Delaying Solids? How Long Did You Go?

Christa - posted on 06/28/2009

We tried to introduce solids at six months with our first daughter and she was very unimpressed. She started eating solids again right around her first birthday. She would eat a few snacks here and there (like those meltable puffs by Gerber), but wasn't even close to "full-time" solids eating until around 13/14 months. She BF around the clock until she was 19 months old (we co-slept so, from 14 months on she only nursed at night and ate solid food all day).

Minnie - posted on 06/11/2009

We're waiting until our eight month old picks up things and puts them in her mouth. She doesn't do that yet. She started crawling at 5 months, is all over the place, cruising on furniture...but gets only momma's milk!

She just doesn't put things in her mouth- and I think spoon-fed purees are pointless.

It's all commercialistic hype that says that babies HAVE to have vitamins and solids after 6 months. I firmly believe that my milk is sufficient for her. And it is...

We haven't gotten any flack for it. In fact, she's seen the pediatrician once in her short life, and he commended me for choosing to delay solids.

Laura - posted on 05/20/2009

My baby just turned 4 months old and am already getting told to start her on solids. She doesn't sit up unassisted, she hasn't mastered the pincer grab, she does not seem to care at ALL when other people are eating, she seems fine just nursing. But of course "She's ready! She's getting so old! You will miss your window of oppurtunity! I think she is still hungry!" is coming from people already. I usually just say "she's actually not showing any of the signs the pediatricians have told us about so we're going to hold off a little bit longer" and then change the subject to something else baby related. ; )



I obviously plan on delaying solids myself. I just figure she'll throw me some good cues when she's ready and I"ll just know. I guess that's kind of the whole APing philosophy though, isn't it? It worked awesome with my first and it's working pretty damn good with this one, too.

Leah - posted on 05/10/2009

I would have loved to wait until 6 - 9 months but my son had other plans. He started showing interest very early at 4 months. We gave him a spoon to play with at first, then started spooning breastmilk. He's now 6 months and has tried avocado, yam, banana, and rice cereal. He loves it all! I feed him 1 - 2 TBSP once a day at dinner. He would probably take 3 meals a day like the doc suggests but I still think breastmilk should be the primary food until at least 12 months.

Heather - posted on 05/06/2009

DS just wasn't interested until he was 10 months old. He loves food now and is the only one of my children who has no food allergies.

User - posted on 04/07/2009

We wanted to let our son lead the way on it, and to understand that mealtime was a special family time. So, at about six months we would sit him in his high chair at mealtimes with a sippy cup of water and a spoon. He let us know when he was ready, eventually - his mouth was hanging open and the spoon was aiming toward our plates. :)  I think children will let you know when they are ready, just keep giving opportunities to express themselves. Our son started with bananas and avocados, still his favorites at 22 months. :)

Molly - posted on 04/05/2009

I introduced a wee bit of solids at 7 months. didn't take. introduced again at 9-10 months still no interest. started 1 solid a day at 12 months and didn't hit 3 solid meals a day until almost 18 months. (and at 2 is still BFing)

If pressed I just put out the "our pediatrician recommended we do this" or something along those lines. whos gonna argue with what your doctor says?

Ariana - posted on 03/11/2009

I waited as long as I could. From about 8 mo I let my little guy taste and nibble fruit or veggies but he didn't really eat much until 10 months. Now, at 13 months, he might choose to go a day or two without eating. I'll offer foods on a tray but he sometimes will fuss and reach out to me to nurse instead. Breast is best!
I read somewhere that when babies grow their teeth, they start to develop enzymes to digest solids. Makes sense to me!

Jamie - posted on 03/09/2009

I went 7.5 months with my first.  My second is 3 months and we'll see.  Something tells me she's going to be more into food than my first.  I'll wait until at least 6 months, though.  I tried solids at 6.5 months with my first but she stuck out her tongue and acted like she wanted to throw up!  What she seemed to want most at 7.5 months was pureed lamb!  I think her body was telling her she needed the iron.  So I went with it.

Karin - posted on 02/28/2009

My doctor kind of scared me into starting solids at 6 months (he would have preferred i started much earlier though!), but as you can imagine it was just an exercise in frustration, as she didn't really want it and i wasn't really excited about feeding it! So between 6 and 9 months i occasionally offered solids whenever i was in the mood or i thought she might want it, maybe a couple times a week, basically just to introduce it and let her experiment, but not as a serious meal. At 9 months she started eating very enthusiastically, so you'll know when your little one is ready.

If people pressure you, Dr. William Sears says you can tell them "Dr. Bill" told you it would be fine or even preferable to delay solids. Anyway, before the 1920s, it was very rare for babies to receive any solids until 12 months or so, and they were all ok, right? i think it's the invention and proliferation of commercial baby food that says it's ok to start at 4 months or earlier.

Leanne - posted on 02/12/2009

Sophie only really started to even play around with eating food after 7 or 8 months, and she was not actually eating much of anything until much closer to a year.  It was a very slow process and by around 20 or 21 months she really started putting food away! 

I just would tell myself that I was the mama, and I was the gatekeeper!  It's so much better for them to wait and follow their lead with feeding.  It protects against allergies, it's easier by far to just nurse, and the poop is easier too!  Hang in there.

User - posted on 02/12/2009

We didn't wait until 9 months but we went with baby led weaning and started offering solid foods around 6 months. However my daughter had almost no interest in solids until sometime between 9 and 10 months. We just told everyone the truth--we offered solid foods, she enjoyed exploring and playing with them but wasn't yet ready to eat and that she would eat them when she was good and ready. Now, at 14 months she loves to eat almost everything we do. We did have people question why didn't start at 4 months and even 3 months but we just explained about the readiness signs and about allergies.

Fiona - posted on 02/08/2009

We started to intoduce solids with DD at six months. However, he diet is still mainly milk! She's now just over 10 months and only started to show any real interest in solids at around 9 months. We've gone down the BLW route, so although we have offered solids, DD has decided what she wants to do. And yes, I have had the "spoon feeding" and "fattening her up" conversations with my mam and ILs! I'd say that offering foods and allowing DD to "play" for the last few months has been really beneficial. So, no, we didn't delay until 9 months, but haven't forced the issue either.

Lindsay - posted on 01/27/2009

I waited until about 8 months with both of mine, and made a point of not discussing it with people who I knew wouldn't understand the thinking behind it.  I am pretty firm on the "it's nobody's business" line of thinking, and I don't entertain discussions with people who question my parenting.

Peggy - posted on 01/02/2009

I wanted to wait till 9 months, but the doctor said not to go more than 8 months and he tended to be a good doc that would let me get away with lots of this hippiefied stuff, so I trusted him, but then my older son started "sharing' his snacks with the baby around 6 months anyway. Since I even THOUGHT about it, I know the crap you are getting. Just remind yourself that "YOU ARE THE MOMMY" and you will do what you think is best. good luck.

Kristina - posted on 01/01/2009

I gave in. [Osro is almost 6 mo. 3 wks] But he didn't like it so I am standing firm now on waiting a couple more months..it is annoying having to explain/defend the choice to delay but I can't see any reason to push the food on him when he so obviously dislikes solids, [he used to chew on baby spoons but now won't even touch them because he thinks they will taste like banana or sweet potato] and is a nurse master!!

Heather - posted on 12/31/2008

My MIL was chiming in from the time Colin was 6 weeks old. *rolls eyes*

We were actually very lucky because Colin had no interest in solids until 8 or 9 months. We just told them (over and over) that we would not be giving solids until he showed some interest. We had a similar experience to Emily's. After 6 months, he could try stuff if he was interested, but that was rare.

With family, it's just all about setting boundaries. They know not to question my parenting or I won't trust them around Colin. I've actually had to threaten MIL to decrease her access to Colin because she had an opinion on everything. Breastfeeding, solids, co-sleeping...I'm a non-confrontational person and it was hard to do but I'm SO glad I did.

Rachael - posted on 12/31/2008

I delayed and got crap from people about it. I basically just avoided talking about it for the most part. I think my daughter didnt start really eating solids on a constant basis until almost a year. When asked and pushed I would just say "she doesnt have any interest in it" and I would leave it at that. I have found with any of my choices that arent the "conventional" choices less information is less ammo for them. Good luck!

Emily - posted on 12/30/2008

We allowed solids for our babies after 6 months... but didn't really push it... they probably each had a dozen mouthfuls of food total before they were 8 or 9 months. You could just explain that the longer you wait the less chance there will be of allergies. Or you could explain that since breastmilk is really all babies need for at least the first year of life, and solids are really just for learning for that first year, that you'd rather just not deal with the extra hassle and expense.

One thing that also worked with a couple of my friends who were out to dinner, was to tell people that you prefer to make your own baby food because then you know what's in it, but it's just such a hassle to bring it with you so you'll just nurse because it's easier. :)

BTW... good for you for delaying! Sometimes I get queasy hearing about all the moms who want to push cereal on their babies at 2-4 months so they'll sleep longer.