Solids before milk at 7 months?

wrote:

All the resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree.

Once your child's been through the usual round of first foods (introducing one
food at a time and so forth), and seems enthusiastic, you can probably try
fork-mashed stuff any time. That would probably be closer to seven months,
though (and may of course end up being later if your child isn't keen on it
yet). One of the great things about waiting until six months is that you can
very soon go pretty much straight to table foods and skip most of the goo
stage. They started feeding themselves quite soon, too.

Two of my kids went through the training foods (cereals, mashed banana,
applesauce ...) stage in a month or so, and then started table foods. (Not that
banana and applesauce aren't table foods, but that they weren't *limited* to
such very soft simple things any longer.) They started at just over six months
and were very keen for solids from the get-go. The third ate only bits and
pieces of solids from about six to eight months, and then finally started
tucking in around nine months. His weight was just fine, as were his iron
levels, and he ate plenty once he got round to it.

--Helen

H Schinske wrote in message
...
wrote:

All the resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree.

Once your child's been through the usual round of first foods (introducing
one
food at a time and so forth), and seems enthusiastic, you can probably try
fork-mashed stuff any time. That would probably be closer to seven months,
though (and may of course end up being later if your child isn't keen on
it
yet). One of the great things about waiting until six months is that you
can
very soon go pretty much straight to table foods and skip most of the goo
stage. They started feeding themselves quite soon, too.

Thanks. I am doing the introducing mush bit now. It seems to vary a lot.
Pumpkin went down really well the first 3 days, and then nope, DD didn't
want anything to do with it. Same with apple - she was fine with it for a
week, and now all she seems to eat is baby rice (which I reintroduced, just
to get her used to taking stuff off a spoon). I think I'll start a few
different things, like rusks - these would be o.k. now wouldn't they? I
suppose apple in muslin would be good too.

Two of my kids went through the training foods (cereals, mashed banana,
applesauce ...) stage in a month or so, and then started table foods. (Not
that
banana and applesauce aren't table foods, but that they weren't *limited*
to
such very soft simple things any longer.) They started at just over six
months
and were very keen for solids from the get-go. The third ate only bits and
pieces of solids from about six to eight months, and then finally started
tucking in around nine months. His weight was just fine, as were his iron
levels, and he ate plenty once he got round to it.

--Helen

I know all babies are different, but it is really nice to hear that they
don't all take to solids immediately. All DDs friends are gannets!! I am
in no way concerned with DDs weight - I have no idea what it is, but she is
nicely chubby. And if her weight hasn't increased much in the last 2 months
(we have a weigh-in next week), then I will tell the nurse how active she
is. She has been commando crawling for a month now, and can easily spend 1
1/2 - 2 hours crawling around on the floor playing.

Thanks for the advice though - I'll keep plugging away at it, and I'm sure
DD will get the hang of it eventually.

Cathy

Cathy wrote:

Hi all, I have yet another question. I was told today (by someone who
should know these things, but I take everything I am told with a pinch of
salt), that at 7 months, DD should be offered solids first. She has only
been on solids for about 3 weeks, and is not really that keen on them. This
person quoted a pediatrician whose name I promptly forgot, dammit. My gut
feeling is that milk should definitely be first on the menu for quite some
time yet. What do you people think? I was also told (by this same person)
that DD is 'well-covered' for being on milk only. Hang on - isn't milk the
ideal food for the first year (oops, ranting a bit now!!).

Yes, milk should be offered first, in order to not compromise your
supply, and to have the baby still get most of the nutrition from the
bm. For most of the first year, solids is practice for babies, and not
a major source of nutrition (I mean, come on, how much is really in rice
cereal? :-) ) Plus babies take to solids better if they're not super
hungry, which the bm would have taken care of.

One other question though, DD wasn't started on solids till 6 months,
because it is recommended, but also because I felt she wasn't ready. I'm
still not sure she is ready, but that is another story. All the resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree. Should
I go by age, or by time of introduction i.e. stick with puree for a while
and then try mashed stuff.

If you feel she's not ready, then stop. Seriously. You have plenty of
time. My son didn't get solids til he was a year. He eats fine now
(last night he would only eat if he was given a big plate too!), it's
not like they're never going to eat :-). Go with what you feel she's
ready for. Every baby does things at their own pace. You know your
daughter best.

Help, I'm new at all this, and I'm having enough trouble with the breast
feeding at the moment, let alone solids!

Oh, you're doing great, don't worry!!

E

My gut
feeling is that milk should definitely be first on the menu for quite some
time yet. What do you people think?

I think that it really depends on the baby.
Some babies this age are really into solids and eating real 'meals'. In that
case, there is no harm in sitting them down to a jar of Gerber (or whatever) at
whatever schedule is convenient, whether before or after milk, or in between
milk feedings. Other babies (like yours) are still just dabbling, and it's fine
to be just giving them tastes after a nursing session if they are amenable.
No rules. No rocket science.


Naomi
CAPPA Certified Lactation Educator

(either remove spamblock or change address to to e-mail
reply.)

One other question though, DD wasn't started on solids till 6 months,
because it is recommended, but also because I felt she wasn't ready. I'm
still not sure she is ready, but that is another story. All the resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree. Should
I go by age, or by time of introduction i.e. stick with puree for a while

Ah, missed this part.

Again, the answer is... it depends. Some babies who start solids late go right
into table foods/mashed stufff. Others prefer to stick with purees for a while.
Look at your baby, not the calendar. If she doesn't seem to like babyfood, by
all means try thicker/chunkier stuff and see if she'll like that better. (Some
babies would rather feed themselves even at 7 months.) If she doesn't like the
thick stuff, or can't handle it (gags, chokes), go back to the puree for a
while.



Naomi
CAPPA Certified Lactation Educator

(either remove spamblock or change address to to e-mail
reply.)

Elana wrote in message
...
Cathy wrote:

Hi all, I have yet another question. I was told today (by someone who
should know these things, but I take everything I am told with a pinch
of
salt), that at 7 months, DD should be offered solids first. She has
only
been on solids for about 3 weeks, and is not really that keen on them.
This
person quoted a pediatrician whose name I promptly forgot, dammit. My
gut
feeling is that milk should definitely be first on the menu for quite
some
time yet. What do you people think? I was also told (by this same
person)
that DD is 'well-covered' for being on milk only. Hang on - isn't milk
the
ideal food for the first year (oops, ranting a bit now!!).

Yes, milk should be offered first, in order to not compromise your
supply, and to have the baby still get most of the nutrition from the
bm. For most of the first year, solids is practice for babies, and not
a major source of nutrition (I mean, come on, how much is really in rice
cereal? :-) ) Plus babies take to solids better if they're not super
hungry, which the bm would have taken care of.

Thank you. That is what I thought, but I just wanted to check!


One other question though, DD wasn't started on solids till 6 months,
because it is recommended, but also because I felt she wasn't ready.
I'm
still not sure she is ready, but that is another story. All the
resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree.
Should
I go by age, or by time of introduction i.e. stick with puree for a
while
and then try mashed stuff.

If you feel she's not ready, then stop. Seriously. You have plenty of
time. My son didn't get solids til he was a year. He eats fine now
(last night he would only eat if he was given a big plate too!), it's
not like they're never going to eat :-). Go with what you feel she's
ready for. Every baby does things at their own pace. You know your
daughter best.


I think I was making things too solid. Last night very runny potato went
down well, and this morning apple sauce did the same thing! So I'll stick
with very runny, and try more mashed stuff every now and then.


Thanks,
Cathy

Naomi Pardue wrote in message
...

Good info snipped.

Look at your baby, not the calendar.

I'm going to put this on my fridge! I think I was getting a bit hung up on
what other babies are doing. Thank you.

Cathy

There is an excellent schedule for introducing various solid foods to your baby
on Dr. Sear's site at http://askdrsears.com/html/3/T030500.asp . He assumes
you would start solids at 6 months. He has a column on this chart for food
presentation, and it does say that mashed foods begin somewhere between 7-9
months.

He also has a more detailed page on starting solids at
http://askdrsears.com/html/3/T032000.asp , which includes an FAQ section. Your
question on how much solids to offer is covered there. Specifically, he says,
"Consider solid foods an addition to, not a substitute for, breastmilk or
formula, which are more nutritionally balanced than any solid food. This food
fact is especially important for breastfeeding babies. For a breastfeeding
baby, it's best to start solids slowly, so that they don't become a substitute
for the more nutritious breastmilk. Also, solids fed at an early age can
interrupt the supply-and-demand cycle, resulting in decreased milk production."

Anna



Cathy wrote:

Hi all, I have yet another question. I was told today (by someone who
should know these things, but I take everything I am told with a pinch of
salt), that at 7 months, DD should be offered solids first. She has only
been on solids for about 3 weeks, and is not really that keen on them. This
person quoted a pediatrician whose name I promptly forgot, dammit. My gut
feeling is that milk should definitely be first on the menu for quite some
time yet. What do you people think? I was also told (by this same person)
that DD is 'well-covered' for being on milk only. Hang on - isn't milk the
ideal food for the first year (oops, ranting a bit now!!).

One other question though, DD wasn't started on solids till 6 months,
because it is recommended, but also because I felt she wasn't ready. I'm
still not sure she is ready, but that is another story. All the resources I
find seem to assume that the baby was started on solids at 4 months. So
when things say that e.g. fork mashed stuff should be introduced at 6
months, it assumes that the baby has already had 2 months of puree. Should
I go by age, or by time of introduction i.e. stick with puree for a while
and then try mashed stuff.

Help, I'm new at all this, and I'm having enough trouble with the breast
feeding at the moment, let alone solids!

Thanks for any help,
Cathy

Look at your baby, not the calendar.

I'm going to put this on my fridge

I wish I could say it was an original....
(Think of all the money I could make off the copyright payments!!)


Naomi
CAPPA Certified Lactation Educator

(either remove spamblock or change address to to e-mail
reply.)

AnnaS wrote in message
...
There is an excellent schedule for introducing various solid foods to your
baby
on Dr. Sear's site at http://askdrsears.com/html/3/T030500.asp . He
assumes
you would start solids at 6 months. He has a column on this chart for
food
presentation, and it does say that mashed foods begin somewhere between
7-9
months.

He also has a more detailed page on starting solids at
http://askdrsears.com/html/3/T032000.asp , which includes an FAQ section.
Your
question on how much solids to offer is covered there. Specifically, he
says,
"Consider solid foods an addition to, not a substitute for, breastmilk or
formula, which are more nutritionally balanced than any solid food. This
food
fact is especially important for breastfeeding babies. For a breastfeeding
baby, it's best to start solids slowly, so that they don't become a
substitute
for the more nutritious breastmilk. Also, solids fed at an early age can
interrupt the supply-and-demand cycle, resulting in decreased milk
production."

Anna


Those pages had some great info. Thanks for that. I think I have been
trying to push the solids a bit. Things DD took eagerly at first are now
greeted with 'raspberries', and we both end up wearing the food. She does
like baby rice, so I'll stick to that for a while, and then try her with
other stuff. The good thing (from my point of view!) is that is taking in
enough (even on-2 teaspoonsful) to stop her frequent spitting up. The bad
thing is that pumpkin spit stains the floor even more then milk spit!! But
she no longer likes pumpkin, so we won't have to worry about that till next
time she likes it. Gee, I shouldn't be so worried - she is a healthy, very
active, very alert and nosey baby who is doing just fine on milk.

Cathy