7 Month Old Eating Too Little?

When we started my daughter on solids, she still had about 4-5 bottles per day, along with some baby cereal at meals with the veggies & fruits. If he's only having 2 bottles each day, that may be why he seems hungry. Also, the cereal keeps them full longer, so you may want to try some of that if you aren't already.

Hi A.,
How big of a bottle is your son getting in the morning and at night? It seems to me 2 bottles a day isn't enough. At this age (my son is 8 1/2 mo.) I've been told they should still get the majority of their nutrition from breastmilk or formula. I nurse my son when he wakes up, before lunch and dinner, before bed, and before naps if he wants. At the sitter's, he'll take 4 oz. before each meal and 2-3 before a nap. At night and in the morning it's 6-8 oz. We didn't do stage one foods. Stage 2 says 6 mo and up. Now we're doing mostly table foods, though I'll run food through the food mill if it isn't soft enough. I cut up cooked veggies, soft fruits, pasta, etc. into itty bitty bites. I still spoon feed things like baby oatmeal and applesauce or cooked squash. He also eats cheerios, bread, rice cakes and always has oatmeal for a snack before bed. I hope this helps! I wish there were something written about how to feed a baby the right way--we called our pediatrician more than once when we first started solids. Good luck!

S.

Hi A.,

I'm hesitant to answer your question because I think the answer should be coming from your pediatrician, but I didn't want you to think no one was listening. Please understand that I am not a doctor in any way, shape, or form, and that your doctor would know your child's needs best. That said...

My daughter just turned 8 mos. today, but for all of last month, her daily intake was this (times are general): 7AM: nursing; 8AM 3T cereal & 4 T fruit/veg; 11AM nursing; 12PM snack (apple slice in teething feeder, for example); 3PM nursing; 5PM 4T cereal & 4T fruit/veg; 6PM nursing; 6:30 bottle (6-7 oz.)

Now, how that compares to what you're doing, I'm not entirely sure but you could add up the tablespoons and see. The main differences I see is that you're doing only two bottles/day and that you're doing larger meals (are you doing cereals?). From what I've read--Dr. Sears has a guide on what they should be eating for each age, as does the Baby Whisperer--breastmilk or formula should still make up the majority of their diet at 7 months. Is it possible that he needs another bottle or two? Also, he might need smaller, more frequent meals. He might be eating as much as he can hold, but his tummy is tiny, so it doesn't last him very long. As for overfeeding him, again--check with your doctor, but everything I've read says that babies are really good about knowing when they've had too much. They'll either refuse food outright or spit up.

Good luck--I know the guesswork can be overwhelming.

By the time hannah was 7 months old she was already on stage 2 and starting on some stage 3's you may want to start on some stage 2s now. They are just a little thicker, not so much water added to them and there is a little more there.

A.,

I am assuming you are giving him bottles along with the food. I think our ped. wanted our son to have 30 oz. of formula along with the food. I agree with the others, move him to stage 2 foods and add cereal for breakfast. Check out this website, www.babycenter.com. It has a lot of good information. I think it asks you to sign up but it is free.

CZ

All babies should be on breastmilk or formula as their MAIN source of food for the first year. That means that all of the other stuff they eat is just for fun, not for nutrition etc...so having a 'balanced' diet is really just feeding him bm/formula. The only reason Peds/AAP mention baby cereal as a 1st food is because of the extra iron they include. Formula has lots of iron, but not much of it is absorbable--so the cereal makes up the difference. Breastmilk has very little iron (thus no constipation in breastfed babies, but the iron it has is very digestable--and they are getting even more iron than a formula fed infant--so there is no need for baby cereal at 4-6mo like they suggest. So, if you are feeding breastmilk in a bottle, your baby needs nothing else for a long time. If formula, cereal is good because of the extra iron, but otherwise, everything is for 'fun' and 'practice.' Also keep in mind that babies' stomach may not even produce the enzyme needed to break down cereals at 4mo...and maybe not even to 6mo...that is why the AAP has gone back and forth with the 'start cereal at 4mo or 6mo' deal. A formula infant needs the iron, so start at 4mo even if their bodies aren't ready (no enzyme yet) because it is the least of the 2 evils. A breastfed infant doesn't need the cereal, so it is advisable to wait until after 6mo to give any cereal. I am saying this only to say, that if you are feeding breastmilk, none of the foods are necessary...if you are feeding formula, cereal is all you need--the rest is for fun. So, up your bottles, decrease your solids. (or leave solids the same--your choice)
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html

My daughter is 8 months old and was eating like a fiend for the past couple of months. Now she's only eating a little and far more interested in grabbing the spoon and exploring the food. I think that babies go through growth spurts and maintenance times. My thoughts are to take your cues from the baby. They know when they've had too much or not enough.

If he's mastered the technique and texture of the stage 1 foods, move up to stage 2. The stage 2 foods really aren't that different, texture wise, and the bottles are bigger (more cost effective than 2 or 3 tiny, stage 1 jars).

We didn't start our daughter on solids until she was 6 months, but she moved to stage 2's pretty quickly.

By the time she was about 7 1/2 months, we would give our daughter cereal for breakfast with a sippy cup of water and followed by a bottle. For lunch she had a jar of food/water/bottle. Dinner was the same as lunch (diff variety of food, though). Between each meal she had a bottle so she was essentially eating every 2 hours or so.

Good luck!

My 6 month old is on stage 2 & eats almost 3 jars a day along with 15-20 oz breastmilk/formula a day. I give her a jar of fruit with cereal mixed in for breakfast. For lunch & dinner, she gets a jar of veggies with cereal mixed in. In between, she will eat a 6-8 oz bottle for naps & about 10 oz before bed.

My son was always a huge eater. I added a bottle with the jars of baby food...so his breakfast was a 8 oz bottle and a bowl of oatmeal, lunch was a fruit and a veggie and an 8 oz bottle and sometimes cheerios or those 100% fruit puffs they have now and then dinner was again 2 jars of baby food 8 oz bottle and extra if still hungery and then another 8 oz bottle before bed. He also got snacks between meals. Sometimes it was a two once bottle, sometimes water sometimes little fruit puffs. He was never overweight but extremely active. (And he still eats a ton of food, more than most kids his age, still a really healthy well balanced diet and even underweight).

He needs more formula or breast milk (which ever you are giving him). He needs at least 36oz of it a day along with food. Also, the best thing to do is give him cereal in the morning and maybe at night before bed. Does he do well with the foods? If so, introduce him to stage twos, they are a little heavier and there is more in the one jar. Try to make sure that you are balancing first fruits and veggies. He should be fine after that. I know that it sounds like a lot but they need it sometimes, especially the milk portion.