Hungry baby.. always!

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 11:17 am Post subject: hungry baby.. always!

my baby is exactly 4 months old. about a week ago he started a major growth spurt... always needing to be fed. during the day he'll eat every 2 hrs instead of every 3 (I breastfeed only), but at night its even harder he'll wake up every HOUR! we started supplementing with formula for the last feeding before bed, but it hasnt been helping much. my nights have been difficult and tiring. the doc said that we should start with solids soon... AT FOUR MONTHS?!? I always thought they start at 6! im tired, frustrated, and just wanted to know if anyone CAN PLEASE give me some advice on how to make the nights (and days) easier. did anyone else go through this??

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 11:26 am Post subject:

If a baby is hungry, I start them on food. dd started at around 4 months too.
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Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 11:27 am Post subject:

Bring him into bed with you...
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Senior Member Joined: Mar 17 2010 Posts: 145

I always tried to hold off on the solids until closer to six months, but some of my children needed to start earlier. It wasn't enough for them even if I nursed them straight around the clock (and I had no shortage of milk).

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 11:44 am Post subject:

Neither of my boys wanted anything to do with solids until one was 9 months old, the other was a year old...

Beginner Joined: Sep 07 2011 Posts: 12

op here.
should I be worried about allergies? I heard something about allergies being related to starting food too early. plus dh has major allergies (some food, some not food)

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 12:55 pm Post subject: re: hungry baby.. always!

my first was the same....she constantly nursed. I started solids around 5 months and B'H no allergy issues. I gave her rice cereal mixed with my breast milk that I had pumped.

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 12:57 pm Post subject: re: hungry baby.. always!

American Academy Pediatrics suggests starting solids between 4-6 months. in fact, they tie it to milestone more than age. findings show that oral-motor muscles and skills build better this way. as for allergies, you are right starting later avoids that. get a list of typical food allergens and avoid them. their are plenty of other foods available for baby (applesauce, sweet potatoes, etc.) personally, I have breastfed all of our children-almost exclusively- until well over a year, and have no oral-motor issues. we do have allergies. go figure.

Platinum Member Joined: Oct 14 2009 Posts: 5867

Are you sure he's filling up at every meal? Or is he just dropping off to sleep/play after nursing just a bit? It's especially tricky in middle of the night when you feel glad that he's falling back asleep, but if he really needed to eat more he'll wake up again sooner.

Beginner Joined: Sep 07 2011 Posts: 12

it could be that he's not eating his full at each feeding, but what should I do if he loses interest within a few minutes? I cant force him to eat! or can I?

Platinum Member Joined: Oct 14 2009 Posts: 5867

If he's falling asleep mid-feed, you can try nudging him awake, holding him upright, etc to get him to eat more. If he's getting distracted and running off to play, you can try feeding him in a dark, quiet room.

I don't have all the eitzas and I definitely know what it's like to be in a frustrating situation where everyone's eitzas don't seem to work. Just fishing for ideas here.

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 2:27 pm Post subject:

my four and a half month old is not a great eater but he is growing. I give him bottles but he barely takes 6 oz. every 3 or 4 hrs. so I'm thinking of starting solids. maybe today
.
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Platinum Member Joined: Feb 20 2009 Posts: 7583

Just because a baby is hungry doesn't mean he needs solids. Growth spurts are normal, if difficult for mommy. I would wait and see if its a phase that passes before starting solids so young, especially with a strong family history of allergies.

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 3:28 pm Post subject: re: hungry baby.. always!

What I'm going to say is going to sound really bizarre, but at about 4 months babies shift from needing to eat every 3 hours to every 4 hours, so if the meals aren't stretched they act more hungry rather than the opposite. What is happenning is that they aren't yet hungry but used to eating 3 hours later, so instead of taking a full meal they take a top up and then continue to top up every 2 hours, but never actually take a full feed. Solids are not the answer, keeping him awake longer after feeds and then giving him a slightly later nap and holding off the feed until 4 hours pass will be more successful - it might take a couple of days to implement, but you'll see a huge difference.

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 3:40 pm Post subject: re: hungry baby.. always!

you can try giving a bit of mashed bananas and see if it helps.
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Active Poster Joined: May 22 2010 Posts: 55

maybe he is waking up every hour at night cuz he is teethiing or has an ear infection?
also if your milk supply went down (cuz of pregnancy or certain types of bc or u working or s/t else) it would make him want to eat more often

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 4:28 pm Post subject:

I like Cubbie's advice, but would adjust it slightly to account for depleted milk supply in the evening. In the early evening, you might want to reverse the procedure and try nursing more frequently so that he can fill the tank. I often would spend most of the hours between 7 and 10 nursing when my kids were that age.

FWIW, nursing babies rarely get ear infections in the first year of life, and generally teethe a bit later, though there are definitely exceptions.

It's funny how advice about solids has changed over the years. When I was a baby (almost 50 years ago), my mother was told to start me on rice cereal when I was TWO WEEKS old. When my oldest was born, 4 months was the normal time to start solids. My older kids started around then. The way to avoid allergies is to choose the least allergenic foods (like rice cereal) and wait long enough between each food before introducing a new one. My younger ones waited until 6 months, but needed to nurse more frequently during the day in order to go longer at night. Now, I know of some people who nurse exclusively well past the first birthday.

One other thought -- at nighttime, you can also check whether your baby is just fretting a little in his sleep or whether he really needs to eat. Give him about 5 minutes to whimper when he wakes at nights. If he's really hungry, he'll cry. If not, he may settle back down again without a fuss. That way, you may avoid having him get in the habit of waking at night to eat every hour or so, which may be tough to break when he is older.

Posted: Sun, Sep 11 2011, 5:21 pm Post subject: Re: re: hungry baby.. always!

Gold Member Joined: Feb 13 2007 Posts: 1259

Is it possible that your milk supply has dropped? That sometimes happens if you start certain forms of birth control, or if you go back to work and aren't pumping enough during the day, and various other reasons. I can help you if you think that might be the problem.

Active Poster Joined: May 22 2010 Posts: 55