What tells you that your baby is ready to start eating solid foods?
Baby is at least 4 months old (if your baby was born premature, wait until they are at least 4 months “corrected age”; e.g. if baby was born two months premature, wait until they are ~6 months old).
Before 4 months, your baby’s gut is not ready for anything other than breast milk, or formula, if breast milk is not available.
Early introduction of solids increases risk of food allergies.
Baby holds their head up well
If baby doesn’t have good head control, they will have a hard time swallowing food without choking.
Sits with just a little support
If baby is falling to one side or the other, they will have a hard time managing food in their mouth and swallowing.
Moves toys and objects from one hand to the other.
This is another sign that baby has good control of head and body.
Acts interested in YOUR food
Baby reaches for whatever you are eating.
Baby shows interest in whatever you are offering them–leans forward to take food off spoon or your fingers.
These things typically happen by 6 months of age.
It is important for babies to start foods by about 6 months of age.
The window of time between 6 months and 1 year is a “critical stage of development” for learning to eat.
Waiting later than 1 year to start foods may make it difficult for baby to learn to eat.
Some research suggests that introducing foods by 6 months helps to prevent food allergies.
In countries like Israel, where peanut products are introduced as an early food, there is far, far less peanut allergy in children than in the US or Western Europe.
Eating is important for babies’ development
Eating solids helps baby move their tongue around their mouth–importatn for development of Speech.
Introducing foods to babies is a fun part of parenting!
First Foods
Contrary to popular belief, there IS NOT ONE FOOD to start with! You can give vegetables, fruits, meats, cereals….
First foods need to be very soft or pureed
You can use commercial baby foods, or grind or mash your own foods
Babies eat so little to start with that making your own “baby foods” is least expensive (a new eater will not finish a jar of baby food!)
There is a good case for giving a food that is high in iron, like meat or iron fortified cereal (e.g. baby rice, oat or wheat cereal).
Breast milk is low in iron, and babies use up the iron stores they got from mother before birth by 4 to 6 months of age.
If using baby cereal, mix it with expressed breast milk or formula to get to the consistency that you want.
If using meat, cook in a moist method (roast with broth, steam or stew) and grind meat with a baby food grinder or a blender.
It is just fine to use baby food meat or poultry, but it is expensive!
You can start with whatever vegetables, fruits, cereals, meats you have on hand, just grind, mash or blend to make them very soft.
Making home made “baby food”
Making large batches of baby food:
Cook meat or poultry in a moist method (bake or cook in broth or water)
Steam or boil vegetables
Blend food in a blender and then pour into ice cube trays, cover and freeze.
Pop out a cube at feeding time and heat in microwave or in a small pan on the stove (stir well and check for hot spots before feeding to your baby!)
Send a few cubes to daycare with your baby.
Cook rice or other grain with extra water to make it very soft.
Mash with a fork or put in blender with meat and/or vegetables
Cook pasta until very soft and mash with a fork, or let baby try to eat with their fingers
Cook potatoes, sweet potatoes, and winter squashes and just mash with a fork.
Scramble or boil eggs and mash with a fork
Mash soft fruits with a fork, mix with a little rice, pasta or baby cereal if they are very juicy (this gets them to an easy consistency for baby to eat)
Bananas, baked apples can just be mashed and fed–no need to blend or mix with anything else.
Peaches, nectarines and pears work better if mixed with something that is starchy.
Enjoy this time in your baby’s development!
Feeding should be fun for both baby and parents!
BUT, some infants have a difficult time with feeding!
If your baby is having a hard time transitioning to solids, ask your pediatrician to refer them to a feeding specialist
This could be a pediatric Dietitian, a Speech Therapist or Occupational Therapist who has had special training in infant feeding.
Look for my next post on moving from “baby foods” to whole foods.
