Feeding baby cereal at bedtime

Infant sleep and bedtime cereal

Clinical Trial

. 1989 Sep;143(9):1066-8.

doi: 10.1001/archpedi.1989.02150210100027.

M L Macknin¹, S V Medendorp, M C Maier

Affiliations

Affiliation

¹ Department of Pediatrics, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH 44195-5045.

PMID: 2672785
DOI: 10.1001/archpedi.1989.02150210100027

Clinical Trial

M L Macknin et al. Am J Dis Child. 1989 Sep.

. 1989 Sep;143(9):1066-8.

doi: 10.1001/archpedi.1989.02150210100027.

Authors

M L Macknin¹, S V Medendorp, M C Maier

Affiliation

¹ Department of Pediatrics, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH 44195-5045.

PMID: 2672785
DOI: 10.1001/archpedi.1989.02150210100027

Abstract

We studied whether feeding infants rice cereal before bedtime promotes their sleeping through the night. One hundred six infants were randomly assigned to begin bedtime cereal feeding (1 tablespoon per ounce in a bottle) at 5 weeks or at 4 months of age. Caretakers recorded the infant's sleep from age 4 to 21 weeks for one 24-hour period per week. Sleeping through the night was defined as sleeping at least 8 consecutive hours, with the majority of time being between the hours of midnight and 6 AM. The results were also reviewed changing the requirement from 8 hours to 6 hours. There was no statistically significant trend or a consistent tendency of one group to have a higher proportion of sleepers than the other. Therefore, feeding infants rice cereal in the bottle before bedtime does not appear to make much difference in their sleeping through the night.

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Messayke S, Davisse-Paturet C, Nicklaus S, Dufourg MN, Charles MA, de Lauzon-Guillain B, Plancoulaine S. Messayke S, et al. Matern Child Nutr. 2021 Jan;17(1):e13072. doi: 10.1111/mcn.13072. Epub 2020 Sep 10. Matern Child Nutr. 2021. PMID: 32914572 Free PMC article.
Association of Early Introduction of Solids With Infant Sleep: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial.
Perkin MR, Bahnson HT, Logan K, Marrs T, Radulovic S, Craven J, Flohr C, Lack G. Perkin MR, et al. JAMA Pediatr. 2018 Aug 6;172(8):e180739. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2018.0739. Epub 2018 Aug 6. JAMA Pediatr. 2018. PMID: 29987321 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
Feeding methods, sleep arrangement, and infant sleep patterns: a Chinese population-based study.
Huang XN, Wang HS, Chang JJ, Wang LH, Liu XC, Jiang JX, An L. Huang XN, et al. World J Pediatr. 2016 Feb;12(1):66-75. doi: 10.1007/s12519-015-0012-8. Epub 2015 Mar 9. World J Pediatr. 2016. PMID: 25754749
Opportunities for the primary prevention of obesity during infancy.
Paul IM, Bartok CJ, Downs DS, Stifter CA, Ventura AK, Birch LL. Paul IM, et al. Adv Pediatr. 2009;56(1):107-33. doi: 10.1016/j.yapd.2009.08.012. Adv Pediatr. 2009. PMID: 19968945 Free PMC article. Review.

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Will giving formula or solids at night help baby to sleep better? • KellyMom.com

The idea that solids will help your baby sleep is an old wives’ tale that has been disproven by medical studies. Feeding your baby solids or formula in an attempt to make baby sleep longer is not a good idea for several reasons:

1. There is no evidence that it will help. Some babies will sleep worse, due to reactions to the formula or solids (tummy ache, etc. are not uncommon), particularly if baby is younger than around 6 months. Three studies have indicated that adding solids or formula to the diet does not cause babies to sleep longer. These studies found no difference in the sleep patterns of babies who received solids before bedtime when compared to babies who were not given solids. Here are the studies:

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Brown A & Harries V. Infant Sleep and Night Feeding Patterns During Later Infancy: Association with Breastfeeding Frequency, Daytime Complementary Food Intake, and Infant Weight. Breastfeeding Medicine. June 2015, 10(5): 246-252. doi:10.1089/bfm.2014.0153.

Macknin ML, Medendorp SV, Maier MC. Infant sleep and bedtime cereal. Am J Dis Child. 1989 Sep;143(9):1066-8.

Keane V, et al. Do solids help baby sleep through the night? Am J Dis Child 1988; 142: 404-05.

2. Formula requires a baby’s digestive system to work overtime as baby tries to digest something not specific to the human body. Formula is harder to digest than human milk; thus formula-fed babies tend to go longer between feedings (see this page for more on this subject). While this may seem like a benefit, it’s probably not something we want for our babies’ bodies unless there are no other alternatives. There are also risks to formula use (see What should I know about infant formula?). It certainly has a place in infant feeding but probably shouldn’t be used whenever mom’s milk – either directly from the source or expressed – is available.

3. Early introduction of solids (before six months) carries its own set of risks.

4. Recent research suggests that longer stretches of deep sleep are associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and babies who sleep longer/deeper may be more vulnerable to SIDS (see in particular the research of James McKenna, PhD). Some scientists are saying that it appears that long sleep stretches are not “natural” for human infants and that sleep interruptions in the early months may provide a protective factor against SIDS. More research is needed on this subject, but parents might want to think twice about significantly manipulating baby’s natural sleep pattern in the early months.

A little more about feeding baby cereal from a bottle…

Doctors and other experts recommend that you never give baby cereal in a bottle unless recommended by baby’s doctor for a specific medical condition. Here are some of their reasons:

It is a choking hazard.
The cereal takes away from the amount of milk in the bottle (adds carbohydrates and dilutes the nutrient density), and baby may not get adequate milk volume for proper growth and development.
Baby is being given a higher concentration of calories without being able to regulate her own intake. This can lead to weight problems in the future.

If baby’s doctor suggests thickened feedings for reflux, consider asking about alternatives, as many doctors question this practice and it has the potential to cause more harm than good.

Additional information

I have heard different reviews about putting cereal in the bottle of an infant. Is it safe? by Dr. Alan Greene

Will my baby sleep better if I add cereal to her bottle at night? by Jan Barger, RN, MA, IBCLC

Sleeping through the night @

What to feed your baby before bed

Our friends @gotovimdetyam collect the best baby food recipes and tips. They prepared an article specifically for @spimalysh "What to feed a child before bedtime?".

According to scientists, dinner should be 20% of the daily diet. The child should have dinner no later than one and a half to two hours before bedtime, and a second dinner in the form of a glass of milk or kefir at night is also desirable, which prolongs the feeling of satiety and calms.

Everyone is familiar with the old grandmother's remedy: in order for the child to sleep soundly, he needs to be fed more satisfyingly. In this case, the parents will receive peace of mind, but not the child. His body will not rest, it will be engaged in the digestion of food. Such excesses as semolina or meat dishes at night lead to gastrointestinal diseases.

Recipes for breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner are very similar. Variations of products, combinations of cottage cheese, fruits and cereals, light soups and casseroles - all this is equally suitable for breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner.

Children's dinner includes food that the child "did not get" during the day. For example, if there was a lack of cottage cheese and fruits, give cottage cheese and fruits. Children who go to kindergarten do not have enough “live” fermented milk products, egg dishes, since almost all food in kindergarten is thermally processed. Therefore, in the evening you can unload the stomach without offering him anything boiled or baked - eggs, raw vegetables, salads, yogurts, cottage cheese. Well, if there was no dinner in the kindergarten, then we are having dinner at home like an adult.

People often ask: is it bad to eat porridge for dinner, is it not too heavy a meal. Look at the child! The child will always give a signal which food is preferable for him. If the dream is restless, the child cannot fall asleep for a long time - try experimenting with dinner. Porridge is a normal living food, it is better than sandwiches, convenience foods, cereals, cookies, and so on. Porridge can be harmful if it is not absorbed by a particular child for some reason.

You should not give millet, semolina, barley porridge for dinner, if possible, do not use milk and sugar, replacing them with fruit puree, dried fruits, a spoonful of honey. "Light" porridge for the night is buckwheat, oatmeal and any "children's" (powder).

Also suitable for dinner:

— Cottage cheese, cottage cheese dishes (casseroles, syrniki), cottage cheese with fruit.

- Omelet, vegetables in an omelet, boiled eggs.

- Mixed vegetables, purees, stews, casseroles, vegetable cutlets and zrazy, vegetables with rice, buckwheat. Raw vegetables.

- Salads.

- Fruits - bananas and green apples. Banana calms, increases the feeling of satiety, and green apples are rich in "night" elements - calcium and iron, magnesium, potassium.

- Baked fruits: apples, pears.

- Any fermented milk products - kefir, yogurt, bifidok, acidophilus. Cheese.

Bon appetit and healthy sleep to your children!

Food and Sleep Physiology Sleep Frequent Awakenings

Proper nutrition before bedtime | HiPP Organic

An evening meal should be easy to digest...

What parents don't dream of a peacefully sleeping child. After all, calm and deep sleep is important for the growth of the child and for his healthy development, and it is no less important for moms and dads.

In order for the baby to fall asleep easily and sleep peacefully all night, along with soothing evening rituals and the right environment during sleep, a hearty and well-digested evening meal, which does not create a feeling of heaviness in a small tummy, plays an important role. It goes without saying that evening porridge should be without added sugar.

What kind of food is easy to digest, satiates well and for a long time, providing a calm and deep sleep for a child?

Milk-cereal porridge has proven itself well for evening feeding. The milk contained in the porridge provides a particularly valuable, easily digestible protein. Delicate cereal flakes fill the body with energy. Whole grain flakes make sure that this energy is stored in the body for a long time. Thanks to this, the baby, as a rule, snores peacefully, and the feeling of hunger does not bother him.