Ruth's Blog
Six Reasons to Wait Before Starting Feeding Baby Solid Foods
By: Ruth | March 2, 2011 | Comments(7)
After the birth of the baby, the next biggie milestone will be starting solids. The biggest question parents ask is: When Should I Start Feeding My Baby Solid Foods? The answer is not the same for every baby and starts with a call to the pediatrician! Most pediatricians say start solids between 4 and 6 months, and closer to 6 months if you are breastfeeding. Here are six reasons to wait before starting solid foods:
- Your baby’s immature digestive system is not ready to break down starches and carbohydrates like those found in cereals. His body cannot yet digest some fats. High protein foods like eggs, meat, and even cow’s milk, if given too early, may cause problems with your baby’s immature kidneys.
- Babies have a Tongue/Thrust Reflex which pushes food forward and out of the mouth making it difficult to spoon feed.
- Your baby is not yet able to indicate he is full. Until he can turn his head away from the spoon, you may unintentionally over feed him.
- Feeding solids too early can potentially lead to future medical problems (i.e. obesity, asthma, food allergies).
- Solids won’t help your baby sleep through the night.
- If you are breastfeeding, giving solids may cause a decrease in your milk production.If you are breastfeeding, giving solids may cause a decrease in your milk production.
For more information on starting solids, check back for future posts right here on the subject. You can also check out the new Super Baby Food app that has an entire section dedicated to feeding baby solid foods and, of course, there is always more information to be found in Super Baby Food!
oh, how I wish my mothers group read this…they are all so in a rush to start their babies on solids….and many thinking they don’t produce enough milk, so think the baby is ready for solids, simply because they are not sleeping thru..or unsettled!
oh, this is great article!
Thanks so much, Amanda. It’s certainly a myth that starting solids will lead to “sleeping through the night.” It’s simply not so. For this and all the other reasons, better to hang in there a bit longer.
It is amazing how ignorant parents can be regarding the nutrition of infants. Parents push their little ones to eat solids before they can even sit up! One doesn’t have to wonder why there is an obesity epidemic in this country!
Laura – I think the obesity epidemic has a lot more to do with parental laziness than when children begin solids. It is a time and organizational commitment to feed your children healthy, well-balanced meals… food that is prepared and cooked at home and not picked up at the store or local take-out place. I have been following Ruth’s guidelines (which include getting plenty of milk/formula) since my daughter was 5 months old (she is now 9 months), and she is the healthiest baby in our circle of friends! I wish people would be less concerned about starting solids to early and more concerned with women still nursing when their kids are walking and talking. Awful!!
Great article. Though, I think we should remember that as moms we are all in the same boat here. The debate on what to feed, how to feed, when to feed, how long to breast feed, etc. is going to be different for everyone. What if we stopped criticizing the way fellow moms raise their children and just focus on our own? After all, we’re just doing the best we know how to do. Ruth, I love, love, love your book! I’m doing it with baby #2 now after much success with the first child. Thank you for this incredible resource.
I agree with Adriane. Moms have enough criticism weighing them down from the moment they conceive. I think we would all do better to assume that fellow moms are doing the best that they can and keep our criticisms to ourselves whether it be baby feeding, breastfeeding, using epidurals, working moms, sahm’s, etc. Enough!
my baby is 3 months and 8 days old and i assumed that the reason why he is always unsettled every night is because he is hungry even he had his last fed at night. So me and my partner decided to try and gave him a baby cereal last night. We are so excited and so amazed how he work it out. he finished his cereal