Weaning at 4 months

[Colleen1988]

my Lo is 15 weeks this week... He was 9lbs at birth and now weighs 16lbs 4oz.
He has 9oz of formula every 4 hours (in the last week some of these have been 10oz) and he also gets hungry in between these feeds so will have 2-3oz and still take his next bottle at the usual time.
He never wakes in the night for food (I know I'm very lucky) but I do dream feed him at 9pm, he started off with 8-9oz at this feed, dropped it to 3oz and is now taking 9oz again.
I don't mind giving him extra milk feeds in the day to keep him from being hungry and if he woke in the night for food then obviously I would give it to him but he doesn't and im not going to purposefully wake him (except at the 9pm dreamfeed).
Anyway to cut a long story short I explained this to the health visitor and his GP and they both said to give it a few more weeks Incase its just a phase or growth spurt but if not I could try giving him purées in between his usual 4 hours feeds to see if it satisfies him, I had suggested hungry baby milk but they both said not to use this?
I'm so confused because from everything ive read on here recently I feel like if I do this im putting his health at risk, im obviously going to take the advice of a GP over someone on a forum when it's something to do with my child's health but my question is....
For those that did give purées at 4 month, did you do it on advice of a healthcare professional? Or is it just because you felt it was right for you? What was your experiences? Did your babies take to it well? how long did it take to get them on 3 meals a day?

Thanks in advance

Ps please don't comment if you are not answering my questions, I already know that the guidelines say 6 months, I dont need this pointing out to me and I dont want a debate about weaning at 4 month or 6 month, if you have an argument just bite your tongue please. I don't want to be judged, I am a first time mum following advice from my sons GP and im asking for guidance from those who have been in a similar situation xxx

 

[JD.Deedee]

You'll need to wait until the 17 week mark, it's not advised to start any earlier than 17 weeks old. There is information on both sides. But there's enough ladies on here whom have experience with starting around that time mark. Whom I'm sure will tell your their experience soon.

The downside I found with hungry baby milk (my little one at 2,5 drains them (toddler milk that is) as if I have money growing on my back) is that it doesn't hydrate them as much. I tried it several times when his fontanelle was still visible and it used to dip in meaning he was getting dehydrated every time I introduced the hungry baby milk and had to force him to drink enough extra water which didn't seem to occur at all with his first stage milk.

Also, one thing regardless of what time you start.. Start with vegs first before introducing fruit.. Fruit is sweet.. I did the fruit first now it's a battle to get him to eat vegs.. Not sure if it's because of that but I was told this a little too late!

And another, use a ice cube tray to freeze the purreed meals you make yourself.. it's a much smaller portion than a jar which might be a waste when you first start with first tastes

 

[TTT]

I'm not sure on what exactly it is you're asking. If you're thinking introducing.solids will help stop jim waking in the night, my opinion is that it wont. They wake at night when they go through leaps in their development and have growth spurts etc and its not a bad thing. Introducing solids will probably not help in that respect as its lots of new learning experiences and it takes time for their digestive system to adjust to it. My lo used to poo after every feed when he was a baby baby then he started to get constipated and wind etc when I introduced solids and when he got constipated it disturbed his sleep more.

I weaned at 19 weeks as he had been extremely interested in food for about three weeks prior and he was under consultant care for a suspected milk allergy and the consultant gave me the go ahead. I take advice from gps and hvs with a pinch of salt as they have to give the current advice from the NHS and the government introduces initiatives based on certain aspects, eg the back to sleep campaign in 1994 to reduce side but that's extremely debatable, as is weaning, and the advice changes all the time when new research show new evidence etc.

I didn't give him anything that contained allergens until after six months at least and I still control his wheat and sugar intake.

 

[Lucyboo]

We tried my lg on puréed veg at 18 weeks, although we thought she had been showing signs, she wasn't into it and spat it out, gave her a 2 week break, no pressure, tried again at 20 weeks, still wasn't taking to it, was about to stop but thought I'd try once more and that day she demolished the lot, so in reality took to it at week 21 2 weeks ago, in that 2 weeks she has had a huge development spurt and can sit up completely unaided which is a huge sign they are ready, as the others say, don't give any dairy, meat, gluten etc. Elllas kitchen do a fab weaning pack with a chart showing what to introduce and when but defo nothing before week 17. We started as she massively dropped her milk down to about 5oz or less a feed, is now back on her milk better than ever.

 

[Starlight1986]

Baby formula has more fat/calories than any pureed food

My first girl was a hungry baby - I just fed on demand when she needed it and didn't wean till 6 months, she was also a great sleeper.

It sounds to me like he and you are doing great at the moment and there is no need to change? x

 

[lizziimayy]

My 7 month old is on solids now and still doesn't sleep through
Before she was on solids she was gaining 6oz every two weeks and then suddenly at 6 months she only put 1oz on. My health visitor said this was the sign that she needs to start solids.

 

[can]

Personally o would just continue with the milk but he is your baby so just go with mothers intuition. Your know if you start and he isn't ready. Good luck. Well done on him sleeping through the night. My 16 week old is breast fed and still wakes up around 3 times a night!!

 

[kumber]

I would also continue with the milk, the longer you leave it the more mature their gut will be.

There is a huuuuuuuuge leap and growth spurt combined at 16 weeks to 4 months and their intake doubles, which is why they're advising you to wait. I agree, wait until about 20 weeks to make sure he is definitely ready. The hungry baby milk is full of filler so it sits longer in their tummies but has no extra nutritional value - 8oz of hungry baby has the same amount of nutrients as regular milk so it's best to avoid really.

I did the same as Starlight, fed my bottomless pit as much milk as he wanted and weaned at 6 months, he was on 3 meals a day within a week

 

[caseysmummy11]

I weaned my little boy at 4 months on the advise of my health visitor and gp at the time ( he's 4 now so guidelines have changed again ) he was very similar to your little boy and couldn't get enough milk. He loved his food and was ready imo. I agree to start with veggies as I've found with my daughter it's hard to do it the other way round as they like fruit more . You know your baby baby best. My son was grabbing food off my plate before I weaned him and was sitting unaided xxx

 

[Colleen1988]

As I said in my op I am taking the advice of my HV and GP which is why I'm asking about weaning at 4 months, no offence ladies and I appreciate you replying but I did make it clear in my OP that I just wanted advice re weaning at 4 months, I already know that the government recommends weaning at 6 month.

TTT as I said in my op my Lo sleeps through the night so I'm nt sure where you have got the idea that im doing this to sleep through? Perhaps you just didn't read my post properly because I asked specific questions at the bottom of the post so that's what I'm asking... I don't mean that to sound rude im just replying to your comment.

Thanks to everyone for the advice re weaning, I'll make sure I start with single veg and I'll have a read of the Ella's kitchen guide

Thank you xxx

 

[TTT]

I took your questions to be advice about weaning early but you said you didn't want a debate on weaning early. So I was unsure what your problem.was tbh. Obvs I haven't read your post in the same way as everyone.

 

[Colleen1988]

Ps ive just re read this and It does sound like I'm being rude but I really don't mean to be. I'm taking the advice of my HV and GP and just want advice from those that weaned at 4 month.

So I apologise if I sound rude im just trying to be direct so that people don't waste their time by replying with something that's not really helpful to me xxx

 

[Colleen1988]

TTT when I said about debates I just meant I didn't want 7 pages of people arguing about when to wean as we've seen in previous posts. That's why I was so specific in my post. I appreciate the advice you gave about weaning though, thanks xxx

 

[Baby2sky]

As starlight and kumber said, there is a massive growth spurt at 4 months. My lo was also on 9 and 10oz bottles (every 3 hours) at that age and I just continued with the feeds as formula will satisfy their hunger more than veg will. My lo also slept 13hrs at night and hv said that babies that sleep all night may appear to be hungry babies but in actual fact theyre not really taking more than other babies, its just seems more cos they're fitting it into 11hrs as opposed to 24.

 

[Lulu90]

As you know Hun, I've started weaning Luca, purely on the basis that he has full blown meltdowns when we eat in front of him.

Starting him on just porridge/baby rice in the morning, as I was advised to start off slow. 3 meals a day is just too much at the moment and there is the risk that he just might not take to it. With baby rice/porridge, it expands in their stomach, this is why I won't give it to Luca at night.

He'll eat and then suck a bottle dry and is still feeding every 3 hours. I don't listen to all the controversy. I said from day 1 that I wouldn't cave and wean him before 6 months, but what am I supposed to do if my child has tears rolling down his face while I'm sitting eating my breakfast.

You're a fantastic mummy and you definitely know what's best for Isaac. I for 1 am going to enjoy sharing the weaning journey with you xx

 

[Lulu90]

I also meant to add, he will refuse a bottle when crying, but when he's had enough porridge he pushes the spoon away and then wants the bottle xx

 

[Goat]

Another post not necessarily answering your questions but I was in a similar position to you as my eldest fed every 2 hours at that age and my GP suggested the same thing. I wasn't comfortable with the idea so spoke to her pediatric dietician who advised me not too for reasons you already know. I went with the dietician.
Was your GP or your HV genuinely concerned about the feeding or just saying it was something you could try out if the feeding was a problem to you? I only ask because I've noticed that sometimes health professionals will suggest things flippantly when we mention minor problems regarding sleep and feeding patterns to them - as though they want to suggest something to help because there's not a great deal they can actually do.
Good luck whatever you decide!x

 

[Belfa]

Hi I started weaning my LO at 5months and he's taken to it well.

It wasn't on the advice of health professionals but I felt he was naturally trying to wean himself by taking less milk and showing a huge interest in food. We're now on week 4 and just today he got the Hipp Organic baby breakfast at 9.30am and then carrot purée or lunch. This was the first time we introduced breakfast as I read that there's a point in the day when baby is less interested in their bottle and for us this was always 9.30 where he'd try to skip it. Anyway he ate the whole lot.

I bought one of Anabel Karmels books last week - "Weaning" it's called (she has loads so it was hard to choose!). It's good though as I was concerned it would be concentrated on purées but she's respectful of all the weaning methods so there's purées for 4-6month first tastes, then there's mashes and finger foods for 6month+. She also puts a meal plan together x

 

[Orion]

Maybe you should ask for more advice from your HV. You obviously have questions about weaning and they'll go through all your questions and concerns with you. Have you had your weaning appointment yet? Mine gave me leaflets, recipes etc.

 

[Colleen1988]

Ive gone through everything with my HV, Im just asking for people on here to share their experience of weaning at 4 months. Thanks x