When is it safe to feed my baby solid food?
Breast milk or formula provide all the nutrients a growing baby needs for at least the first four to six months of her life, so don’t be in too much of a rush to introduce solids.
A young baby’s digestive tract isn’t well developed and giving her solids too soon can result in her developing food allergies as well as asthma and eczema. As well as this, your baby isn’t actually developmentally ready to cope with solid food any earlier than this – she can’t use her tongue to move it around her mouth properly and there’s a risk she could choke.
As a general rule of thumb, when your baby is roughly double her birth weight (usually at around six months), you’ll likely notice the signs that she is ready for solid foods – and this coincides with the time when the iron stores she inherited from you will have been used up. There are a few simple indicators that she might be ready for something new inside her stomach. For example, if she doesn’t appear to be satisfied by her milk feeds, perhaps waking in the night when she didn’t used to, then this is probably an sign that she’s ready for something more filling. Another good sign is if she’s showing interest in your food, reaching out for your plate, or trying to put her hands in your mouth while you eat.
Follow these guidelines for what to introduce when…
Four to six months
• Gluten-free baby rice.
• Puréed fruit and vegetables – try sweet potato, pears, carrot, butternut squash and apples.
• Breast or formula milk (16-20 ounces a day).
• Cooled, boiled water.
Seven to nine months
• Wheat-based cereals (after 12 months if you have a family history of food allergies).
• Lentil purée.
• Mashed fruits and vegetables, such as banana, avocado, potato, carrots, parsnips.
• Full-fat yogurt and fromage frais.
• Finger foods such as toast slices, pita bread, rice cakes.
• Breast or formula milk (16-20 ounces a day).
• Cooled, boiled water.
10 to 12 months
• Soft cooked pasta pieces
• Well-cooked minced/chopped eggs (after 12 months if you have a family history of food allergies).
• Bread.
• Oatmeal.
• Chopped meat and flaked white fish.
• Finger foods as before, plus soft cooked diced vegetables, pieces of soft fruit.?
• Breast or formula milk (12-16 ounces a day).
• Cooled, boiled water.
If you have any unanswered questions, use our feeding and food answers page to get advice from other moms or our resident experts. Go to gurgle's chat section to speak to other parents about how and when they started to feed their baby with solids.
The information on this feature is intended for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional.
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Last Modified: 17/06/2007
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