Baby Hungry All The Time No Matter How Much He Eats?

[kgreen]

My baby boy just turned 5 months old today, but he is a big boy and apparently needs a lot more food than he is getting from nursing. I have been giving him "lunch"(some kind of mashed up food)  with the two older kids for the past few days, but he still seems to be constantly nursing. I am hoping to get the opinion of other people who have been through this before. My question is what is the earliest age that you have given a supplemental bottle to your baby? What would you use, goat milk or almond or coconut? (I wouldn't use anything other than that, unless it was goat milk formula). Do you think he might just be really thirsty and a bottle of water would do? I have never had a baby this big or hungry before. He already has 2 teeth, is trying to push himself up into the crawling position; he was holding his head up at less than one week old! etc... He was also three weeks late, stubborn. Anyway, I would really appreciate any suggestions that all of you may have. Also, regarding how many times per day can he eat food? I know babies his age won't tell you when they're full, but I think he could eat way more food than I'm giving him and be fine with it.
Thanks in advance,
K.G.

[verenaerin]

How long has this been going on?

It could be a couple things.

1- a growth spurt- if this is it, it shouldn't last long

2- teething- 3/4 kids of mine were and currently are a mess during this period. For this baby and my first, they started teething at 4 months. My now 6 mo still has no teeth. Some babies cope the best through nursing. Some babies prefer pacifers, etc. This baby prefers to eat as well, My situation is a little different because I bottle feed. So it seems like I am always feeding him as well. ( I was just thinking this today). I am positive it is a coping thing, his cheeks are flaming red and you can tell he hurts.

I would try to hold off adding any more food. As long as your milk supply is good and he is having an appropriate amount of diapers, it should mean he is getting enough.

[SaraLucille]

What Verenaerin said. My 3 month old is going through a growth spurt and wants to nurse almost every hour and be latched on all night. 

I wonder about using almond milk, just because I've always read that nuts are a no-no for under 1 year. Have you tried avocado? Good "first food" and is very nutritious... high in healthy fat, so probably more filling. Also, maybe a homemade grain cereal?---> http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/cereals.htm

But, again:

I would try to hold off adding any more food. As long as your milk supply is good and he is having an appropriate amount of diapers, it should mean he is getting enough.

[verenaerin]

I tried advocado with my first. It gave her terrible diaper rash. I think it was from the oils. If it's a growth spurt, thicker food will definitely help. In the beginning, feeding babies is so time consuming. Most of it ends up on the bib. It can be frustrating. Once they get the hang of it, and start downing spoonful after spoonful, you get a very rewarding feeling. I think it is instinctive, knowing that your baby is well fed. I imagine BFing mothers feel that often.

If it's a coping thing, what type of food you give him won't do anything. He will just want to nurse, and there is no way to get around it,

Just say it with me girls," This is just a phase...this is just a phase..."

[Jacafamala]

Has the number of poops and pees decreased from what it was previously? Is his mouth dry? If you offer a bottle, I'd keep it to water assuming you don't want to wean him. I'm betting on a growth spurt, as Verenaerin said.

[kgreen]

Avocado has been the first food for all of my babies I haven't heard of the no nuts rule besides the possibility of choking, which wouldn't be a concern if it's milk. I'm just going to keep giving him a little food when the older kids have lunch. I tried not giving him solids for a couple days and he just didn't sleep very well. I don't think I'm gonna give him milk. Thanks for the ideas. No, I don't want to wean yet. Ideally I would like to nurse my babies for a year but I haven't been able to do that yet because I get pregnant too quick.I was thinking of grinding up some cereal grains for him. We've got a TON of organic grains of various kinds. Does anyone know if you can use a food processor for that? We also have a coffee grinder but my husband used it for cloves and I just can't get the smell out of there. It's probably too strong for the baby.

[SaraLucille]

Grind in a food processor, yep. My son's favorites were whole grain brown rice and barley.

[elizabee]

You can also soak the grains in some water overnight to soften them before grinding. Simple!
May I ask, are you BF on demand? I am just curious because of how you said you get pregnant too fast to nurse for a year... did you stop when pregnant because nursing became painful?

[Habitual_Ritual]

We have a pregnant cat that is eating us out of house n home...

[kgreen]

You can also soak the grains in some water overnight to soften them before grinding. Simple!
May I ask, are you BF on demand? I am just curious because of how you said you get pregnant too fast to nurse for a year... did you stop when pregnant because nursing became painful?

I do nurse on demand. I've talked to my midwife and everything and she just says I'm extremely fertile, based on some things. I don't want to stop nursing when I'm pregnant. The first time I was about 4 mos along when I stopped. I just wasn't making milk anymore and my daughter was 10 mos old so it was ok. The second time I was about 8 weeks pregnant when I stopped nursing my son who was 8 months old. I got this really bad stomach bug that lasted a couple weeks and I could hardly keep down even water, so I thought it would be better to wean the older baby since I needed everything I did keep down for the baby who was developing; that's the baby who is now eating nonstop. He's a really big baby and healthy, he is doing alright right now. He just eats a lot. I didn't know if that was normal.