Starting Solid Foods

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Starting Solid Food

These days, there seems to be a lot of confusion about when to start solid food!

The World Health Organization recommends that "exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months is the optimal way of feeding infants", stating in 1990 that this is a "global goal" for all women.

But many mothers still report health care providers, loved ones and print sources urging them to start solids long before that.

When your baby is ready, make sure that you don't replace breastfeeding with solid food. Many moms recommend breastfeeding before each meal of solid food, to keep up your milk supply and since many starter foods are less nutritous than breast milk.

These groups recommend waiting about 6 months:

World Health Organization:
http://www.who.int/child-adolescent-health/NUTRITION/infant_exclusive.htm
"...exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months is the optimal way of feeding infants. Thereafter infants should receive complementary foods with continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or beyond."

American Academy of Pediatrics:
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;100/6/1035
"Exclusive breastfeeding is ideal nutrition and sufficient to support optimal growth and development for approximately the first 6 months after birth....In the first 6 months, water, juice, and other foods are generally unnecessary for breastfed infants...It is recommended that breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months, and thereafter for as long as mutually desired."

American Academy of Family Physicians:
http://www.aafp.org/x6633.xml
"The AAFP recommends that all babies, with rare exceptions, be breastfed and/or receive expressed human milk exclusively for about the first six months of life. Breastfeeding should continue with the addition of complementary foods throughout the second half of the first year. Breastfeeding beyond the first year offers considerable benefits to both mother and child, and should continue as long as mutually desired. "

American Dietetic Association:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0822/10_101/80098997/p1/article.jhtml
"Exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months and breastfeeding with complementary foods for at least 12 months is the ideal feeding pattern for infants."
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More policy statements including Australian and Canadian sources:
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/start/prepare/bf-benefits.html#statements


Solids readiness depends on both the maturity of baby's digestive tract and baby's developmental readiness for solids. Although the maturity of baby's digestive system is not something that we can readily observe, research indicates that 6 months appears to be ideal for avoiding the allergies and other health risks of too-early solids. After this point, different babies are ready for solids at different times -- developmental readiness for solids cannot be determined using a calendar. Most babies are developmentally ready for solids somewhere between 6 and 8 months.

Signs that indicate baby is developmentally ready for solids include:
Baby can sit up well without support.
Baby has lost the tongue-thrust reflex and does not automatically push solids out of his mouth with his tongue.
Baby is ready and willing to chew.
Baby is developing a pincer grasp, where he picks up food or other objects between thumb and forefinger. Using the fingers and scraping the food into the palm of the hand (palmar grasp) does not substitute for pincer grasp development.
Baby is eager to participate in mealtime and may try to grab food and put it in his mouth.

We often state that a sign of solids readiness is when baby exhibits a long-term increased demand to nurse (sometime around 6 months or later) that is unrelated to illness, teething pain, a change in routine or a growth spurt. However, it can be hard to judge whether baby's increased nursing is related to readiness for solids. Many (if not most) 6-month-old babies are teething, growth spurting and experiencing many developmental changes that can lead to increased nursing sometimes all at once! Make sure you look at all the signs of solids readiness as a whole, because increased nursing alone is not likely to be an accurate guide to baby's readiness. http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html

Babies should get breast milk only for 6 months, then add solids: doctors
SHERYL UBELACKER, Canadian Press

TORONTO (CP) - Women should exclusively breastfeed their babies for the first six months without adding solid foods or formula in order to promote optimal health, the Canadian Pediatric Society recommends.

The new guideline replaces previous advice that moms could add solid foods or formula to their babies' diet along with breastfeeding at four to six months, bringing the society in line with the World Health Organization, which recommended the six-month start time in 2001.

Studies have shown that breast milk alone in an infant's first half-year of life confers increased health benefits for a longer period, said Dr. Margaret Boland, chair of the Canadian Pediatric Society's nutrition committee.

"It means that we're not having mothers give babies infant cereal at four months, that we would like to extend the period where the baby's source of nutrition, the sole source of nutrition, is breast milk," Boland said Tuesday from Ottawa.

"And it's going to exclude formulas and it's going to exclude any solids - cereals, fruits, vegetables, meats, any of the complementary infant foods."

Breast milk contains antibodies that help babies fight off illness, said Boland, a pediatrician at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Exclusive breastfeeding for six months offers increased protection, in particular against gastrointestinal infections that can cause diarrhea....

That's because starting solid foods earlier than six months can be detrimental, said Teresa Pitman, whose organization (La Leche League) offers help to mothers who want to feed their infants naturally.

"One of the ways breastfeeding protects babies is it changes the baby's intestine," Pitman said from Guelph, Ont. "When it's only breast milk going in, they have certain bacteria, healthy bacteria, growing in their intestines, and that helps to keep them healthy. Even a small amount of solid foods will change the lining of the intestine."

WHO found significant differences in rates of infection when babies were fed solid foods before six months compared to those who weren't, she said...

The Canadian Press, 2005
]http://www.medbroadcast.com/health_news_details.asp?news_id=6140&rss=67[/url]

An American Academy of Pediatrics study found that babies who start solids at 4 months were more likely to become ill with ear infections or pneumonia, vs. babies who were exclusively breastfed for 6 months.

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/117/2/425
http://www.medbroadcast.com/health_news_details.asp?news_id=6140&rss=67

http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/08/08/allergists.infants.reut/index.html

Edited by hugthem (09/02/06 12:21 PM)

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What about older babies who still don't like solid food?

Here is a recent discussion about this:

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This is topic Older babies who don't want solid food in forum Archives at The Breastfeeding.com Message Boards.


To visit this topic, use this URL:
http://www.breastfeeding.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=000105

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Posted by hugthem (Member # 15) on July 15, 2005 12:07 PM:

This is topic Who has babies who didn't immediately love solids? in forum Express Yourself Debate Forum at The Breastfeeding.com Message Boards.


To visit this topic, use this URL:
http://www.breastfeeding.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=9;t=011751

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Posted by LunchBuckets (Member # 109) on July 11, 2005 06:30 AM:

My son is 8.5 months old - he seems content to breastfeed and only occasionally takes bites of food. He has eaten avocado, banana, green beans, and peaches - that's it. While he enjoys feeding himself (and the high chair & the floor ), he gags frequently when spoon fed, even though I only give him small amounts that are finely mashed.

So, I don't offer him much in the way of solids, I just try once or twice a day, or sometimes not at all. I figure when he's really ready for it, he'll let me know.

Who else has children who didn't take to solids right away?

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Posted by BabyLove (Member # 1854) on July 11, 2005 06:34 AM:

I know that there are lots of kids who don't like food right away, and they're usually bf. It's nothing to worry about... the gag reflex might be something to keep an eye on, b/c that's usually something that calms down by 6 mos or so, so I'd mention it to your child's dr.

Other than that, if he enjoys the socialization of eating, it sounds totally normal for his personal development!

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Posted by Kerry (Member # 4) on July 11, 2005 06:36 AM:

My daughter didn't start eating solids until she was 18 months old. She had a very strong gag reflex that didn't go away until that time.

I would continue offering as you've been doing, and then just follow his cues.

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Posted by mom2laurennboyz (Member # 699) on July 11, 2005 06:36 AM:

Lauren didnt eat ANY solids til 13 months old Now at 16 months old she's like a vacuum cleaner She eats EVERYTHING!

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Posted by lailasmilkbar (Member # 177) on July 11, 2005 06:37 AM:

DD is 13mo and there are days that she's into solids (she started solids at 11mo - although I started offereing at 9 mo) and days that she is not. Today seems to be an into day - she had bites of cheese, some Cheerios, and a few blueberries for breakfast. I have found that there are days she likes certain foods and the next time I give it to her - could be the next day - she responds as if she has never had it and never wants to again!

I would say keep offering - even if he just "feels" the food.

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Posted by eliz2 (Member # 417) on July 11, 2005 06:44 AM:

My dd refused solids until 15 months. I would offer once or twice a day, but she wasn't having any of it. I was concerned but she was still nursing all the time and was fine otherwise. She also hated babyfood and eventually just went straight to table food. Our Ped actually ended up sending us to Childrens for an oral feeding evaluation. After all of the testing etc was done they told me "Well, she just isn't interested in eating yet." (you think).

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Posted by Gypsy (Member # 100) on July 11, 2005 06:51 AM:

Dd clamped her mouth shut until she was 15 months old, even then she would only mouth food, or suck on something for a few hours and spit it out (still progress IMO though), she often would take broccoli and put it in her cheek and just leave it there for a few hours, sometimes sucking it, other times just leaving it there. She started eating and showing real interest in eating around her 2nd birthday, and was eating enough to reduce nursing by the time she was 2.5.

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Posted by hugthem (Member # 15) on July 11, 2005 06:55 AM:

Almost 10 months. She eventually became an adventurous eater with none of the dire predictions I heard...no problems with iron, weight gain, etc.

http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/bf4.asp
"infants can go for at least a year on breast milk alone, without eating any foods, and be nutritionally complete. Offering foods between 6 and 12 months of age is simply for social development and to get infants used to eating. -Dr. Bob Sears"


http://www.drjaygordon.com/faqs/cerjuic.htm
" Breastmilk is excellent (not just "adequate" as some doctors say) nutrition for the first 12 months of life....It's fun to feed fruits and vegetables to babies over six months of age but far from essential....Whatever you do, don't let anyone convince you that your milk is "not enough" for your baby in the second half of the first year." -Dr. Jay Gordon, pediatrician and IBCLC lactation consultant

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Posted by eliz2 (Member # 417) on July 11, 2005 06:55 AM:

Gypsy, it still amazes me at how similar our girls were. When we went to the feeding evaluation that was one of the things that they told us was an issue. They called it "pocketing", dd would do the same thing have food in the side of her mouth for hours and eventually just spit it out. She also didn't really start eating/showing interest until 2 years.

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Posted by Gypsy (Member # 100) on July 11, 2005 07:06 AM:


quote:
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Originally posted by eliz2:
Gypsy, it still amazes me at how similar our girls were. When we went to the feeding evaluation that was one of the things that they told us was an issue. They called it "pocketing", dd would do the same thing have food in the side of her mouth for hours and eventually just spit it out. She also didn't really start eating/showing interest until 2 years.
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I know, I remember talking to you years ago about these very issues. I blamed it on them being December 2000 babies They were very much alike.

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Posted by Shades (Member # 1719) on July 11, 2005 07:16 AM:

My kids didn't like being spoon fed, so they were never that into baby food. Once they had the coordination to feed themselves, they started eating a lot more.

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Posted by just*carcar (Member # 80) on July 11, 2005 07:19 AM:

DS wasn't crazy about them. He could go w/ or w/out. He was at least 10mos before he ate solids three times daily..

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Posted by Mt.Momma (Member # 41) on July 11, 2005 07:24 AM:

Nevada did that (gag) so I finger fed her the smushed food. She is into feeing herself now but she didn't start eat'n food well until after she turned a year old or a lil past that. she'll be 15 mo the 23rd.

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Posted by CyndiLooWho (Member # 255) on July 11, 2005 07:26 AM:

Have you tried offering table food? DS1 wanted nothing to do with baby food at all, but at 8.5 mo, he just took off on table food. Just make sure it's stuff that's really easy to eat, like cheerios, shredded cheese, overcooked pasta. Watch for choking, but try to see if it's just a matter of not wanted mush.

At 6.5 yo, Josh eats very few mushy textured things (just like his mama). He'll do yogurt, ice cream, applesauce, and that's it. Everything else has to be firm.

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Posted by chrstnamnn (Member # 348) on July 11, 2005 07:26 AM:

My 9m DD is has days when she likes solids and cannot get enough and days when she will close her mouth in protest. I figure she will eat them when she is ready.

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Posted by Roxxi Bellatrix (Member # 173) on July 11, 2005 07:30 AM:

Me, DD#2 hated solids until she was a YEAR old. She wouldn't touch any baby food I mushed for her. Her first foods were vegetable beef soup, and egg drop soup.

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Posted by LunchBuckets (Member # 109) on July 11, 2005 07:32 AM:

CyndiLooWhoo - when you say baby food, do you mean the jarred stuff? I've only been offering him foods that I have in the house, either raw, or cooked/steamed here.

I haven't tried a wide variety of table foods yet. I've been introducing foods slowly, b/c of how he's responding to food currently (if that makes sense.)

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Posted by PartyofFive (Member # 197) on July 11, 2005 07:38 AM:

DS doesn't really eat solids either. Certainly not everyday. He just doesn't seem interested.

I've tried avacado (which he loved the first time. Then not so much.) Bananas and apples. Oh, and sweet potatoes.

He's just really not all that interested. I'm not pushing it.

He isn't gagging on any food. Just doesn't seem to like it very much. He's happy just having the boob

[Megadodo]

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Posted by Sputterduck (Member # 557) on July 11, 2005 07:45 AM:

This is a good thread. It's making me feel better. DS is 13 months and not really eating yet. I am always concerned about his iron. We haven't gotten it tested, though, because he will have surgery on his tongue soon to help him eat (we are dealing with insurance right now) and I don't want him to have another scary experience at a doctor's office before his surgery. If he's scared he'll fight and the surgery will be much worse for him if he fights it. I am always trying to get him to eat beef puree to help with his iron.

He swallows a tiny bit of food maybe a couple times a week. When I say a tiny bit, I mean maybe 1/50th of a tea spoon, if that. He gags and chokes maybe half of the time. When I told his ped the amount of food he swallows, she looked at me and said, "That is a REALLY(serious, serious stare) small amount." She made me feel aweful. I had been excited, and thought she would be, too, because previously he wouldn't take ANYTHING.

It also has to be the perfect consistancy. Liquid just falls out. If it's too thick it falls out.

I am worried that he is going to get a food aversion because when he tries to eat he chokes and gags and that scares him. Eating isn't a positive experience for him. I don't know whether to keep going or wait until after the surgery when he should be able to eat better. If I knew he'd have the surgery in a week or a month, I'd just wait. But, we are on a wild goose chase with insurance and I don't know when it will happen. It actually should have been done when he was a newborn. His ped wants us to keep trying.

It's nice to see that other people's babies haven't been eatinng by his age and are totally okay. Did anyone have an iron problem?

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Posted by Gypsy (Member # 100) on July 11, 2005 07:55 AM:

Dd's iron levels have always been perfect!

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Posted by A&P's mama (Member # 381) on July 11, 2005 08:02 AM:

Aiden hated solids until he could feed himself. Even then, he ate very little until 14 months or so.

I made him a bunch of homemade baby food and he never ate more than a bite of it. He was all about the table food.

He eats very well now.

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Posted by kohlby (Member # 428) on July 11, 2005 09:00 AM:

ME!
Actually, my DS would gag when food touched a place in his tongue, not all that far down. It wasn't even a gag that made food come out. My DS didn't spit out food until close to 2 years old. I had to teach DS to swallow solids, otherwise, they would sit in his mouth forever. I started attempting solids at 6.5 months. DS ate his first solids at 11 months. DS ate solids worth counting at just after 18 months - at which point he had also hit 35 pounds! Breastmilk is pretty amazing, isn't it?!

*Edited to add: Perfect iron levels despite no iron rich solids, even when he did start eating a bite or two. Also, he seemed to gain TOO much on breastmilk without solids. (He gained 6 pounds in just over 3 months from 15-18+ months! Once he started eating solids for real, he stopped gaining, thank goodness!)

[ July 11, 2005, 09:02 AM: Message edited by: kohlby ]

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Posted by CyndiLooWho (Member # 255) on July 11, 2005 09:04 AM:


quote:
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Originally posted by LunchBuckets:
CyndiLooWhoo - when you say baby food, do you mean the jarred stuff? I've only been offering him foods that I have in the house, either raw, or cooked/steamed here.

I haven't tried a wide variety of table foods yet. I've been introducing foods slowly, b/c of how he's responding to food currently (if that makes sense.)
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Actually, I was thinking anything of baby food texture. Like I said, I found that Josh didn't want to eat anything mushy, but he just went to town on anything he could pull off our plates - up to and including bbq ribs.

He just totally rejected anything that was mushy, and to this day he won't eat mashed potatoes or anything with a mushy texture (except applesauce and some creamy things like yogurt).

However, he took to things like dry cereal, steamed veggies, and other tablefood like he was starving. It's just a thought.

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Posted by LunchBuckets (Member # 109) on July 11, 2005 09:59 AM:

OH, ok, CLW, I see what you're saying - thanks

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Posted by lisanvenice (Member # 818) on July 11, 2005 10:17 AM:


quote:
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Originally posted by Kerry:
My daughter didn't start eating solids until she was 18 months old. She had a very strong gag reflex that didn't go away until that time.

I would continue offering as you've been doing, and then just follow his cues.
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That was my dd, gag reflex AND a texture problem. She refused all solids until she was eating real food. Worried me terribly but she was ok.

Sam started solids just fine at six months but the novelty wore off and he was pretty much exclusively BFed until about 15 months when he started slowly on table food.

lisa

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Posted by hugthem (Member # 15) on July 11, 2005 12:12 PM:


quote:
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Originally posted by kohlby:
Also, he seemed to gain TOO much on breastmilk without solids. (He gained 6 pounds in just over 3 months from 15-18+ months! Once he started eating solids for real, he stopped gaining, thank goodness!)
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This is a typical, normal pattern for many breastfed babies.

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Posted by kohlby (Member # 428) on July 11, 2005 12:27 PM:

really hugthem? I thought 6 pounds in just over 3 months was a lot at that age. His weight was far, far, far, far over the 99% while his height was only right above. Technically, it would have been considered overweight had he been 2 years old at the time instead. I guess with so few toddlers existing on just breastmilk, we don't hear about this happening!

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Posted by hugthem (Member # 15) on July 11, 2005 12:58 PM:

I just know so many moms whose doctors had them in a panic because of weight charts based on formula and cow's milk fed children. Was there some other reason to worry, like a family tendency toward severe obesity or diabetes? Even then mom's milk would be better than weaning to cow's milk which would exacerbate the problem IMHO (and I am not a doctor nor do I play one on TV... )

Just recently my friend's doc wanted to put her preteen son of hormone treatments just because his growth pattern was not exactly like everyone else's....I find that attitude alarming when the child is otherwise in good health.

So many children I know seem to grow a LOT, then rest a while, then grow a LOT...

[Megadodo]

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Posted by Tifferni (Member # 544) on July 11, 2005 01:03 PM:

My little man is 8 mos and I don't really give him solids. He always seems eager to eat, but when it comes down to actually giving him tastes of food, it's a whole other story. He doesn't really like them. He'll even make an 'icky' face and push the food out with his tongue, while sometimes, doing the quiver thing cause he doesn't like it. LoL

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Posted by SABE (Member # 118) on July 11, 2005 01:37 PM:

Ds1 ate small amounts of baby food starting around 7 months and picked at table food starting around 8 months, but he never really enjoyed solids until around his 1st birthday.

Ds2 refused to be spoon-fed and basically skipped the baby food stage. He went straight to table food at 8 months and has loved solids ever since he could feed himself. He still nurses a ton too.

[ July 11, 2005, 01:38 PM: Message edited by: SABE ]

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Posted by PartyofFive (Member # 197) on July 11, 2005 01:41 PM:


quote:
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Originally posted by Tifferni:
doing the quiver thing cause he doesn't like it. LoL
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This is what my ds does. Cute!

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Posted by buoysmom (Member # 282) on July 11, 2005 01:42 PM:

None of mine did. When they really got "into" eating solids was when they could feed themselves and were big enough to have real food that wasn't mushed up (cut up eggs, meat, cheese, a bowl of yogurt or applesauce they could feed themselves, stuff like that). My little guy is almost 8 months old and he is like yours. He will eat about 4 or 5 bites per "meal" and call it quits. He gagged on all my homemade babyfood because I couldn't get it mushy enough so I started buying him the jarred stuff. He does better with that.

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Posted by mafia mama (Member # 497) on July 11, 2005 02:34 PM:

Ds #1 NEVER LOVED solids. It was always a chore to feed him-he never even liked to feed himself. DH and I would get into fights about whose turn it was to try and cajole him into anything.


To this day (almost 4) he could care aless about food.

DD#2-total opposite-is 11 months and eats anything and everything you give her-she ate a PICKLE the other day!!! She also gets real pissed off if someone is eating something she wants-she yells and points-its really quite comical and totally amazing that these two kids are related.

The other day I walked into the kitchen and DH was letting her drink cream soda I said what are you doing-he's like she likes it-ugh yah but stop giving it to her-she's 11 months!!!

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Posted by paganbaby (Member # 995) on July 11, 2005 05:37 PM:


quote:
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Originally posted by mafia mama:
Ds #1 NEVER LOVED solids. It was always a chore to feed him-he never even liked to feed himself. DH and I would get into fights about whose turn it was to try and cajole him into anything.


To this day (almost 4) he could care aless about food.

DD#2-total opposite-is 11 months and eats anything and everything you give her-she ate a PICKLE the other day!!! She also gets real pissed off if someone is eating something she wants-she yells and points-its really quite comical and totally amazing that these two kids are related.

The other day I walked into the kitchen and DH was letting her drink cream soda I said what are you doing-he's like she likes it-ugh yah but stop giving it to her-she's 11 months!!!
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This describes my two boys almost exactly. I have really been taken aback by how much Tristan (12 months) loves food. Ian (almost 4) never did. He can go long stretches without eating. I give him lots of water, and figure he won't let himself starve. He does eat some, of course, but it really does seem like the baby eats more than he does.

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Posted by hugthem (Member # 15) on July 15, 2005 12:06 PM:

I'm putting this in archives because someone on one of the support boards just asked the SAME question!

[ July 15, 2005, 12:10 PM: Message edited by: hugthem ]

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[Megadodo]

American Academy of Pediatrics study:

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/117/2/425

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http://www.borstvoeding.com/voedselintroductie/vast_voedsel/rapley_guidelines.html

http://www.borstvoeding.com/voedselintroductie/vast_voedsel/rapley_guidelines.html