What to feed three month old baby

Feeding Your 1- to 3-Month-Old (for Parents)

During your baby's first 3 months, breast milk or formula will provide all the nutrition needed. Doctors recommend waiting until your baby is about 6 months old to start solid foods. Some babies may be ready for solids sooner than 6 months, but wait until your baby is at least 4 months old.

What Changes Should I Expect?

As your infant grows, feeding will change. Babies will start drinking more milk during each feeding, so they won't need to feed as often and will sleep longer at night.

Your baby's appetite will increase during growth spurts. Continue to feed on demand and increase the number of feedings as needed.

Your infant also will become more alert as the weeks go by, cooing and smiling. So there will be more interaction between you and your baby during feedings.

The following are general guidelines, and your baby may be hungrier more or less often than this. That's why it's important to pay attention to your baby's signals of being hungry or full. A baby who is getting enough might slow down, stop, or turn away from the breast or bottle.

Breastfeeding: How Much and How Often?

As babies get older, they will start to breastfeed less often and sleep for longer periods at night. Your infant probably is eating enough if he or she:

seems alert, content, and active
is steadily gaining weight and growing
feeds six to eight times per day
is wetting and soiling diapers on a regular basis

Babies might not be eating enough if they:

don't appear satisfied
cry constantly
are irritable, even after feeding
are not making wet diapers

Call your doctor if you're concerned your baby isn't eating enough.

A few weeks after birth, breastfed babies tend to have fewer bowel movements (BMs, or poop) than they did before. At around 2 months of age, your baby may not poop after each feeding, or even every day. During growth spurts, you may notice that your little one wants to feed more often. This frequent nursing sends a signal to make more milk. Within a couple of days, supply and demand will get into balance.

Babies who get breast milk only should get vitamin D supplements within the first few days of life. Other supplements, water, juice, and solid foods aren't usually needed.

Formula Feeding: How Much and How Often?

Babies digest formula more slowly than breast milk, so if you're bottle-feeding, your baby may have fewer feedings than a breastfed infant.

As babies grow, they can eat more at each feeding and may go for longer stretches between feedings. You'll also notice that your baby is starting to sleep longer at night.

During the second month, infants may take about 4 or 5 ounces at each feeding. By the end of 3 months, your baby may need an additional ounce at each feeding.

It's easy to overfeed a baby when using a bottle because it easier to drink from a bottle than from a breast. Make sure that the hole on the bottle's nipple is the right size. The liquid should drip slowly from the hole and not pour out. Also, resist the urge to finish the bottle when your baby shows signs of being full.

Never prop a bottle. Propping a bottle might cause choking and it increases the chances of getting ear infections and tooth decay.

Should I Worry About Spitting Up?

It's normal for infants to "spit up" after eating or during burping. Spitting up a small amount — usually less than 1 ounce (30 ml) — shouldn't be a concern as long as it happens within an hour of feeding and doesn't bother your baby.

You can reduce spitting up in these early months by:

feeding before your baby gets very hungry
keeping your baby in a semi-upright position during the feeding and for an hour after
burping your baby regularly
avoiding overfeeding
not jostling or playing vigorously with your baby right after a feeding

If your baby seems to be spitting up large amounts, is spitting up forcefully, is irritable during or after feedings, or seems to be losing weight or is not gaining weight as expected, call your doctor. And if your child has a fever or shows any signs of dehydration (such as not wetting diapers), call the doctor right away.

Call your doctor if you have any questions or concerns about feeding your infant.

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD

Date reviewed: November 2021

3-Month-Old Baby Guide—Third Month Development & Milestones

Their personality is growing, and so are their muscles

A bigger personality and a stronger body are the standout developments of 3-month-old. It’s an exciting time to be a parent, with much to discover for you both!

MILESTONE CONTENT:

Feeding schedule: At 3 months of age, your baby will likely be drinking 6- to-7 fl oz of formula or breastmilk, 4-5 times a day.

They can see clearly now: All babies are born with fuzzy vision—seeing clearly for, at best, 12 inches from their face. By month 3, yours should see well enough to watch and track you from several feet to all the way across the room!

Baby steps of strength.  

By month 3, your little one is developing their own personality. They’re also developing some strength and coordination, perhaps reaching for objects and turning their head in the direction of your voice. This makes it a fun time to get them involved with new toys, textures, and people. They’re working on strengthening their hand muscles to prepare for picking up toys in a few more months from now. Help them grow stronger by putting a rattle in their hand and playing a gentle game of tug-of-war.

Your baby’s nutrition: food for thought 

Your little one’s taste in food may be simple, but the science of good nutrition goes a bit deeper.

Your baby’s overall development, including that of their immune system and brain, depends on appropriate amounts of macronutrients (carbohydrates, lipids, and protein) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). These nutrients help provide cell membrane structure, regulate metabolism, and supply energy.

Here's a brief description of how micro- and macronutrients feed your baby’s growth and development:

CARBOHYDRATES supply food energy for growth, body functions, and activity. They also allow protein and lipids to be used efficiently and normally. 

LIPIDS provide more than twice the energy of carbohydrates or protein to power growth and functionality. Lipids are made up of fatty acids. Linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid are considered essential fatty acids because they are not made by the body and must be obtained by food. These fatty acids are converted to arachidonic acid (ARA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), both of which are important for brain and eye development.

PROTEINS  help develop, maintain, and repair new tissues throughout the body, including in the brain.

VITAMIN E is an antioxidant found in cells, including cells in a baby’s developing eyes and brain. Vitamin E helps protect these cells. It’s also essential for structure and function of the nervous system, retinas, and skeletal muscles. Common food sources of vitamin E include:

Oil-containing grains
Fortified cereals
Vegetable oils
Plants and vegetables

Your baby’s development: it’s beyond compare 

It’s natural to compare your baby’s development with other babies, but babies develop at their own pace, so you shouldn’t worry if yours does something sooner or later than your friend's baby. In general, by the end of their third month, these are some developments you can start looking for:

The ability to hold their head up steadily 
"Coo" and "goo" noises, as well as other sounds 
Interest in reaching for familiar objects 
Focuses on closely held objects and follows them from side to side

Help your 3-month-old engage with their world

It’s not always easy to see it, but your 3-month-old is becoming quite aware of their surroundings. Here’s how you can help:

Prop them up. Give your baby a better seat by propping them up to watch what is going on around them. 

Look in mirrors. Place an unbreakable baby mirror in their crib or playpen. Hold them up to mirrors in your home. 

Soft rock. A rocking chair or porch swing is a great place to hold your baby as you talk softly and make eye contact. 

Quiet times. Your baby needs some quiet time to babble, play, and explore their world, so turn off the radio, TV, or stereo.  

Textures to touch. Your baby will like feeling the various textures of items like stuffed animals, plastic toys, or pieces of terry cloth or rubber (be sure pieces are not too small and that they cannot be torn off and swallowed). 

Sing quietly. A quiet song from mom or dad before bed could leave your baby starry eyed.

Things to think about at 3 months: sleep patterns 

Some tips and things to know about your baby’s sleep patterns include:

Your baby might be sleeping about 12 to 15 hours total every day, including naps. 
If they roll over and wake up, wait a few minutes to see if they go back to sleep without your help. 
Keep thick blankets, comforters, pillows, and stuffed toys out of the crib.

Learn about infant sleep safety recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Next month’s developments: yakety yak, your baby is talking back! 

Month 4 may bring some laughter and attempts at basic speech. It’s also time to learn how you can start strengthening their immune system. Read ahead to learn more about what happens in Month 4.

Join MySimilac^® Rewards for up to $400^* in benefits and support throughout your journey.
* Offers may vary.

Baby 3 months what can you feed the baby. Important Rules for Complementary Feeding

The first year of a baby's life is characterized by rapid development. News appears literally weekly. Most of all it concerns the 3rd month. During this time, the child has already learned a lot. After the baby has adapted to the new conditions of existence, he actively explores the surrounding space and society.

The formation of his organism is gaining high rates. Moms highlight the key achievements that the child has achieved at 3 months: development and nutrition are rhythmic and interdependent, the baby becomes stronger, rounded, his movements and some skills improve. The baby's daily routine stabilizes: he eats, sleeps and is awake at approximately the same time, which makes it easier for the mother to plan her affairs.

During the 3rd month, the baby gains about a quarter of its original weight, and its height adds about a tenth of the former. This happens only in a fairy tale, which speaks of a hero who grows by leaps and bounds. There is an active development of all internal organs and systems of the baby. Such rapid growth of the baby requires a proper supply of energy to the body. And the sources of energy necessary for the baby are long sleep and sufficient nutrition, which will ensure the extraordinary speed of development of the baby.

The correct sleep of the baby during the day lasts 18-20 hours, and during the same time he eats mother's milk, equal to a fifth of his weight. Of course, this is an average. All children are different and grow differently. Mothers should not worry if the baby eats a little more or less. He himself knows how much he needs, and he will be able to convey it to his mother in his own ways. If in the 3rd month the sleep and feeding regimen of the baby is not established, the baby sleeps and eats less than normal, and his weight and height are insufficient, you should urgently consult a doctor.

Height and weight depend on:

height and weight at birth;
genetics;
floor;
feeding method.

During the 3rd month, a boy usually gains about 800 g and a girl 750 g.

Energy for growth comes from nutrition

Feeding a 3 month old baby is the main goal and joy in his life. The baby acquires the initial concepts of reality from the conditions in which it grows, and the first ideas about people - from the mother who feeds him. The instinct of hunger is familiar to all living beings, and especially to babies. A chronically malnourished baby will not allow himself to be left hungry, he will demand the necessary portion of food with the help of a cry. Usually the baby wakes up from hunger and cries most often from what she wants to eat. This is easy to determine by how eagerly he catches the nipple or pacifier.

Sucking is a difficult task for a baby. He puffs, doing a difficult task, even sweats from zeal. It will not be possible to take away his source of food before full saturation comes, otherwise the indignant cry will tell about his appetite. Only having received exactly the volume of milk that is required, he quickly falls asleep. Even sleeping, he continues to smack, as if he is dreaming of continued feeding, and a manifestation of bliss can be seen on his face.

Do not force a baby to take more milk than necessary. For this reason, he may lose his appetite. Trying to avoid excess food, he will tend to fall asleep early or stubbornly refuse to breastfeed. By this he instinctively protects himself from excesses. But such a situation is fraught with a loss of interest in the feeding process itself and a loss of pleasure from it. Getting food should remain bliss for the baby, and mother - his best friend and nurse. This is an essential factor for the baby's conviction in the trustworthiness of others, which is laid down by the child's diet at 3 months.

How to set up a feeding schedule

A three-month-old baby will feel more comfortable getting used to sleeping and eating at certain hours. Adaptation to the regime is faster with the help of mom. With an increase in the weight of the baby, the time intervals between feedings increase. Supporting the mother in establishing regular feedings and reducing their daily intake is important. A long wait for food makes an impatient baby suffer, but he will not resist, but, on the contrary, will be very happy if he is gently awakened 3 or 4 hours after the previous feeding.

Babies weighing less than 3 kg usually need a 3-hour interval between meals, while those weighing around 4.5 kg may need 4 hours. A mother can reinforce the stereotype of a 4-hour break between feedings by feeding the baby after 4 hours. Thus, the child's nutrition at 3 months will become stable, in accordance with the regimen. If the baby tries to disrupt the regularity of eating by crying after 2 hours, you can overcome this difficulty by not approaching him for a while and giving him a chance to fall asleep again. If you continue crying, you can give some water to drink. In this way, the baby will adapt to regular breaks in eating.

A mother who feeds her child as soon as he moves, even if she has fed him less than 2 hours ago, develops in the child the habit of eating small portions at short intervals. Different children get used to the regimen in different ways, although most of them are already switching to a 4-hour interval from a month old with skipping night feeding.

It is not easy to learn to follow the regime, it requires patience and effort.

Age diet

The powerful progress that is taking place in the development of a three-month-old baby requires a change in the process of nutrition. The basis, as before, is liquid food: the use of breast milk or artificial mixtures continues. From the age of 3 months, no complementary foods are allowed to be introduced into the diet. Acceleration of growth and physical activity cause an increase in appetite. Because of this, a hard-won or even not-yet-established regimen may collapse in order to resume breastfeeding on demand, which will most likely have to be increased. This is not a reason to be upset, the incentive will be closer contact with the baby and his smiles.

Observing the reaction of a 3-month-old baby gives the mother the opportunity to pay attention to signs of satiety or, on the contrary, lack of food. A well-fed baby slows down sucking, turns away from the breast or bottle.

By the end of 3 months, most babies have a period of increased growth. The appetite is also growing. Moms may get the impression that she does not have enough milk, and the baby wants to eat more and more often. Some, on the contrary, turn away from the chest and act up. Breastfeeding is sometimes hampered by the baby's interest in the world around him, when he spins, looking at everything around and distracting himself from the chest.

Unaware of such situations, mothers in a panic turn to complementary foods, which should not be done. A quick-witted baby, realizing that it is much easier to get food from a bottle, completely refuses to breastfeed. This is a fairly common reason that three-month-old children first switch to mixed, and later to artificial nutrition.

Actually, there was no less milk, the baby simply increased his nutritional needs. This phenomenon is called a lactation crisis. It does not last long, and after a few days passes.

Premature supplementation

Transferring the baby to supplementary feeding will not solve the problem, on the contrary, it will aggravate it. Mixtures are digested much longer and are absorbed worse than mother's milk. A sharp transition to a different composition of food changes the microflora in the intestines of the baby. Returning to breast milk will not return her to her previous state. The intestines of the child are filled with anaerobic microbes, and their reproduction begins. With just one feeding with a mixture per day, irreversible consequences can be achieved.

Introducing supplementary food into baby food from the age of 3 months, it should not be diluted with goat milk or kefir, which are not adapted food. These products are not suitable for the age of 3 months, they harm children under one year old, increasing the burden on the kidneys and pancreas.

There are situations when breastfeeding is not feasible (medication, illness). In such cases, the child is transferred to food mixtures. Not being able to breastfeed should not make the mother feel guilty. With artificial feeding, pediatricians advise using partly free feeding - a method in which the amount of food is given at the request of the baby, but within limited limits, and fed at a fixed time. At the same time, a little more mixture is poured into the bottle than is required to find out how much food the baby needs. Do not captivate him and feed him if he does not want to.

give the child water;
strictly follow the method of preparing the mixture;
do not advise dose increase or decrease;
it is strictly forbidden to combine different mixtures;
it is advisable to pour out the contents of the bottle that the baby has not finished eating;
do not recommend force feeding your baby.

By the age of three months, the child grows up, gains weight and develops. This period is conducive to establishing a diet and sleep for the baby. Mother's milk continues to be the only source of nutrition. Due to the increased needs of the baby in breast milk, it is desirable to increase the intervals between feedings. Breastfed babies receive breast milk on demand and are not limited in time at the breast. Doctors advise not to rush with the introduction of supplementary feeding, so as not to harm the health of the baby.

Every parent wants to know as much useful information as possible about the correct feeding of the child. Complementary foods at 3 months are not prescribed for all children. If your baby is breastfed and does not suffer from underweight, then you can start it as soon as the baby is six months old. In any case, in order to decide whether it is necessary to introduce complementary foods and where it is better to start, it will be right to consult a pediatrician.

Reasons for introducing complementary foods at 3 months of age:

underweight;
lack of breast milk or its complete absence;
the impossibility of acquiring good quality supplements for the baby.

Pros and cons of complementary foods

Complementary foods have their advantages and disadvantages. It is important to understand that each child has individual characteristics. If the crumbs have good immunity, then his body will be able to take fruit purees, cereals and juices as early as 3 months. All this will only benefit him.

However, in young children, on the contrary, immunity is weakened and, according to doctors, the introduction of complementary foods at 3 months can adversely affect the baby's body, especially the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. After all, it is at the age of three months that many children suffer from colic. In other words, the child's body has not yet had time to get used to mother's milk or mixtures by this point, not to mention any new additives.

Do not give your child exotic fruits such as kiwi, pineapple, etc. It is better not to remember them until your child is one year old.

Parents always have a choice: buy ready-made mashed potatoes in the store or cook it yourself.

The first option is much easier. This product is already ready for use. If you are going to cook mashed potatoes at home, then you will need to boil the vegetables first. Then they should be passed through a meat grinder, or else, crushed in a blender. In order for the consistency not to be too thick, add a little water to the vegetable puree, preferably boiled.

How and how much puree should a child eat?

On day 1, let your baby taste the puree on the tip of a teaspoon. After that, if he does not have an allergy to a new product, then on the second day, give the baby a little more. Gradually, you can increase the amount of the product. Within a few weeks, with normal perception of the body, it will be possible to give the baby up to 50 grams of fruit or vegetable puree.

Introduction to complementary foods porridge

at 3 months will be useful for children with underweight. Rice and buckwheat are best suited for these purposes. Porridge for feeding should be cooked in water. You can do it easier and buy it in the store. You just have to dilute the porridge with boiling water. If you decide to boil the cereal yourself, then you will then need to grind it until the porridge resembles sour cream in consistency.

How and how much to give a child porridge?

On the first day, have your child try ¼ teaspoon of rice or porridge. On the second day, with an adequate reaction of the body, you can already give half a teaspoon of this product to your first child. Thus, after a few weeks, he will be able to eat up to 50 grams of porridge.

If you start complementary foods at 3 months, keep a close eye on your baby. A new product can not only cause an allergic reaction, but also cause a violation of the stool. At the first symptoms, contact a pediatric therapist.

For mothers in our country, there is still a big question about when to start complementary foods for your baby. And although the World Health Organization long ago set the norm at six months, the older generation likes to talk about early complementary foods from three months. What is the reason for this opinion? What should be the right complementary foods for a three-month-old baby? Today we will clearly and in detail tell you about early, the scheme from 3 months from the birth of the baby will help us with this.

Before giving complementary foods to a 3-month-old baby, it is worth considering the need for these actions. You must clearly know what exactly is going on in the body of your child during this period. Development at the age of three months is only in the maturation stage. The stomach has just begun to produce hydrochloric acid, which affects the breakdown of enzymes, and the intestines are not yet able to digest anything other than mother's milk or formula milk, it is even more likely to give an allergic reaction in case of serious problems.

All this, combined with weak immunity, underdeveloped defense mechanisms, and the inability to swallow thick food, indicates that the child is completely unprepared for a change in nutrition and the introduction of early complementary foods. The weak digestive tract of the baby does not need such changes, and only sometimes there are situations when it is simply necessary that you give complementary foods, and these are the cases that we will consider today.

Why introduce early complementary foods?

Nature arranged it in such a way that a person can receive all the necessary vitamins and microelements together with mother's milk from birth.

Fats, proteins and other nutrients in breast milk for a 3 month old are the only important nutritional ingredients, so there is no need to add anything else yet. However, in some cases, when the mother has problems, the child is transferred to artificial milk formulas. And it is pediatricians who sometimes prescribe early first complementary foods with artificial feeding.

Prerequisites for this may be:

prematurity;
insufficient weight gain;
growth problems;
unhealthy stools and flatulence;
developmental delay;
allergy to milk and formula.

It is with such problems that early complementary feeding is not only possible, but essential to restore or maintain the health of the baby.

It is your pediatrician who should tell you that you should start introducing solids at 3 months.

The bad side of early weaning

From the above, you can draw your own conclusions about why complementary foods are really harmful for a 3-month-old baby, but we will summarize to make it clearer. Due to the fact that the chewing-swallowing reflex in infants appears only at 4–5 months, at 3 he will not yet be able to take food from a spoon without spitting out, which, most likely, can lead to choking. The permeability of the intestinal mucosa decreases, which, as we have said, will certainly lead to an allergic reaction. Well, the most unpleasant thing for both you and, first of all, for the baby is colic.

It is this phenomenon that shows that the baby is developing the intestines and the gastrointestinal tract as a whole, and colic can appear even with natural maternal HB, not to mention artificial mixtures. However, the pain in the abdomen from the two previous premises cannot be compared with the pain from food unusual for the body. Summing up, it is worth saying that feeding a child from 3 months is a dangerous and unpleasant thing, which is best done only when absolutely necessary, and if it does not exist, then you can just wait another three months.

How does early complementary feeding begin?

If you and your doctors have already decided that you and your baby simply need complementary foods from 3 months, then this process must be done correctly from the very beginning. Everyone understands that people are different, which means that the approach to complementary foods should be individual. Basically, mothers choose fruit or vegetable puree for the first feeding. Here you need to be careful, since a child may be allergic to some of the products from birth, which means that it is very important to watch the reaction of the body and give the baby no more than half a teaspoon at first.

If you don't want to take a big risk, and also notice that your child is not gaining weight, then you should give preference to cereals. Dairy-free cereals on plain water will not only replenish the necessary supply of carbohydrates and other nutrients contained in buckwheat, rice, oatmeal or corn grits, but will not cause an allergy that a child may have for milk and milk formulas.

In addition to porridge and puree, there used to be a version with juice. Mothers gave a spoonful of fruit or berry baby juice in order to accustom the child to adult food in the simplest way. However, pediatricians now say that the fruit acids in such juices can be very harmful to the gastric mucosa, not to mention a possible individual allergic reaction. Juice can be introduced as complementary foods for a baby, but only starting from 5-6 months, when the body is already more or less accustomed to other foods, and the stomach has become stronger.

Important rules for complementary foods

More important than where to start early weaning is how to start it. Here are a few tips to help you avoid some of the mistakes new moms make:

First, remember that additional "adult" food must be given immediately before regular feeding. This is important both for complementary foods at 3 months with breastfeeding, and for artificial feeding, because after a normal meal, the child will no longer be able to perceive other food, and therefore simply will not accept it.
Whatever you decide to start introducing complementary foods at 3 months, the food you choose must be brought into a form digestible by the child's body. As a result of mechanical processing, you should get a liquid, non-viscous product without any solid pieces, otherwise the child will not want to swallow it, or even not be able to.
Try different foods, but not at the same time. Monitor your child's reaction: in case of redness, rash, increased flatulence, problems with stools or general malaise in the form of fatigue, immediately stop feeding the selected product, wait for the symptoms to subside and try the next product.
Despite the fact that a spoon is an incomprehensible tool for a 3-month-old baby, it is better to start feeding with it: it will be more convenient for you to handle it, and the baby will gradually get used to it. In addition, it is the spoon that will become the measure of the amount of food given.
In no case should you teach new foods at a time when the child is sick, because his immunity is already weakened. Also maintain a period of three days before vaccination and three days after it. Always wait for possible symptoms to pass.

Early complementary feeding routine

If you have already decided to start introducing complementary foods from 3 months, then you need to know which foods and at what time should be introduced in stages one after another. As you already understood, you need to start complementary foods either with vegetable puree or with gluten-free cereal (rice, buckwheat, corn, oatmeal).

If you have chosen vegetable puree for accustoming, then you should choose the most hypoallergenic option, and you will not find better zucchini. In addition, it is for premature newborns that zucchini is recommended by pediatricians.

In addition to zucchini, cauliflower and carrots are also good options. Starting with one vegetable, after a week you can move on to the next. This will not only diversify the baby's diet, but will also let you know if he is allergic to a particular product. Remember that at 3 months a child should not be forcibly given something that his body rejects, even if he simply does not like this product to taste.

Already after two weeks of such nutrition, if your baby accepts new foods well, you can start feeding him with fruit purees. Among those least likely to cause an allergy or gastrointestinal upset are the following: plums, white currants, pears, cherries and green sour apples.

Already closer to three and a half months, cereals are introduced, and they need to be cooked in special baby water. It is important to make their consistency as liquid as possible by carefully rubbing the grits. This is done so that the baby does not get hard lumps. Porridge will provide the necessary amount of nutrients that strengthen the body of the baby.

Of course, it is impossible to completely refuse the main food, you can only feed the child, adding to the usual diet other components that are little consumed together with mother's milk. It is on breastfeeding that the task is to give the substances necessary for normal development, so the complementary feeding schedule of 3. 5 months should look something like this:0003

first morning food - breastfeeding and porridge;
second morning - standard GW;
dinner - GW and fruit or vegetable puree;
first evening - standard GW;
second evening - breastfeeding and fruit or vegetable puree.

5 - the minimum number of feedings for mothers who are breastfeeding from 3 months. Some pediatricians even recommend adding another lunch so the baby can gain weight. It will also be useful after a month, when the baby is already starting to get used to such a diet, start giving some hypoallergenic juice in between.

Early feeding chart

Surely you have already understood how exactly it is worth starting to accustom your baby to a new food. Experts have a scheme for the first complementary foods during breastfeeding from 3 months to a year that will help you navigate this problem. So that you do not get confused by the variety of food items and the number of months, the table will help you best. Here are the required data:

Months	3	4	5	6	7	8	9-12
Vegetable puree, g	5-50	50-100	150	150	170	180	200
Fruit puree, g	5-30	45-50	50-60	60	70	80	90-100
Porridge, g	-	50-100	100-150	150	180	200	200
Juice ml	5-30	40-50	50-60	60	70	80	90-100
Kefir, ml	-	-	-	100	200	200	400-500
Cottage cheese, g	-	-	10-30	40	40	40	50
Cookies, g	-	-	-	3-5	5	10	10-15
Bread, g	-	-	-	-	5	5	10

Features for formula feeding

Formula-fed complementary foods at 3 months look a little different. The fact is that milk mixtures are absorbed in children much longer, and therefore the diet should have no more than five meals per day. Make sure that complementary feeding of a child at 3 months on artificial nutrition is carried out no earlier than 3 and a half hours after the last one. Such a baby should not be given more than 800–9 per day.00 ml of mixtures and 30-60 g or ml of additional product. The same should be said about a single dose: no more than 150-200 ml in general, and the first and last dose should be without complementary foods.

When choosing what you can feed your baby with mixtures, you should turn to cereals, especially if you feel a clear lack of weight. However, keep an eye on the individual condition of your child. If you see that the baby began to suffer from constipation, then immediately switch to vegetable puree. From constipation, complementary foods from prunes puree will also help perfectly. You can also try peach puree. It is also worth knowing about the possibility of adding vegetable oil to the puree for greater softening and increasing the liquid consistency.

Conclusion

Summing up our article, I would like to summarize all of the above. Thinking about whether it is possible to give your child of the third month of life such early complementary foods, remember that this can lead to very undesirable consequences in the form of gastrointestinal upset, stool damage, colic, vomiting and many allergic symptoms like dermatitis, peeling and bronchial asthma. Therefore, it is not worth accustoming to "adult" food unnecessarily.

Will answer the question of how to introduce complementary foods from the first months of the table, which perfectly describes all the stages of feeding, from children from 3 months to 1-year-olds. First, you can start with vegetable or fruit puree, and in some cases with gluten-free cereals and baby water. Otherwise, what complementary foods can be introduced to your baby at 3 months old depends on your treating pediatrician. Keep an eye on the health of your baby and do not get sick!

Normally, a three-month-old baby who is breastfed does not need complementary foods, since he receives the entire spectrum of useful substances with mother's milk. In this case, the child gains weight well, does not scare parents with sudden bouts of allergies, and does not show any interest in extraneous food sources. A similar situation is observed with artificial feeding, when the child eats special infant formula.

However, in reality the situation is rarely so ideal, and many mothers have to think about additional nutrition at such a young age. After all, the child may simply refuse to take the breast or spit out the mixture. Or milk may not be enough, it may not be fat or nutritious enough.

What can you feed a baby at three months?

Usually, the introduction of any fluids other than mother's milk or infant formula begins with a special baby tea or compote. They should be given strictly before feeding and no more than twice a day. It is better to start with small volumes: literally from 10-15 grams, gradually increasing a single portion of complementary foods to 25 grams.

After the successful introduction of tea into the diet, pediatricians offer parents to introduce the child to chicken yolk. He is fed quite a bit, so that the child can only taste a new dish, and always before the main feeding with milk or formula. Every day the dose is increased, and after two weeks the child can already be given half the yolk at a time.

If there are clear signs that the baby is not full, vegetable (fruit) juices and purees can be included in his diet. However, it is very important to do without fanaticism here. The digestive tract of a three-month-old baby is not yet fully formed, so there is a great risk of disrupting its natural work.

Pear and clarified apple juices, carrot and banana purees, and liquid vegetable soups (zucchini, pumpkin) are best suited for such young children. You can also give decoctions of cereals, for example, from rice. However, it should be remembered that they are quite nutritious and, moreover, “heavy” for the stomach, so you should not get carried away with them.

How to introduce complementary foods into the diet of a three-month-old baby?

In the diet of a three-month-old baby, any new product should be introduced in microdoses, gradually, over one to two weeks, increasing the amount of food to the recommended. It is obligatory to distinguish in time between different types of dishes, including each new one. In the event of an allergic reaction, this will immediately determine the product that provoked it. Also, such a scheme minimizes the risk of problems with the digestive tract, reduces bloating. After feeding, the behavior of the child (whether he is lethargic, how the stool changes) is necessarily analyzed.

Even liquid and semi-liquid meals should be given with a spoon. In addition to convenience, this has educational moments: gradually the child is preparing to eat thicker food. Another well-known rule: for children who are bottle-fed, all types of complementary foods begin to be given about one to two weeks earlier than for breast-fed babies. In this case, the sequence and scheme of preparation remains the same.

Why is complementary food given before the main meal?

Any complementary foods should be given before the main meal (adapted formula or breast milk) to keep the baby as motivated as possible to absorb the new foods. If the baby satisfies hunger in the usual way, it will be very difficult to persuade him to experiment. And the process of getting used to it will be much more problematic.

For mothers whose toddler, despite all the tricks, still does not want to “get acquainted” with new food, the following advice will certainly be useful: try mixing complementary foods with breast milk, formula milk or boiled water. At first, the proportions should be kept up for the usual food, but gradually the dosages need to be changed, increasingly reducing the volume of milk / mixture.

WHO recommends that the first complementary foods should be introduced no earlier than at six months of age. But there are also exceptional cases when a baby who is on artificial nutrition needs vitamins and some nutrients as early as the age of three months. Everything that comes to hand, of course, cannot be given to the baby. It is necessary to sensibly assess the situation and know exactly what such a baby can eat and what not. This article is also not an axiom and a guide to action for absolutely everyone. Naturally, first of all, you need to consult with your pediatrician.

The baby has an incredibly sensitive digestive system that can react to even the smallest changes. After all, the baby ate only a mixture or mother's milk, which is homogeneous in its consistency, warm and liquid, and now he is offered absolutely unfamiliar food. Complementary foods should be introduced very gradually, starting with half a teaspoon. At the same time, the mother should carefully monitor the reactions of the child's body to new products.

What should not be given at 3 months?

First of all, obviously allergenic foods are excluded from the diet of crumbs. They are strictly forbidden to give the baby even in small quantities. In fact, the list of products allowed at this age is rather small.

At three months, do not give your child:

any cereals, especially semolina;
cabbage, garlic, onion, legumes;
tomatoes, carrots, pumpkins;
colorful fruits and vegetables;
eggs, fish, cottage cheese, meat;
salt;
sugar.

All the products listed in the list are too heavy for a small organism. The child's digestive system is not yet ready to absorb these foods. Due to the immaturity of the digestive tract, the child simply does not have enough enzymes to break down and assimilate certain foods.

In addition, all of the listed products can cause gas and fermentation processes, as well as upset the child's stool. Experiments with food can even lead to inflammation of the stomach.

Especially avoid adding salt or sugar to food.

What can a 3 month old baby eat?

As a rule, the first complementary food is always vegetable, because it is very easy to digest and very rarely causes any negative consequences in the form of colic or allergic manifestations. Many babies enjoy eating mashed vegetables because they are smooth and uniform in texture.

If a mother is in doubt and thinks about where to start complementary foods and what vegetable to give first, then it is recommended to give the baby mashed marrow or mashed potatoes for the first time. Although these products are different in composition, children tolerate them very well.

You can use store-bought purees or make your own. It is very simple, just boil the zucchini in water for about fifteen minutes and beat it with a blender. Potatoes are a little more difficult : it must be soaked for about half an hour in cold water so that excess starch comes out of it, and then boiled and mashed.

If the finished puree seems too thick, you can add the water in which the vegetable was boiled or dilute it with mother's milk / mixture.

Mashed potatoes that have cooled to room temperature can be given to the baby, you need to start with half a teaspoon. At the same time, it is recommended to give the product at the beginning of the day for the first time, so that the mother can carefully monitor the reactions of the baby's body. If there are no reactions, then the next day you can give one teaspoon of mashed potatoes and so, every day, double the portion. Complementary foods are always given to a hungry child, that is, first puree, then breast or adapted milk formula.

When baby tries one-component vegetable purees and no reactions will be detected, you can offer the baby a multi-component vegetable puree or soup. Soup is cooked the same way , like puree, but when chopping in a blender, it needs to be made a little less often. The soup can consist of the following set of vegetables:

zucchini,
potatoes,
broccoli,
cauliflower.

What can a baby drink at 3 months?

When introducing complementary foods, pediatricians recommend adding clean drinking water to the diet. It does not depend on the way the child is fed. This is especially true in hot summers, as the risk of dehydration is high.

In addition to ordinary drinking water, a child can be offered unsweetened dried fruit compote, chamomile tea or dill water, which has a beneficial effect on the digestive system. Additional drinking should be no more than 100 milliliters per day.

Many babies noticeably decrease their appetite at the age of three months and, most likely, this is precisely due to the early introduction of complementary foods. Don't force feed your baby . If he shows in any way that he does not want to eat (closes his lips, pushes food out with his tongue, spits, cries), then in no case should you insist. It is better to offer food after a while. Perhaps a new diet or a specific product somehow affects his body and it is worth reviewing the diet.

Many mothers are tormented by the question: "What to give to a child if after a spoonful of any new product he develops diathesis?". In this case, first of all, you need to seek the advice of a specialist. It is quite possible that in this way the baby's body signals its unavailability for complementary foods, because it is not for nothing that doctors around the world believe that there is no complementary foods until the child reaches six months.

Breastfeeding on demand

You can often hear from a nursing mother: "I feed on demand, my baby requires a breast every 3.5 hours." Or: “I have always fed on demand. In a year, we already had 1 feeding in the evening, and my child calmly refused to breastfeed. Before talking about the demand of the child, it is necessary to find out what modern women mean when they say - "I breastfeed."

Modern mothers consider breastfeeding essential for feeding their baby. Just for feeding. Breast milk is food, the mother supplies the baby with the nutrients necessary for growth and development. When a baby suckles at the breast, he eats. Breastfeeding makes sense only as a process of supplying proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and microelements.

During suckling, the baby receives the nutrients it needs with mother's milk. This is the absolute truth. There is another unconditional truth, which is not given any importance in modern society, it is not taken into account and is not considered. Breastfeeding for a child is communication with the mother. We need to figure out how the child understands feeding on demand? Can he understand anything at all? Is there any difference for him how he is fed, for 15-20 minutes after 3.5 hours or in some other way?

What is on-demand feeding

On-demand feeding of a newborn baby means putting it on the breast for every squeak or search. Squeak and search movements in newborns, even as early as the second or third day of life, begin to appear much more often than after 3.5 or 2.5 hours. The need for attachments increases rapidly, and by the 10-12th day of life, the need to attach to a child may occur 15-16 or more times a day. Applications vary in duration. The baby can fall asleep and sleep while sucking for, for example, 1.5-2 hours. Can release the breast after 1-2 minutes. And then ask her again. Why does a child need such frequent contact with his mother's breast?

That's why. Being in the mother's belly, in a calm, familiar environment, listening to the noises of the mother's body, being in a warm, cramped, confined space, the baby sucked his fist, fingers, loops of the umbilical cord, swallowed amniotic fluid. Learned to suck and swallow. After birth, experiencing discomfort for any, the most insignificant reason, the baby tries to get rid of it. You can get rid of discomfort by getting into the usual conditions of a comfortable stay. The only place where the baby after birth can feel the sensations familiar to him is in the arms of the mother. The only familiar action is sucking. The only familiar taste and smell is the taste and smell of milk and lube in the areola. Milk and lubricant have an odor and taste similar to the taste and smell of amniotic fluid. Therefore, experiencing discomfort, the baby squeaks, or begins to look for an object to suck with his mouth. Ideally, it is immediately applied to the chest. The baby becomes warm, cramped, he hears the beating of his mother's heart, breathing, grumbling in the intestines, he sucks and feels the familiar taste and smell. If such an action happens constantly, the baby gains confidence, no matter what happens, he will solve all his problems with his mother. The place of comfort is now under the breast, and you can suck on the breast.

This whole process is justified from a biological point of view. A newborn child does not feel the feeling of hunger, this feeling is not formed in him. It will begin to form at about two months of age. How to feed a creature that does not experience hunger ?! How to encourage him to take some action to get food? This can be done only at the expense of some other incentives. This stimulus for the newborn is constant bodily discomfort, thanks to which he wants to suckle all the time! The most intense, frequent and prolonged sucking in infants is observed in the first two or three months of life. It is in these first months that the main weight gain of the baby occurs.

Feeding in the first month

Baby falls asleep with the breast in his mouth, sucking for a while. Falling asleep deeply, lets go of the chest. After sleeping for a while, he wakes up, and is applied on waking. After sleep, he can stay awake for some time, for example, an hour and a half. During wakefulness, he may feel discomfort 2-3 times, for example, from a completely natural desire to pee, and having called his mother for help, having kissed for a couple of minutes, he will do his deeds. Then he will want to sleep, feel discomfort and, kissing his chest, will again fall asleep sucking. After some time, he will wake up and attach again. Then again a little "walk". And after some time, he will fall asleep at the chest again.

The daytime naps of a one-month-old baby feeding on demand vary in duration and number. There can be 4-6 dreams during the day, and they can last from 5-15 minutes to 2-2.5 sometimes 3 hours. "Around" each dream, the baby is applied to the chest, and applied between dreams several times. At night, the child falls asleep at the breast. Usually in the early morning hours, he begins to fuss and apply. In the morning, he almost never fully wakes up. The baby sleeps, from time to time, sucking on his mother's breast. Waking up in the morning, the baby is again applied to the chest. If you count all the attachments that have happened in a baby of one month of age, then approximately 16-20 attachments are obtained. This is how a newborn human cub behaves if it is given the opportunity to behave in accordance with physiological and psychological needs, which, by the way, are genetically determined. The child of the first months of life does not separate his personality from the personality of the mother and from her breast. Mom and her breasts, and everything connected with them, are the universe of the baby and himself.

In most cases, a modern woman, being afraid to “accustom a child to hands”, strives to limit his requests for suckling. A pacifier and a bottle of tea or water come to her aid in this matter. They, too, can be sucked ... The need for sucking seems to be satisfied. But only the need for communication with the mother during suckling is not satisfied, the peculiar chain of mutual assistance and cooperation between mother and baby is destroyed, the formation of maternal affection and concentration is disrupted. Is the difference in the two actions noticeable to the reader: the baby cried, the mother took him, put him to her chest and started rocking him, or gave him a pacifier and started rocking the stroller, even with the words “Why are you crying, my sun?”

The modern woman who gives a pacifier and pumps a stroller is not a bad person who deliberately harms an infant. She is simply in captivity of prejudices regarding the relationship between mother and baby. She does not know how to behave correctly, does not know what to do in accordance with the natural needs of the child. If you tell her what the child really needs, she will exclaim in horror: “What is it, don’t let him get away with?!” Indeed, the child of the first months of life must not be let off the hook. For a woman who does not know how to comfortably carry a baby, and who does not know how to feed him in various positions (sitting, lying, standing and even moving), this can be very difficult. Especially if she is not sure of the correctness of her actions.

An action that should become automatic for the mother of a newborn: when the baby cries or shows other signs of anxiety, put the baby to the breast.

What's next?

The baby is growing. A fairly stable rhythm of daytime sleep begins to form in him, and a 3-4-month-old baby behaves quite differently from a newborn. Feeding on demand at this age looks something like this...

At three months, the baby has 10-12 feeds during the day and 2-4 at night. There are frequent applications for a short time, but their number is reduced. There may be a long night break in feedings, about 5 hours, but this is very rare. Much more often the night break is 2.5-3.5 hours. By this age, the baby's body is noticeably rounded.
At four months, the baby begins to breastfeed noticeably less frequently. The main feedings are associated with sleep: the baby suckles before bedtime, during awakening and during sleep, both daytime and nighttime. In this regard, he has a fairly accurate feeding regimen. And many babies stop breastfeeding when they wake up after daytime sleep, sometimes as early as 2.5-3 months.
At five months, the baby has 8-10 daytime feedings and 2-3 nighttime feedings, as well as at the fourth month of life, they are organized around dreams - the baby eats when going to bed and some babies suckle when they wake up.
Feeding regimen changes at six months. The most active sucking shifts to the last 2-3 hours before waking up from a night's sleep. The period of daytime wakefulness can be divided into two periods: in the morning, when the baby sucked during the night is rarely applied to the breast, and in the evening, when attachments become very frequent. In total, there can be 7-10 day applications and 3-4 night applications. At this age, the baby begins a period of acquaintance with new food - pedagogical complementary foods. Sometimes there are attachments associated with the introduction of complementary foods, the baby “washes down” samples of new food with mother's milk. But many children do not want to drink complementary foods. When complementary foods are introduced to an on-demand baby, it is never meant to replace feedings with complementary foods. This is practically impossible, because the main feedings of the baby are associated with sleep, and mother's breakfasts, lunches and dinners, during which the baby gets acquainted with new food, are located between the baby's dreams, during his wakefulness.
At seven months, the frequency of applications is about the same.
At eight months, the feeding regimen changes. Since the baby shows high motor activity and is very busy exploring the surrounding space, in the daytime he forgets to breastfeed. In this regard, the number of daily feedings can be reduced to 6-8 times. The baby compensates for the reduction in daytime feedings by increasing the frequency and duration of nighttime feedings up to 6 times.
In the second half of the year, babies who stopped breastfeeding when waking up after daytime naps recall this habit again. The baby’s daytime sleep in the second half of life, as well as in the region of a year and older, looks something like this: the baby falls asleep sucking, sleeps quietly for a while, for example 1-1.5 hours, then starts tossing and turning, fiddling, worrying, at this moment the mother lies down next to , gives him a breast and the baby can fill up 10-15-30 minutes sucking. Mom may well use this time for her own rest - lie down, read, while the baby sleeps while sucking. I know my mother, a lover of embroidery, who used this time specifically for embroidery ...
Breastfeeding becomes more frequent at nine to ten months. In the daytime, this is 4-6 full feedings and about the same number of attachments for various reasons. The baby has new reasons for attachment. If, during active actions to master the world, the baby fills a bump or gets scared, he calms down with his mother's breast. There may be situations when you can comfort the baby by sitting next to him and hugging him. At night, 4-6 feedings remain, the baby begins to suckle more actively in the morning between 3 and 8 hours.
At eleven months, a baby can already have 2-3 complete complementary foods. Initiation to adult food in the mind of a child is not associated with breastfeeding: attachment to the mother's breast is something other than the desire to get enough of the product they like. As a rule, after the baby has eaten, he feels the need to attach himself to the breast. The number of daily feedings remains the same in the child, but the number of short-term attachments increases. There are active mid-morning feedings between 4 and 8 o'clock in the morning.
At ten or twelve months, the baby, if he is already walking, can sometimes breastfeed every time he comes to his mother, i.e. about every 15-30 minutes. Attachments around dreams and night sucking persist. Therefore, if a mother says that a child suckles once or twice a day, this means that there is no feeding at the request of the child. There are restrictions imposed by the mother, with which the baby has come to terms. He treats breast sucking like food, sucks on a dummy or finger to fall asleep or calm down, or falls asleep just like that, without calming down.
At twelve months, the baby is applied in about the same way.
At the age of one and a half years, there may already be one daytime nap, so there are fewer attachments associated with sleep. Preserved for morning sucking. The baby is very free with his mother's breasts. Sometimes it happens that he comes up to suck just for fun. For example, like this: he comes up, climbs on his knees, looks into his mother’s face, smiles, starts to swarm in his shirt, gets breasts, smiles at his breasts, sucks for 30 seconds and leaves.

As for the number of feedings per day when feeding a child on demand, their number is almost never less than 12. A newborn has 12 or more attachments, mostly they are all associated with dreams. And a child, say 1. 5-2 years old, can also have about 12 attachments, only 3-4 are associated with sleep, and the rest are short-term attachments for various reasons. I suggest to all mothers reading this text - do not count the application, do not notice their duration. Breastfeed your baby as often as he asks, when you feel the need to.

Mothers who do not think about breastfeeding without looking at the clock may get the impression that when feeding on demand, the mother can do nothing but feed the baby. This is wrong. After the birth of a baby, a mother begins another life, she is called life with a baby. That's all. The child is with the mother, not the mother with the child! Feel the difference! You need to be able to organize your life in a different way, in the first months, of course, the help of loved ones is very necessary. In the tradition of many peoples, it was customary for the first 40 days after childbirth to remove a woman from any housework and household chores, she was engaged only in a child. In some nations, objects that the mother of a newborn touched were considered “unclean”, therefore, they preferred to protect the mother from the rest of the household, allocating her a separate “corner” of the house, where no one bothered her and she did not interfere with anyone. Among the Slavs, such a restrictive custom was called a six-week. By 1.5-2 months, the rhythm of daytime dreams begins to form, and the baby has a kind of “regime”, the mother becomes more free.

For a mother who can't imagine breastfeeding without looking at the clock, and who is sure that the “right” baby is the baby lying quietly in her crib all the time, feeding on demand will be a complete hassle. It will be much easier for such a mother if she stops looking at the clock and ties the baby to herself with a large scarf or uses a patchwork holder (sling). It will become easier for her if she stops running between the nursery and the kitchen, but takes the baby with her to the kitchen and carries him around the house with her, doing chores, in a box, a cradle, a special chair, if she tries not to put him off more often, and pick up as soon as possible, postponing the baby only in case of emergency and not for long.

Breastfeeding is not the same as house arrest. In the conditions of modern society, it is possible to organize the exit of a nursing mother to work from about 6 months of age of the baby. If necessary, you can start working from the age of 4 months, but, of course, it is better not every day of the week and not full time. It is the responsibility of a breastfeeding consultant to help a mother organize her return to work.

Sometimes, when counseling mothers on breastfeeding, I suggest that they forget for a second that they are already living in the 21st century. I propose to return, for example, to the cave and ask what they will do if the child woke up at night, how to calm him down? If you are walking through the forest and trying not to attract the attention of predators, how to make the baby silent? If the child is thirsty, what will you give him? What is the baby used to, for thousands of years of its existence? To the fact that he sleeps on his mother while she wanders through the forest with a digging stick in search of roots, and wakes up when mother stops. Since mom stopped, then there is time to wake up and suck. Therefore, even now the child sleeps well, tied to the mother with a patchwork holder, wakes up when the mother, having done a few household chores, sits in a chair to take care of the baby.

Some mother, reading about the cave, will be offended, saying that she is a civilized creature. But please think. Man, mother's breast and mother's milk have been created by evolution over millions of years. They are made for each other. Baby food has created progress and more recently. The skills of motherhood and breastfeeding have also been lost by our society quite recently. A person is not physiologically adapted to artificial feeding and a pacifier. The mother's breast will not produce enough milk at 6-7 feedings per day. Nature did not know, when creating man as a mammal, that the time would come when the need for breastfeeding would be satisfied by some kind of pacifiers and nipples.

Changes that occur during the formation of the personality of a child who did not have full contact with the mother during prolonged breastfeeding are noted by modern research by psychologists and sociologists.