How much solid food?

[Sparky0207]

Firstly must apologise as I have Lucy on my lap and she is wriggling well so am rushing so pls forgive spellings!
been told by loads of diff health visitors how much solids to give and none have given me the same answer!
Lucy currently has 3 meals a day - albeit very small meals. she has about 2 desertspoons of porridge in the morning, followed by a 7 oz bottle, then 1/2 smallest size jar baby food for lunch with another 7 oz bottle. 8oz biottle at 4pm with no solids, then 3/4 jar food with her nightime 8oz bottle before bed. one hv said she was havin too much whereas most the others have said she should be on more solids than this, maybe a whole jar for lunch and dinner. she really enjoys her dfood and has started waking in the night so should i try her with more?

im sure no one will but please dont critisize me for not making my own food for her, we spend about an hour a day at home so find it difficult! promise i will when we are at home more

 

[Serene123]

I wish people would stop relating waking in the night to solids

Do you feel your daughter needs more food?

 

[ryder]

Giving solids CAN help babies sleep through the night... but there are other reasons for waking too... ie: teething etc...

At her age she should be able to dictate how much she wants to eat and when she is full. And at 6 months they only need 16-20 oz of formula or milk in a 24 hour period. They can have a whole variety of different things.

If a baby isn't getting enough solids to sustain them throughout the night then they will start waking for feed.

Its only obvious that a liquid diet would need to be filled more frequently... rather then a balanced liquid/solid diet.

 

[ColtonsMom]

At her age she should be able to dictate how much she wants to eat and when she is full.

I agree. At her age she should be able to eat until she is full. She will turn her head/act uninterested in the food when she starts to become full.

 

[Sparky0207]

Thanks for all your replies.
Shes been sleeping through for ages but the last couple of weeks has started waking between 5 and 6. I have offered her a bottle at this time but shes not interested and will happily wait til 8 without a bottle.

With regards to her letting me know she is full, she is very greedy and I then worry that I am over feeding her.
Friends with children lucy's age all seem to think im feeding her too much! I guess im relying too much on what other people do and not responding enough to lucy.
Should I just try feeding her more? I dont think shes lacking in milk, I think if anything she prefers her solids to her milk.
Started off as a question about feeding her enough and is now turning into feeding her too much!!!

 

[ryder]

Let her have her fill and just make sure she gets the min amount of milk in a day.

 

[Vickie]

Oh my Hannah eats so much more than that

5 ounces of milk followed by cereal made up with 2 ounces of milk (makes several tablespoons worth!) and than if she wants some Cheerios while mommy cleans up

snack of a banana/avocado/toast etc. and sometimes she'll eat the entire thing

4-6 ounces of milk followed by 2 cubes of veggies and 2-3 cubes of fruit

another snack

4-6 ounces of milk followed by 2-3 cubes of veggies and either a fruit cup or yogurt or something (last night she had spaghetti with 10 noodles cut up--2 cubes of sauce + an entire fruit cup for dinner!)

top up bottle of 3-5 ounces

 

[ricschick]

dont listen to anybody else telling you what to do every baby is different jusr feed her until she is full my lucy starts spitting it out when shes full or clamps her lips closed
maybe start giving her a full jar instead of just half and see how she goes with that?
my lucy has at the moment
6oz milk when she wakes 7.30-8am
then ready brek with fruit or baby porridge around 10am
then half a jar of vege or mixed meat and veg and then some pureed fruit then around 3oz of milk.
then at 5/5.30pm she has mashed banana or a different fruit and a drink then at 7.30pm she has 6-8oz of milk then bed.

will incorporate snacks as her appitite increases.

 

[nikky0907]

Lola has only two meals a day so far, one in the evening at aroung 6 pm and thats a half bowl of baby cereal and one at 10 am and thats usually some pureed veggies or fruit.
You know your baby and she's old enough to know when she's full.

 

[Emmea12uk]

Every baby is different. You just have to let her tell you when she has had enough. She will stop when she is full. Let your HV and doctor be the judges of overfeeding. if you are worried at all, take her to be weighed regularly. Weightgain/loss is the best indication

 

[jenstar]

I would think: if she is waking in the night hungry then she could take more during the day, but if she is waking up for some other reason she's getting enough food. These past few weeks my baby has slept a lot less in the day, and the odd day he has slept longer he has woke up in the night to play with his teddy! So not food related for him.

 

[Sparky0207]

Just to report on progress, I think I wasnt feeding her enough!
Yesterday I gave her double the amount of porridge, nearly a whole jar for lunch and a whole jar and the bit left over from lunch for dinner and she ate it all! And still had the same amount of milk as before!
And....... she slept right through! yipeeee!
Feel guilty now that I was leaving her hungry! Guess she didnt want her bottle at 5am, she just wanted some more solids through the day

 

[lcside]

Thats great. Erin was starting to wake at 6.30am and was really hungry. We have just increased her solids and she is having a whole stage 1 jar for lunch and dinner now, was about half to 3/4 before (jars are filled with homemade food - gave up with using icecubes) and she slept till 8.30am to day. xxx