Feeding FAQ: 4-6 months – Weaning

My 17 week son cries along time before his feeds are due, especially at 11am and 6pm

The problem I am having with 17 week old son is that he is crying for a long time before both the 11am & 6pm feeds (sometimes 1-1.5 hours). He chews his hands, dribbles excessively & sometimes shrieks and claws behind his ears – I have tried Calpol thinking he may be teething, but it does not seem to help. At 16 weeks he began to wake in the night again (has slept 11pm-7am from 11 weeks) and my HV recommended beginning to wean, which I have done. He is following the weaning plan in the book and seems to enjoy the food – he is back sleeping through the night again, but it does not seem to have solved the crying problem. His milk feeds are OK although it is a struggle to get more than 7oz down him (apart from at 6pm, when he will take 8oz easily). I have cut his 10.30pm feed down to 4oz – should I reduce this further in hope of a better 7am feed (I have tried feeding at 7.30am & this makes no difference)? Please help – the crying is making me feel quite low & I don’t understand why it is happening when we have followed the routines to the letter.
At present my son takes 7ozs at 7am and 11am. He will take 5-7ozs at 2.30pm and 8ozs at 6pm. He takes 4ozs at 10.30pm. After his 11am feed he takes 1 cube of apple puree. Following the 6pm feed he takes 3teaspoons of baby rice. We are on days 10-12 of the Weaning Guide. He weighs 14lbs 10ozs.
My son naps at 8.50-9.20am and 12-2.15pm. He is settled at 7pm.

Since you have been advised to wean your son, and it has helped him sleep through the night again, hunger could well have been the cause of his distress. But as he is not yet taking full feeds, i.e. 8ozs at each feed, it would be sensible to also have him checked over by your doctor for any gastric problems. When a baby is taking a full feed at least four times a day and appearing hungry long before a feed then hunger normally is the cause and weaning should help alleviate it. In your son’s case he is still not taking full feeds and the crying has not diminished, even though solids are now being given.

Keep a detailed diary of the times of your son’s feeds and the amounts he takes at each feed. Also, note the time when he begins to show signs of distress such as you described. If he is crying 1.5hrs before his next feed is due it may not be a cry of hunger at all. Your written record will help a doctor see if there is some other underlying cause for this problem.

Splitting your son’s feeds, with a break in between the first and second part of the feed, could make it easier for him to take them. As he is only just 17 weeks, you must watch that he does not cut back any more on his milk intake now that he has started on solid food. Milk is still the most important part of his diet.

Offer him his feed at 7am and let him have 4ozs, before giving him a break until 7.30am. Then finish the feed. Do the same thing with his next feed. Begin to feed him at 10.30/10.45am and let him have 3-4ozs. Have a break until 11.30am then finish the feed and offer him his solids. This could help him increase both these morning feeds to 8ozs at each feed. Some babies do find it easier to take their feed if it is given in two stages. It can seem a little fiddly but it may help him digest them better, and take them without such a struggle. The feed at 2.30pm may be between 6-7ozs now he is on solids at lunchtime. Providing he continues to be happy to take a full feed at 6pm followed by his solids, then there is no need to change this. Although your son is sleeping well through the night again, continue with giving him 4oz at the 10pm feed until he begins to take better feeds during the daytime. This late evening feed can usually be dropped by the end of the first month on solids providing a baby is taking enough milk in the day.