Why Is the Best for Baby to Start Solids
By the time your baby is 4 to vi months old, you've probably got your breastfeeding or formula drill down to an fine art. Don't get too comfortable, though—your child will before long be fix for "real" food. Here's everything to know almost starting Infant on solids, with tips for mastering mealtime.
When to Start Solids
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says yous should start your child on solids betwixt 4 and half dozen months, simply the reply really depends on your baby. Hither are some signs that your little one may be ready for babe food:
- They can sit upright and hold upwardly their head.
- They are curious, looking at everything effectually them—specially what you lot're eating!
- They lost the tongue thrust reflex that automatically pushes food out of their mouth.
- They still seem hungry after getting a full 24-hour interval'due south portion of milk (eight to 10 breastfeedings or about 32 ounces of formula).
Remember, there's no need to rush this milestone. Most babies are ready to start solids between 5 and 6 months. Don't showtime solids before 4 months.
- RELATED: When Do Babies Start Eating Baby Food?
How to Introduce Baby to Solids
The AAP recommends exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months, every bit well as supplemental breastfeeding until your baby turns 1. (Formula is besides a great option for moms who can't or don't want to breastfeed). Introducing solids is more nigh getting them used to chewing and swallowing food than providing whatever significant nutritional benefit.
Requite your baby the breast or bottle kickoff thing in the forenoon, before or after meals, and before bedtime. At the start, y'all'll have to experiment to find what works best. If they're a big drinker—say, if they'd drink a whole bottle before a meal, given the chance—feed them kickoff with nutrient then with a bottle. If they're a moderate drinker, attempt the opposite.
- Up to 9 months, feed your baby 20 to 28 ounces of formula daily or breast milk every iii to 4 hours.
- At nine to 12 months, feed them 16 to 24 ounces of formula daily or breast milk every 4 to 5 hours.
As presently as your little one understands the concept of eating and shows interest in mealtime (this usually happens between 6 and 9 months), start them on a routine for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Even if they aren't hungry at times, they'll get used to the idea of eating on a schedule. (That said, never force or pressure your baby to eat. If they aren't interested, only take them out of the high chair and move on.)
- RELATED: Introducing Baby Nutrient? Here are 20 Things to Feed Your Baby
"My goal for the babies I care for is to get them on a big-boy or big-girl eating schedule by the time they turn ane," says pediatrician Sara DuMond, K.D. "This means they should swallow iii meals a 24-hour interval with ii to three snacks in betwixt."
- At four to 6 months, feed your infant two meals, each two to iv tablespoons.
- At 7 to 12 months, feed them three meals, each the size of your baby's fist.
As your babe adjusts to eating solids, know that there may be days when they're more interested in peas and carrots than in the breast or bottle and, on the flip side, days when all they'll want to practice is nurse. This is all normal every bit your infant begins to grow more independent, just for now, they still need their normal day's worth of breast milk or formula.
Baby's First Foods by Historic period
There are no difficult and fast rules for a baby's first foods. It's more important to offer a variety of fruits, vegetables, and meats in whatever club to get your babe used to dissimilar tastes. Here are some suggestions.
4 to six months: Unmarried-grain cereals
The level of fe that's stored in utero drops after nativity, and a infant reaches an all-time low at around 9 months. That'due south why cereals fortified with atomic number 26 are an ideal early food. Combine one teaspoon of unmarried-grain cereal with four to five teaspoons of breast milk or formula.
At commencement, most of the cereal will stop up on your babe's chin. "The indicate is to get your baby used to a different type of eating," says Westward. Allan Walker, M.D., manager of the Division of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, in Boston. "Although information technology'south sloppy and frustrating, you demand to go through this process."
- RELATED: How to Choose the Best Baby Nutrient
Don't force your baby to continue eating if they milk shake their head no, turn away, or reject to open up up subsequently simply one mouthful. And if they seem completely uninterested in trying cereal, wait a week or so and try again.
In one case your baby is used to swallowing runny cereal, thicken it by using less water or breast milk and more than cereal.
4 to eight months: Pureed veggies, fruits, and meats
You may accept heard that eating fruits before vegetables tin cause a lifelong preference for sweet foods, merely there'southward no enquiry to dorsum that up. And so it'southward up to you to decide whether yous brainstorm with bananas or carrots—or pureed craven for that thing.
The AAP also believes that introducing allergenic foods early can reduce the take chances of developing a food allergy, especially if your child is at risk. Common allergenic foods include peanuts, eggs, and dairy. Check out this article for more data.
- RELATED: The All-time Finger Foods for Baby
6 to 8 months: Single-ingredient finger foods
Whether you've begun with purees or are starting solids with finger foods, many babies enjoy experimenting with self-feeding from an early age. Don't offer any hard, raw foods (such as apple slices or carrot sticks) at this betoken. Brand sure fruits and veggies are soft enough to mash with gentle pressure between your thumb and forefinger.
The shape matters as well. Younger babies will exist picking foods up with their whole palms, so a mound of mashed potatoes or a wedge of avocado will exist easier to handle than smaller foods. Don't put salt or sugar in their nutrient—information technology's best if your baby learns to like it without the added seasonings.
9 to 12 months: Chopped, ground, or mashed foods
As soon as your child is able, transition them away from smooth purees. Contain more finger foods with texture like yogurt, cottage cheese, mashed bananas, and mashed sweet potatoes. They tin also apply more fe, so try pureed meats like beef, chicken, and turkey.
- RELATED: How to Wean Your Infant Off Breastfeeding
Solid foods to avert
You should avoid giving infants the following foods:
Cow's milk: Stick with breast milk and formula as a main beverage until your baby is one year former. Information technology'due south fine to utilize cow's milk in cooking or blistering, though.
Choking hazards. Avert these choking hazards during your baby's first yr: nuts, seeds, raisins, hard candy, grapes, hard raw vegetables, popcorn, peanut butter, and hot dogs.
Tips for Managing Mealtime
Create a routine. A babe needs focus to eat, and then start a routine where y'all wash their hands, soothe them, and then sit down them down to eat. And maintain the calmness by turning off the Idiot box and any loud music. "This will assistance your baby get witting of eating and learn to recognize when he'southward full," says Marilyn Tanner, RD, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Clan.
Understand that starting solids takes time. Information technology will take time for your babe to experience comfortable with the new sensations that get forth with eating—the feel of a spoon in their mouth and the tastes and textures of different foods. "I reassure parents that you might get grimaces and horrible faces," says Laura Jana, M.D., co-writer of Food Fights. "My daughter used to shriek when I put a spoonful of food in her mouth. Only she wanted more than."
Set for messes. Your baby will likely fling food everywhere, especially if yous're practicing baby-led weaning. This is common and doesn't necessarily point a dislike. "Getting food into his mouth takes coordination and practice for the baby," Tanner says.
- RELATED: What is Babe-Led Weaning? How to Help Your Babe Feed Himself
Picket out for allergies. To make pinpointing allergies easier, give your child only i new food at a fourth dimension and wait three or 4 days earlier trying another. Keep an middle out for signs of an allergic reaction or intolerance, like a rash, hives, wheezing, difficulty breathing, vomiting, excessive gas, diarrhea, or blood in their stools. Telephone call your pediatrician if you notice whatever of these symptoms (they can take minutes or days to announced), and go to the ER if the reaction seems serious.
Infant Food Nautical chart for Starting Solids
Have a page from our healthy-from-the-start handbook and take the guesswork out of what foods to introduce, and when. Print it out...and start feeding!
Credit: Christina Minopoli
Source: https://www.parents.com/baby/feeding/solid-foods/starting-solids-guide/
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