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6 Months Old and It's Time for Solids

Written by Annerley HK on Thursday, 10 April 2014. Posted in Baby Basics, Life With Baby

Is your baby ready to start eating solids?

6 Months Old and It's Time for Solids

"By starting solids at around 6 months, you have an ideal opportunity to set your baby on a path of healthy eating patterns that will hopefully stay for life, ensuring a healthy attitude to food," explains Conchita Amende, health visitor from Annerley the Midwives Clinic.

 

The WHO and UNICEF guidelines suggest starting weaning a baby onto solid food at about 6 months old. However, the child should be able to sit up and hold their head up unsupported.

 

You can commence weaning at 17 weeks but 6 months is recommended as before this, your baby’s digestive system is still developing and weaning too soon may increase the risk of allergies, obesity and fussy eating. 

 

 

Signs that your baby is ready to try solids include:

  • Sitting up
  • Showing an interest in other people's food
  • Reaching and grabbing accurately

 

At 3 to 5 months old, babies often start to wake up in the night, even if they previously used to sleep through them. Parents often interpret this as a sign that their baby is ready for solids, but waking up is not necessarily a sign of hunger, and starting solids will not necessarily make the baby more likely to sleep through the night again. 

 

If your baby seems hungrier at any time before 6 months, then he or she may be having a growth spurt, and extra breast or formula milk will be enough to meet their needs.

 

 

Getting started

Always make sure your baby is sitting up straight and is facing forward. A highchair is best. This way your baby is able to explore food better and will be less likely to choke.

 

  • Start by offering just a few teaspoons of food, once a day
  • Don’t force-feed your baby.  If your baby doesn’t seem to want it, wait and try again later.
  • If you are using a spoon, wait for your baby to open his or her mouth when the food is offered.
  • Let your baby touch the food in the dish or on the spoon.
  • As soon as your baby shows an interest, allow him or her to self-feed using fingers.

 

 

Choosing suitable first foods

HANDY HINT

Allow plenty of time for feeding, especially at the beginning. Don’t rush or force-feed your baby. Most babies know when they’ve had enough to eat. Be patient, and go at your baby’s pace.

A varied diet is important for a child’s healthy development, so give your baby a range of easy-to-digest foods and textures to taste when he or she turns 6 months old. Babies are usually willing to try new food up to when they are 12 months old, and are often very keen to try new food between 8 to 10 months old. So use that time to introduce a wide variety foods with different tastes and textures, as it will be much harder to change things once your baby is older.

 

A useful tip is to use a little of your baby’s usual milk (breast or formula) to mix the food to the desired consistency so that new flavours don’t come as too much of a shock.

 

See how your baby responds to the different flavours and textures. How much your baby takes is less important than getting them used to the idea of solid food other than milk.

 

Suitable first foods include:

  • Cereals such as baby rice mixed with milk
  • Mashed cooked vegetables such as parsnip, potato, yam, sweet potato or carrot
  • Mashed fruit such as banana or avocado
  • Cooked apple or pear
  • Soft fruit or vegetables (small enough for your baby to pick up)

 

 

Once your baby is used to eating vegetables and fruit you should add other foods, such as:

  • Puréed or mashed-up meat, fish and chicken
  • Mashed rice, noodles or pasta
  • Lentils (dhal) or pulses
  • Full-fat dairy products, such as yoghurt, fromage frais, cheese or custard (choose lower sugar varieties)
  • Several types of finger food such as toast, crumpets, griddle pancakes, rice cakes etc.
  • Mashed family food as soon as possible. By feeding Baby what you eat, you’ll know what’s gone into the meal and Baby will get used to eating what you eat. Don’t add salt or sugar to food.
  • Offer sweet foods only occasionally or not at all

 

 

Encourage self-feeding using finger foods

Some babies prefer food they can hold themselves to mashed foods, so offer your baby finger foods right from the start. As well as providing chewing practice, a good idea even if baby doesn’t yet have teeth, finger foods encourage babies to feed themselves.  Suitable finger foods include cooked and cooled green beans or carrot sticks, cubes of toast, bread, pitta bread or chapatti, peeled apple and banana. Avoid sugary biscuits and rusks so that your baby does not get into the habit of expecting sweet snacks.

 

 

Cut comfort feeding by introducing a cup

HANDY HINT

Offer sips of water from a cup with meals. If you choose to give pure juice, dilute it one part juice to ten parts water, and offer it only at mealtimes.

If you are bottle-feeding, be aware that comfort sucking on a bottle can become a habit that’s hard to break. Introduce a cup when your baby turns 6 months old and aim to have your baby off the bottle by their first birthday. Using an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve will help your baby learn to sip and is better for your baby’s teeth.

 

 

Eating as a family

HANDY HINT

Try to organise mealtimes for the same time every day – your baby will know what to expect and is more likely to be happy to eat their meals.

Dining as a family encourages your baby to get into good eating habits from a young age. If your baby is used to eating the same variety of foods the rest of the family eats – although they may need to be cut up a bit smaller – then they are less likely to be a fussy eater as they get older.

 

  • Sit your baby in a highchair at the table and smile and talk to your baby to make him or her feel included.
  • Give your baby the same food as the rest of the family, even if it has to be mashed up at first. But remember to leave out the salt!
  • Encourage babies and young children to feed themselves with finger foods, and let them decide when they’ve had enough.
  • Don’t worry if feeding your baby is messy! It’s natural for babies to want to touch or play with their food when they’re beginning to feed themselves – it’s all part of learning. A plastic tablecloth, newspapers or an old towel on the floor will make it easier to clean up afterwards.

 

 

What and how a child eats plays a critical role in their health and social development. By getting your baby to develop good eating habits before he or she turns 1, you’ll be doing your baby (and yourself), a huge favour for life.

 

Note: This information is adapted from the joint weaning leaflet from the Baby Friendly Initiative and the Department of Health. For the full version click here (pdf file)

 

 

 

 

 

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