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Adding baby cereal to a bottle can cause health problems such as choking, overeating, and obesity. The benefits are few, but for malnourished or underweight babies, it can help them thrive. Pediatricians recommend introducing solid foods in the middle of the first year.
It’s a common old wives’ tale that has circulated among new mothers since the inception of bottle-feeding: Put a few spoonfuls of baby cereal flakes in the bottle of formula to help baby sleep better at night. In fact, babies sleep more satisfied with a full stomach, and some eagerly drink the enriched formula and extra calories. However, some researchers caution parents against putting baby cereal in a bottle. Experts warn that this practice can cause health problems in babies, such as choking, overeating and obesity.
The advantages of feeding a baby cereal from a bottle are few and far between. For a malnourished or underweight baby, introducing baby food into the formula can help the child thrive. Baby food adds more calories than breast milk or plain formulas, and the sick child will benefit from the extra easy food. Babies suffering from reflux, in which the lower esophageal sphincter muscle is too relaxed or defective, may also benefit from baby cereal in a bottle, since solid foods tend to settle in the stomach more easily than liquids.
While it’s generally true that babies sleep happier on a full stomach, baby cereal in a bottle doesn’t seem to affect babies six months and younger. A baby’s digestive system is best suited for small portions and frequent feedings every few hours. An early introduction of solid foods did little to change. According to a study conducted at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in 1989, babies fed baby cereal did not sleep any more than babies fed liquid food alone.
There are more cons than pros to feeding a baby baby cereal from a bottle. Some pediatricians suspect that babies fed solid foods before four months are more prone to developing food allergies. Some babies cannot suck the thickest liquid properly and may aspirate the food. For most healthy babies, the extra calories in baby cereal are unnecessary and can cause weight problems as the child develops.
Rather than supplementing the bottle with infant cereal, pediatricians and nutritionists recommend that parents slowly introduce solid foods sometime in the middle of baby’s first year. Babies usually express a natural interest in solid foods when a liquid diet no longer satisfies them. Parents should start with diluted rice cereal and other types of baby foods and slowly introduce more solid, healthier baby foods into the child’s diet. When the child is physiologically ready, she will adjust to the new diet, learn to use a spoon, and sleep through the night.
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