Rant: Early solid feeding

"Herself" wrote
Sorry, just had to get it off my chest. Alena's just four months old...
we'll star t solids when she's ready.

Irish Marie is going through the same thing. She has a friend who
started her 14 (?) week old already on solids. And the mom has food
allergies as well. It's just crazy.

I think Marie said the baby was 2 weeks *younger* than L, so he'd be 10
weeks old!!

Jean

--
HOLLY: Nothing wrong with dog's milk. Full of goodness, full of
vitamins, full of marrowbone jelly. Lasts longer than any other type
of milk, dog's milk.
LISTER: Why?
HOLLY: No bugger'll drink it. Plus the advantage of dog's milk is when
it goes off it takes exactly the same as when it's fresh.
LISTER: Why didn't you tell me, Holly?!
HOLLY: What, and spoil your tea?
(Red Dwarf: Series 2, Episode 1)

"AlenasMom" wrote in message .cable.rogers.com...

Sorry, just had to get it off my chest. Alena's just four months old...
we'll star t solids when she's ready.

I hear you!

I just waited until DS grabbed for my food. He's now eating some of
my food at each meal, cut up into small bite-size pieces. He prefers
to feed himself (with a pincer grip), and likes all sorts of stuff,
including green beans dipped in salsa. JME, but I've never seen
delayed solids cause the sorts of problems I've seen with early
solids.

People kept annoying me by not correcting for DS's gestational age
when they told me he "should" be doing something. I didn't think a
four month old who was actually 2.5 months old should be starting
solids, myself.

--
C, mama to one year old nursling

In message
, Anne
Rogers writes

We've finally ditched the last bottle of formula after using it after
Nathanaels severe weight gain problems (=weight loss), I'm sooooo happy we
are back to exclusive breast feeding (he's 5 months), I never want to give
him formula again.

Congrats, I know how hard you've worked for this.
--
Mogget, the Churl in the Puce Greatcoat

Phoebe & Allyson wrote:
AlenasMom wrote:

I'm getting really sick of people telling me that I should have
started Alena on solids weeks ago...

I got around to reading last Sunday's paper this morning.
There was an article about baby/toddler nutrition, which
said 29% of babies start solids before 4 months. Other high
points:
3% of 9-11 month olds have candy *at least once a day*
9% of 9-11 month olds and 21% of 19-24 month olds have
french fries *at least once a day*
1/3 of children 4 months to 2 years consumed no fruits or
vegetables, and the aforementioned french fries counted as a
vegetable.

Scary figures. DD has had 2 lots of fruit so far - and it is only just past
lunchtime! And I felt a bit mean being the only mum not allow their child
chocolate cake at a recent birthday party. But then I thought about what
was in it, and didn't feel so mean. And I had a lot less cleaning of face
and hands than the other mums!!

Cathy

"teapot" wrote in message
om...
"AlenasMom" wrote in message
.cable.rogers.com...
I'm getting really sick of people telling me that I should have started
Alena on solids weeks ago... No, I shouldn't have!
One woman who told me this has a baby who is covered in rashes and flaky
skin. He's allergic to just about everything under the sun and she
couldn't
breast feed because she didn't make enough. ( Qualified by the fact that
he
would cry and her breasts would spray milk for the 6 weeks she did feed
him
I sounded more like an OAL problem than anything else.)
So she started him on solids at 8 weeks. Her pediatrician told her too.

ARGH!

Sorry, just had to get it off my chest. Alena's just four months old...
we'll star t solids when she's ready.

I was talking about this to my bloke last night, who thinks that
becuase MOo boy was interested in a biscuit he is ready for solids.

Moo-boy would probably eat a clod of dirt if you handed it to him. Or a
dried slug, like my oldest brother (and he was 18 months at the time!) A
willingness to grab anything and put it in the mouth is hardly proof that
baby is ready for solids!

'Fine, have a baby whos intolterant to everything becuase you wanted
to stuff his cute little face full of biccy' oh how I ranted!

Well, I don't think I'd go quite *this* far...probably millions of babies
have had solids early and not wound up intolerant to anything, much less
everything.

--angela

wrote in message
m...
"AlenasMom" wrote in message
.cable.rogers.com...

Sorry, just had to get it off my chest. Alena's just four months old...
we'll star t solids when she's ready.

I hear you!

I just waited until DS grabbed for my food. He's now eating some of
my food at each meal, cut up into small bite-size pieces. He prefers
to feed himself (with a pincer grip), and likes all sorts of stuff,
including green beans dipped in salsa. JME, but I've never seen
delayed solids cause the sorts of problems I've seen with early
solids.

People kept annoying me by not correcting for DS's gestational age
when they told me he "should" be doing something. I didn't think a
four month old who was actually 2.5 months old should be starting
solids, myself.


Exactly! People do this with milestones for Alena too! She was (roughly) 5
weeks early from what we can tell, making her only 12 weeks old. Let her
be!
My SIL (no comment) keeps telling Allan that Alena's slow, but in all
honesty, she's farther ahead even if we don't adjust her age! She rolls
over, sits up with minor assistance, comando crawls.... she's doing
awesome!

--
C, mama to one year old nursling

"Chotii" wrote:
Moo-boy would probably eat a clod of dirt if you handed it to him. Or a
dried slug, like my oldest brother (and he was 18 months at the time!) A
willingness to grab anything and put it in the mouth is hardly proof that
baby is ready for solids!

Don't get me started. DD still eats dirt at playgrounds (did it TWICE
yesterday, the little wacko), and once (this was months ago, thank god)
chased down a bug and ate the thing, yes alive, before my husband could
get to her, even though he was running and shouting all the way! And
she'll be officially 18 months old on the 19th of this month. She's
such a little nutso.

--
-- Vicki
Married DH May 21, 1995
Ima shel DS, born 11/16/99; and DD, born 5/19/02.
"Stay-at-home" Ima since October 2002.
An ounce of mother is worth a pound of clergy. -Spanish proverb
I may not currently be pregnant, but I look pregnant, does that count?

Anne Rogers wrote and I snipped:

We've finally ditched the last bottle of formula after using it after
Nathanaels severe weight gain problems (=weight loss), I'm sooooo happy we
are back to exclusive breast feeding (he's 5 months), I never want to give
him formula again.

Way to go, Anne! Congratulations!!! I know you worked very hard to get
to this point. Lucky Nathanael. :-)

-Patty, mom to Corinne [Mar-98] and Nathan [May-00]
and stepmom to Victoria [Apr-90]

Oh everyone outwith our garden wall has asked if ds is on solids yet (he's
21 weeks minus 6). Both DP and me think it's a bit mean to cram food down
the gullet of a wee person that can't even sit up yet. And I was really
chuffed when DP said the other day "The WHO recommends 6 months don't
they" - I mean I hadn't told him this so he's obviously been researching the
issue in his own time (that makes me kinda warm n proud). Apparently the
*average* time of a LLL consultant to exclusively breastfeed is 7 months -
good enough for them, good enough for us!

gosh I didn't know that, it seems everyone I speak to says you must start
solids by 6 months, otherwise the baby will run out of iron and you'll
have difficulty introducing a range of textures. I can see me coming to
blows with my mum over this, just as I can see us coming to blows if
Nathanael decides he wants to carry on breastfeeding when he starts
walking.


My family keep shaking their heads and muttering about being unconventional
and hippy - organic gardener, organic foodie, homebirth wishes, no drugs,
cloth nappies, exclusive b/f for ages, home education possibility etc etc.
But we're happy and, in the main, healthy.

I don't think that makes you hippy. I don't buy organic food, because I've
managed to avoid thinking about whether its a good idea, because I don't
think we could afford it if I did decide it was a good idea. We wanted a
home birth and are definitely planning one for number 2, we've also gone
with cloth nappies (I decided when I was a teenager that if I ever had
kids I would do this, as it's turned out, Nathanael is one of those babies
that gets nappy rash with disposables, he's more bothered by those icky
chemicals tham being wet). Apparently hippy is a way of mind not a way of
dressing, but I've not yet figured out what way of mind that is! What you
describe is all about wanting the best for your baby, your family and for
the environment and you deserve a pat on the back for that.

*pat on the back*

I love the idea of home educating, but I'll admit now I just don't have
the right personality and skill profile.

"AlenasMom" wrote in message .cable.rogers.com...
I'm getting really sick of people telling me that I should have started
Alena on solids weeks ago... No, I shouldn't have!
One woman who told me this has a baby who is covered in rashes and flaky
skin. He's allergic to just about everything under the sun and she couldn't
breast feed because she didn't make enough. ( Qualified by the fact that he
would cry and her breasts would spray milk for the 6 weeks she did feed him
I sounded more like an OAL problem than anything else.)
So she started him on solids at 8 weeks. Her pediatrician told her too.

ARGH!

Sorry, just had to get it off my chest. Alena's just four months old...
we'll star t solids when she's ready.


I can relate - try fending off all the comments when people found out
that your 12 month old wasn't eating solids (he finally started at 15
months.

Sharon
Mom to James 6.2.00 (the aformentioned baby who now at 3 1/2 has two
hollow legs, he eats so much!)
EDD #2 5 December