What I Wish I'd Known About Starting my baby on Solid Food

What to feed your baby

"My son reacted to peas 12 hours after eating. It is very important to follow the advice of introducing new foods individually and a few days apart. That way, if a reaction occurs, you can know what really caused it."

"Leave fruit juice until much later. Once they taste it, it will be hard to get them to drink water."

"Season your baby's food. Even if it's just pepper (never give a baby salt), it will help her develop a taste for adult foods. Our daughter loves garlic, onions, and other foods that most kids don't like, and I attribute it to her getting paprika, garlic, pepper, and other spices in her baby food."

"It is harder, but make your own. If you try baby food yourself, you will understand why babies make that horrible face. I believe they will become better eaters if the food tastes good."

"You don't need to heat your child's food. If you never introduce hot food, he will probably be just fine with eating it at room temperature straight from the jar."

"Don't let your own likes and dislikes affect what you feed your child. I don't like cottage cheese, but I gave it to my son anyway and he loved it."

"Do not back off on nursing and/or formula. At first, solids should be an addition, not a replacement."

When to feed your baby
"Try to have your meals at the same time as your baby. This encourages her to eat, too."

"When you first start solids, don't wait until the baby is starving to feed him. If he's too hungry, he'll get frustrated and reject everything."

Handling food rejection
"After a couple of spoonfuls of applesauce, slip in one or two bites of spinach or green beans — anything your baby has been picky about. It's like they swallow it before they realize it's different."

"If your baby doesn't like a food, give him a bite of something he likes after it, or put a little of the food he likes on it."

"Be creative; my baby doesn't accept milk in a bottle, but drinks it from a straw, a cup, or a spoon."

"What they eat from a jar and what they eat from the table later on are totally separate entities. There are foods that my baby wouldn't eat from a jar that she now eats happily from the table. Don't give up!"

"I just assumed that she would open her mouth and eat anything I gave her. She can love something one day and hate it the next. Some days she eats a ton; the next, hardly anything. I just wish I had known to expect this."

"If your baby acts like you are completely nuts when you give him the extremely runny cereal made the way it is recommended for 'baby's first feeding,' try making it thicker. Some children like very smooth, runny food, but others just don't."

"If you wouldn't eat it, why should your baby? I taste-tested everything. Sometimes it was obvious why my daughter wouldn't eat certain foods; they tasted terrible."

Handling the mess
"Buy bibs with a rubber backing so nothing seeps through to your baby's clothes."

"Feeding is really messy. I keep a bucket filled with water and color-safe bleach so I can just toss the bibs in after feeding him and clean them later."

"Feed your baby in her diaper — it will be easier to clean up afterward."

"It's OK for babies to be messy! We can always clean them up, but we would do more harm if we never let them try new things."

General advice
"Have the camera ready. The faces they make are priceless, especially when you give them a new texture."

"Once the solid food starts, the solid waste starts. It seems obvious, but I never thought about it, and I was shocked at first and called the doctor, really freaked out. I can laugh about it now."

"Starting solids early does not help a baby sleep through the night. Only teaching good sleep habits will do that."

source from http://www.babycenter.com

Baby Nutrition--When To Introduce Solid Foods

Is your baby ready for a taste of cereal or banana? It depends. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests introducing solid foods when your baby is 4 to 6 months old. However, not all babies are ready to eat solid foods at the same time. Rely on your baby rather than a calendar to let you know when it is time. If you introduce solid foods too early, your baby is more likely to have allergic reactions. Babies can’t properly chew and swallow solid foods much before 4 to 6 months of age. And what you can’t see is that your baby’s digestive system must mature some what before it can handle these new foods.

Signs that baby is ready
Before you introduce solid foods, ask yourself these questions:

• Has your baby doubled his birth weight?
• Does baby consume 32 ounces or more of breastmilk or formula each day?
• Can baby sit up with little support and turn his head when he’s full?
• Can baby move a dab of thinned baby cereal to the back of his tongue and swallow it. This is a signal that baby’s extrusion reflex has disappeared and he now has the ability to swallow nonliquid foods.
• Does baby frequently put things in his mouth?
• Is baby interested in trying new tastes and textures?
• Does baby watch with interest as you eat, perhaps even opening his mouth and leaning forward as if to ask for a bite?

If you can answer yes to these questions, baby may be ready to start solid foods. Just remember, until your baby is about a year old, his main source of nutrition should be breastmilk or iron-fortified formula.

source from http://www.verybestbaby.com

Solid Food : Ready or Not?

Most babies only need breast milk or formula for the first 4 to 6 months. If you feel your baby needs solid food before this, consult with your doctor.

Baby is Ready for Solid Food if

• Birth weight has doubled.
• Can hold own head up.
• Can sit with help.
• Shows interest in foods you are eating.
• Nurses more than 8 times a day or drinks more than 32 ounces of formula.

How to Start

The first time you try to feed your baby, it may not go well, but here are some things to remember to make it easier.

• Pick a time when both you and baby are in a good mood and he/she is not too tired or too hungry.
• Hold your baby on your lap or have the baby sit up in an infant seat.
• Start with rice cereal. This is easiest on the baby's stomach. A tablespoon mixed with 3 or 4 tablespoons of formula or breast milk is all you need at first. Keep the cereal very thin.
• Use a small spoon and put cereal only on the tip.
• If the baby has trouble swallowing, he/she may not be ready for solids yet. Wait a few days and try again.
• Feed the baby the same cereal for one week before changing to another flavor.

Moving On

• After your baby is used to cereal, you can begin adding vegetables, fruits, meat, and bread.
• Try one new food at a time, for several days, to make sure the baby is not allergic to any foods.
• Stick to single foods first, then try mixed foods and dinners.
• When the baby starts getting teeth, add finely chopped or mashed foods. Texture helps sore gums.
• At 6 months, start offering juice in a cup only. NEVER put juice in a bottle. An infant, put to bed or naps with a bottle containing juice, is at risk for developing baby bottle tooth decay.
• If your baby will not eat a particular food, try it again later. The more you offer a food a child, the better chance he/she has of liking it.
• Babies do not need sugar or salt added to their food.
• Do not limit the amount of fat in a baby's diet. Fat is needed for the brain to grow.
• Around 9-12 months, give finger foods. Ripe, peeled fruit, or soft, cooked vegetables are good choices.

Reviewed by: Alma M. Saddam, PhD, RD, Extension Specialist, Nutrition.

source from http://ohioline.osu.edu