My daughter is 4 months old and appears very healthy. She is around 16lbs 5oz and she is 25 and 3/4in. She has always been on the above average side of all of her checkups, but I am concerned bc her appetite has recently subsided. She eats around every 3-4 hours, but she rarely takes the full 6 oz bottle. When she does she usually takes it over the course of an hour. She is easily distracted and I try to make it quiet when she is eating, but this does not always help. I am wondering if she may just be bored with bottles. I have introduced cereal on a couple of occasions and she seemed to take it well, but I am worried that cereal may be too binding for her. She has had difficulty producing bowel movements since she has been born. She was previously on milk of magnesia at the request of her pediatrician; however, I have weened her off of it and now she is usually producing a movement every other day. Should I worry that she is not eating enough?? I also believe that she is teething bc of the way that she is chomping down on every and she has become fussy, which may attribute to her fussiness during feedings??
Thanks everyone! Things have seemed to improve. I definitely believe that her change in appetite is due to her teething. We have used Infant Motrin (per her Pediatrician) and Little Teethers, which have seemed to ease her pain and fussiness. She has been eating almost the full 6 ounces of formula consistantly over that past couple of days. And I am trying to hold off on cereal. I have had a lot of people advise me to start giving her cereal and even the pediatrician said I could if I wanted to, but I am going to hold off until 5 or 6 months. She is gaining weight well, but She still only produces a bowel movement every other day. Most day it doesn't seem to be bother her. When she seems to be gasy or having tummy pains we use the "Happy Tummy" which really seems to calm her. It basically a baby heating pad that wraps around the tummy. Being a Mommy is wonderful, but it is truely heartbreaking to think that my baby is in any type of pain or discomfort and I may not be able to immediate make her feel better :(
As long as she is acting her normal self (alert, playing, wet diapers, etc), don't worry! If she's teething, it probably hurts to suck on the bottle, so she takes longer to eat and gets fussier. Once those teeth our in, she will amaze you with how much she eats! She sounds like a pretty normal 4 month old to me. Good Luck.
Is she losing weight? Water is a wonderful way to promote bowel movements. So is apple juice, grape juice, and prunes. She is a little young for the cereal with prunes in it so maybe a little juice would help. If not make sure she gets plenty of H20.
I wouldn't worry to much. Children even this young go through spurts when they just don't eat as much as normal or eat more. There is no reason to introduce cereal at this age and with her health history it might certainly be better to wait. Things to watch for to see if there is a problem though, are the number or wet diapers she has and the number of bowel movements, go by what is normal for her. she should have a wet diaper after every feeding, and a bm every other day if that is her norm (though she should actually have more than that)as long as these things don't change she isn't getting dehydrated and isn't going to become malnourished. Other than that make sure you don't put off her next monthly checkup and make sure she hasn't dropped any weight.
My pediatrician has said an ounce of water mixed with apple juice is good for getting things moving, also I have been informed that rice cereal is more binding then oatmeal cereal which helps them to go, but I've also been told by my pediatrician that I have about three more weeks before feeding my four month old son cereal, they told me to wait till he's five months.
Hi J.,
Teething will throw a baby off of her regular feeding patterns, and it will happen quite often. I wouldn't be too concerned about the bowel movement every other day, if that is normal for her. Some babies have several a day, and some babies only have one or two a week. Once this teething round is over, she may up her formula intake, as she moves into another growth phase.
I think she is behaving quite normally and you shouldn't worry.
D.
Don't worry too much. My youngest daughter never ate more than 6oz even at 12mon. She is still little. She is 3yr old and around 23lbs and 3 feet tall. We do our best to make sure she gets enough food and drink. Some days she eats very little an other days she eats well. It depends on the day..not the food. Even if it's something she really likes, she may not eat it one day, and eat it all the next.
About me: I'm a SAHM of 3-son 12yr, daughters 8 & 3, I am a MaryKay Consultant, and do some inventory work at night. I have been married 18yr next month to my high school sweetheart.
Hi J.,
It is difficult to tell from your post actually how much of the 6 oz bottle your baby is taking in. I suggest just giving the baby the bottle without cereal making a feeding log for one week. She how much she takes in and how long it took to feed her. Also note her what you see in her diaper. Is she wet enough in her diaper and are the movements regular enough regular size and color etc. When consulting with the doc or nurse practitioner you will have more "objective evidence" to discuss. The idea of "when" to introduce cereal is one up for grabs among docs. Many docs don't believe in introducing it too early as the digestive tract is immature. Mine encouraged me to nurse without introducing cereal at least until my baby was six months. Good Luck!
