoon once a day, also very diluted with breastmilk. I can't pinpoint for sure that it's the cereal; that's just my best guess as it's the only constant the past few days. I haven't eaten anything unusual or tried any new foods, and whenever I do eat something that bothers his tummy it's usually out of his system in a day or so. I didn't think about the soy. I think I am going to wait a week or two before trying the cereal again. When I do, I think I will give Beechnut a try (I plan to use their purées as well, so this will be a good starting point). Thanks for the tip!
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  • LaurenBee24LaurenBee24 member
    I think waiting and trying again is an awesome plan. 
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  • waltersmom83waltersmom83 member
    I just read an interesting article about starting with cereal. It was saying that it's not necessary to start with cereal. I guess we all do it bc that's just what has been done for so many years. They said that they think it's actually hard for the gut to process the grain at this age. This might explain the gas. Maybe some babies can do it easily, and others can't. Just like us big people ;) My lo had such horrible gas as a nb, I'm going to stay away from it and start with fruits and veggies. Especially after hearing your woes and this article. Good luck!!
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  • amarie1504amarie1504 member
    @waltersmom83 that's really interesting! Thank you for sharing. I guess I thought, for whatever reason, that you HAD to start with cereal. I'm not sure why. Perhaps just because that's what most do. I thought it somehow prepared a LO for fruits and veggies. I bought Beech-Nut oatmeal cereal over the weekend because it's soy free and gave it to LO for the first time today, so we'll see how he does. He doesn't love eating it, so if he seems to be gassy again I will probably talk to pedi and switch to fruits/veggies. 
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