What age was your baby ready for solids?

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

she doesnt make appointments usualy she just comes by she knows Im usually home

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

She visits me because she works for child health and best beginnings which is a program for young mums and yeah sometimes regular sometimes not sometimes I see her every week or more sometimes I see her once every few months, when I saw her yesterday, I dont think Id seen her since my wedding (in march). Obviously we didnt discuss child health stuff at my wedding reception. I used to go to the clinic when brianna was a newborn but Ive pretty much been seeing Stacey since Bri was about maybe 3 weeks, she is the one who sent me to emergency with brianna after 4 doctors told us there was nothing wrong. Wont you speak to her Jodi? You might find she actually knows her stuff. Sorry Ive Ive come across bad Ive had alot going on today

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

found this one on allergies http://www.allergy.org.au/content/view/1...

Krista - posted on 05/26/2011

I think that people should wait until the child shows signs of readiness. I gave my son a tiny bit of cereal on a spoon at 4 months old, just to see if he took well to it. He was nowhere near ready, so I waited another couple of months. By that point, he was very interested in our food, and we only had him on cereal for a couple of weeks before we moved straight to pureed vegetables.

I DO, however, wonder about the statement that several of you have made about breastmilk being all that the baby needs for the entire first year. From what I'm reading, the CPA, the WHO and the AAP all say that solids should start at around (but not before) 6 months of age. Not that I think there's any harm in waiting a little longer, but a whole year?

And yeah, the current recommendations are now saying that there is no need to delay the stereotypically "allergenic" foods, and that doing so might actually CAUSE allergies in some cases.

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/allergy...

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

Mel, by a couple of things you have said, your health nurse visits you? And pretty regularly? or do you go to a Maternal Health Centre? I guess I'm a bit confused.....

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

Wha?

I just had an intake nurse at my house when my daughter was born. Their job is to clear up old research and and what new research/studies have shown and are accepted by the pediatric society. The only changes made were to wait longer to give yoghurt.

Is this information newer than 11 months ago?

Do you have a link?

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

yes we are talking all babies like I said I already asked asbout this yesterday...I am currently reading your link Jenn and that completely contradicts what Ive been told Staceys just told me that delaying solids causes allergies, not only that I was told this by the child dietician at Fremnatle HOspital when Brianna was a baby, she said you give th foods such as peanut butter eggs etc early to PREVENT allergies, and Ive seen heaps of people on com postying the same thing. This is relatively new research so you guys might not all have heard the recent stuff your kids may be doler then mine.

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

Yup. My children's doctor 'recommends' starting early with cereal but when probed he told me that it wasn't *necessary* to start with cereal or to give solids before 12 months. He said himself, that a baby gets all the nutrients they need from BM alone until around 12 months.
You have to ask questions and take what HC providers with a grain of salt. He is basing his recommendations on his own opinion of what he feels is the best route to take. Not always what is necessary or the *best* for all babies.

As for a HC nurse... I wouldn't trust many nurses' opinions as far as I could throw them. As Jodi pointed out I've found quite a few of my share to be twits.

You have to take what HC providers say with a grain of salt and ask your share of questions to get to the bottom line. A lot let their own bias opinions, old research, and personal experience dictate their recommendations.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

And btw, I have not had a chance to look for the articles I saw all that stuff in yet.

But essentially, what we are talking here is whether it is dangerous for ALL babies, not just Mel's babies, or my babies, or Erin's baby, or anyone else's baby. We are talking ALL babies. And I think the term "dangerous" as opposed to "not recommended, based on certain criteria"....

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

umm no its not Jenn stop tryiing to insult me, Im not stupid , Im more knowledgeable then alot of you because Im not silly enough to think that a hungry 10 month old doesnt need solids. I know there are some bad health nurses Ive had one , onewho made me mix half water half formula to my kids bottles when she was newborn that turned out to be shitty advice. Like I said when Stacey sends me some info Ill be happy to email to you.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

Or take a copy of the peer reviewed study to that professional and ask them to read it.

Erin - posted on 05/26/2011

True Jenn.

As for online research, there is a big difference between reading published studies and data vs some random mother's blog. Taking advice from the latter would be idiotic. Peer-reviewed studies published in medical journals is a perfectly acceptable mode of collecting information.

Of course this all needs to be discussed with your health care provider. But if there is a clear discrepancy between the scientific information and one person's (or two) professional opinion, it's time to seek a second (or third) opinion.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

I am going to say right here.....some health nurses are absolute fucking twits. And I've had some. One of the BIGGEST reasons I stopped my child health check ups every few weeks and only went back for the vaccinations. I just used the pharmacy for weigh ins, and I had my family doctor who I trusted because I'd been seeing her forever.

Jenn - posted on 05/26/2011

And again Erin, we have to wonder just what exactly the nurses are saying, and what she is hearing. Could be 2 different things.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

I know for a fact I have seen many sites on here that states that babies need solids after 6 months due to breast milk not having enough iron, so give me a bit I need to put some shopping away then I will find some links for you...you can find anything you want to on the net Erin. I would rather go by child health then the internet tbh, like I said what put me off in the first place was people telling me that my baby was fine to reduce solids, I almost believed then I texted some people and they rang me and basically said who on earth told you that. SO I will have alook for some links for you and I will find my book and see if I can find links there

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

My doctor also recommended srynge feeding my 3 month old baby cereal. :S He was basing it on the size of my son and size of my husband (both in the 95th percentile for weight and height). On BM alone my son was gaining weight far above the average HWG for his age. There was NO NECESSITY FOR EARLY SOLIDS, I have no idea why my doctor even felt the need to suggest it. You can't always trust HC providers.... just sayin.

Erin - posted on 05/26/2011

It's not just me who thinks your information is wrong Mel. Honestly, I'm not trying to slam you. But it is beyond frustrating that you cling to this advice even when faced with pages and pages of science-based evidence to the contrary. We have provided you with umpteen links to credible sources that directly contradict your nurse's advice.

So yeah, two individual nurses disagreeing with the safety of delaying solids is really not a big deal to me. Medical practitioners can't always be subjective. I should know, I work with them. They bring their own opinions and experiences to the table, ESPECIALLY when giving nutritional and behavioural advice in paediatrics.

Jenn - posted on 05/26/2011

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids...
http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/s... - a quote from this AUSTRALIAN site Mel, just for you. "Some babies are 7 or 8 months, or older, before they start eating more than a taste of family foods." So if they were only having a taste of things before that, I highly doubt they would have been getting their "needed" iron intake, and clearly they do NOT state that it is dangerous.

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

See but... and this is just my personal experience. My daughter is a big eater!!! She could easily polish of 9 ounces of BM/formula since she was around 7 months old. She is 12 months old now and still needs to drink formula ever 3 hours (she's always taken milk every 3 hours) whereas my son could go 4 hours at the same age.

When I introduced solids it didn't even make a dent in how often she drank milk and how much she took. At 12 months now she can pack away the solids and is a big girl. She only cut back on her milk recently, the last month.. now she takes about 7 ounces but still asks for milk every 3 hours.
She was still putting on the pounds on milk alone at 7-8 months when she was just tasting solids.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

its great that you think the advice of 2 child health nurses in WA, plus the book that I have from my child health nurse is wrong

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

I love how you seem to think you know more then an experience health nurse Erin like I said I know my baby, she IS definately needing to eat food. LIke I said she breast feeds 10 x a day and eats for about 3 people at breakfast lunch and dinner.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

the stupid thing is I was always told when I had Brianna dont start with rice cereal its unnecessary that they used ot say that but not anymore, yet second baby I went and listened to some GP and I quiered it about starting with other stuff but she said no only rice cereal. Should have known better really as a mother its my job to know better. Jodi I did actually mention that, because Loureen mentioned once with regards to clamping the cord she just pretty much gave me the eye roll lol so didnt elaborate on that at all. But I do have alot of respect for her and trst her knowledge she has always been spot on so far with the girls hence the reason I find it hard to trust some other information, especially when people are trying to tell me, my 10 month old should be focasing more on milk then solids etc....it just seemed crazy. Im sure you could understand that if you sure her, she eats ALOT. She coudlnt manage without. Anyway how could I possibly know for sure that there was enough iron? I woudllnt be able to know so I dont think I personally could delay solids. Everything Ive read said 4-6 months they have enough iron with just breast milk.

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

My doctor is an early solid pusher and very old school in his recommendations but even HE said solids aren't necessary until around 12 months. That speaks volumes to me.

Erin - posted on 05/26/2011

OMG I'm going to lose my mind :-/

You know what? Yes, if your baby can't sit up in a high chair (even at 10 months), she is probably not ready for solid food. It is the major sign for readiness for a reason.

Read Jodi's information. We have debunked this cock-eyed theory of yours about baby-led weaning and delaying solids being dangerouns SO MANY TIMES it is ridiculous. We have provided links, testimony and personal experience that you simply dismiss based on some quack child health nurse's advice. You claim your information is the norm in Australia, and we have proven that to be wrong too.

Really Mel, the only one dishing out bad advice around here is you. When the overwhelming majority of us (and our doctors and independent research) disagrees with you, who do you really think is wrong? This is not just about opinion. It is medical fact.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

Oh no, I was an idiot too. EVERY book tells you to start with rice cereal (or at least it did with my first). We didn't have internet forums like this back in those days (shit I sound old), so I could seek advice from other mums. Life experience speaks volumes IMO.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

Here:
"Actually, the baby's iron levels are determined at birth, and there are several determinants that dictate a baby's iron levels, and the point at which those iron levels will deplete. A couple of those things are how long it was left before clamping the cord at birth (the longer the better) and the birth weight of the baby (healthy babies over 3kg generally have sufficient iron stores for 9-12 months). Babies who are low birth weight, jaundiced, or premature will be less likely to do without the additonal iron beyond APPROXIMATELY 6 months. Anyway, they are just generalisations (backed up by research). I just wanted to point that out in case that health nurse of yours wasn't aware of it. But I'm guessing she knew all of that because she's done her research and her course :)"

And I just realised there was an error. It should read 3lb, not 3kg.

Mel, It doesn't have to be Australian. Australia bases its recommendations on international research. When it comes to these issues, kids in the US, or UK, or anywhere for that matter, are not different to the kids in Australia. Australia does not do a lot of its own research because we simply don't necessarily have the funding. So most of the research on which we base our decisions is actually international. Just saying....

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

I'll join you in the 'idiot club' Mel. :/ It's hard to see the alternative routes when you're bombarded with an overwhelming amount of reccommendations by healthcare professionals, products and books.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

IM the idiot that listened to some doctor Id never seen before about rice cereal and didnt trust my instincts with my second daughter , she got soo badly blocked up. I got rid of it all from my house and stuck to fruit and veges

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

but yeah go ahead send me something provided its Australian, cause I only go by the reccomendations here since everythings so different, and Ill query it with her

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

IMO if you're going to start with ANY cereal first... it's better to use barley or oatmeal as a starter. They are higher in fibre. You also have to check the amount of fibre and startch between different brands. I discovered that the difference in fibre between brands of oatmeal/barely can be as much as 4g.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

no I dont think I saw your earlier post....my child health nurse said it wasnt safe at all. She said thats what all the research says so she wasn't sure what you guys were on about, I told her you sent me links before, but everything Ive seen (granted most of it is WA stuff) has backed up what shes said. When she sends me her stuff Ill email it to you. I will definately be chasing her up on that

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

Mel, it isn't dangerous, it CAN be a problem depending on the child. See that word CAN again? There is absolutely no evidence it is "dangerous". See my earlier post on iron levels. There is evidence and research backing up what I stated. If you would like to see it, just ask, and I will locate it. But just make sure you also provide evidence for your claims that it is also dangerous. Then we can have something to debate.

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

Yeah, I was concerned about starting with rice with my second. So I consulted some moms on COM. A lot said they experienced the same thing and did much better starting with purees. So I took that route instead with my daughter. She adjusted very well to the purees. No probs whatsoever.
Now I advocate starting with purees and avoiding cereal until around 8-9 months. I also advocate not introducing solids until AT LEAST 6 months and when baby shows all signs of readiness. IMO it's just unnecessary and I don't see any valid reasons to rush solids on infants. If anything I see far more detrimental side effects of starting solids too early.
My son is an extremely picky eater, of course this is just a guess but I wouldn't be too surprised if forcing solids on him at an early age contributes to pickiness in older infants and toddlers. Just a theory of mine.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2011

It's a bad starter food because it is extremely starchy and low in fibre. It's like liquefied cement. I have no idea why they recommend it.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

*bangs head on desk*

Jenn - posted on 05/26/2011

"if that was the case my 10 month old still woudlnt be eating solids which is dangerous."

Or not.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

Just thought Id add Erin I think I would end up reported if I waited til my daughter could sit because of what some people had told me on here, that is such dangerous advice to be giving...I dot want to be rude but I know when my bub needs solids are not and so does her nurse. She still has the pillow to be able to sit up I suppose in your opinion she shouldnt be eating at all? Like I said Im not trying to be rude I just want to let you know that , that would be considered very dangerous advice, I think this is why you cant go with all the "signs" because every baby is so different

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

rice cereal sucks Jennifer I made that mistake twice. I thought my second kid might be different with the cereal but apparently not its the worst starter food. I dont know why a doctor would hassle for a baby to start solids before 4-6 months if they are not even wanting it, seems so stupid theres some stupid people out there. 5.5 months is when alot of people seem to start from what Ive seen

Jenni - posted on 05/26/2011

My MIL kept pressuring me to give cereal in a bottle at 2 weeks to get my son to sleep through the night. Good thing I didn't listen.
My doctor was pressuring me to start solids as well. At 3 months?! I was desperate and had been told over and over again it would help him sleep through the night... (funny considering what I know about babes; solids and sleeping through the night now). I held off until 4 months and the rice cereal just backed him up and give him horrible tummy troubles.
He was not showing signs of of 'readiness' and my doctor suggested giving him 2 ounces of baby cereal in a syrnge.
I quit solids after a week when he was suffering from tummy troubles.
I didn't try again until 5.5 months. He faired better with it at that age.

With my daughter I was a little more educated on the subject and more confident in my instincts. My doctor pressured me again to start at 4 months. I refused and asked are they really necessary at that age? He said... no, if you want you can wait until 12 months, they get all the nutrition they need from BM. But he still seemed confused as to why I wanted to wait. Didn't matter. I was confident in my decision.
I introduced her to solids at 7.5 months when she showed all the signs of readiness. I avoided rice cereal and started with purees (mostly homemade). Stuck to higher fibre cereals when I did introduce it. By 8-8.5 months she was completely off the purees and cereals and on finger foods. She refused the purees and preferred to feed herself.

I was very by the 'book' with my son. As a new mom, I had trouble trusting my instincts and was afraid if I didn't do things exactly as my books or my doctor suggested, something bad would happen to my first born. I was all about schedules, feeding solids on doctors rec., getting him to sleep through the night, etc. I thought I could make him conform to what I expected. :/

With my daughter I took an entirely different approach. Completely baby-led.... I threw the books out the window and followed her cues, for everything. I took a far more baby-led/AP style approach.

Mel - posted on 05/26/2011

Not true, Erin, if that was the case my 10 month old still woudlnt be eating solids which is dangerous. I dont just apply that advice to all my kids I take the advice from my doctors or health nurse. I was told to put Paige on solids at 4 months and her nurse just got me to put the pillow behind her on the high chair like we had to with Brianna....I dont know why you presume that every child has to be the same

Nikki - posted on 05/26/2011

Parents should use developmental cues definitely...But not all parents are switched on enough to understand the developmental side of things so health authorities obviously have to put a recommended age to advise those who are unaware.
My daughter was developmentally ready at 4-5 months, she had a taste of food here and there but she didn't show a keen interest in solids until about 7 months.

Erin - posted on 05/26/2011

my kids had to use the councer or the swing for solids until they were able to sit in a high chair

OH. MY. LORD.

If a child can't sit in a highchair, THEY SHOULD NOT BE HAVING SOLIDS. That is the biggest sign they are not ready.

Mel, Brianna is a different case. You can not make assumptions for all children, everywhere, based on your experience with her. You should also not let it cloud your judgement on what is the best route to take with the new baby. I can only imagine how stressful it must have been for you dealing with a tube-fed baby. I am truly sorry you had to go through that. But you need to acknowledge that what happened with Brianna is extremely rare. The advice you received for her does not apply to most babies.

Penny - posted on 05/26/2011

My girls were piglets and both started eating 3 meals a day at around the 5 month age. My son on the otherhand is 19months old and is only just starting to be happy with eating solids everyday for breakfast lunch and dinner, even though I tried many times and failed since he was about 6months.(he might have eaten one full meal out of the 3.) I think kids are ready when they are ready.

Shannen - posted on 05/26/2011

I started my 1st on solids probably to early at 3 months. The other 2 i just waited for them to be either chasing me or the other kids around which happened to be around 5 months with both the boys. By chasing i mean crawling. I NEVER tried anything other then my home made baby food. The farex as far as i'm concerned is shit and useless.

Mel - posted on 05/25/2011

my kids had to use the councer or the swing for solids until they were able to sit in a high chair

Stifler's - posted on 05/25/2011

I started giving Logan Farex at about 5 months off a spoon. They say a Bumbo isn't a feeding chair but I totally used it as one until he was 8 months and too big for it so we invested in a high chair. He loved food, any food. Now he won't eat a damn thing.

Joanna - posted on 05/25/2011

My first I tried solids starting at 4 months, I tried once a week but her tongue thrust reflex wasn't gone until 5 1/2 months. She was sitting up unassisted at 5- 51/2 months too. And that's when we started the baby purees/cereal.

My youngest (she's 7 months now) I started trying baby food at 5 months, but she wasn't ready until 6 months. Her tongue thrust reflex was gone by the time we started trying, but she just wasn't interested... she'd get food in her mouth and give me this look like "what the hell is this, what do you want me to do with it?" and just sit there with it in her mouth. Finally at 6 months she started to eat it and enjoy it. She started sitting unassisted at 6-6 1/2 months.

But neither had the pincher grasp at that time. Once my oldest started that we did actual solid food, little chunks of avacado and banana, etc. But she never choked, she was really careful about chewing. My youngest I have a feeling will take a little longer for that though, but we aren't even close to trying the pieces of real food yet, as we're still just doing 2 small portions of baby purees a day, we haven't even worked up to adding breakfast.

Jaime - posted on 05/25/2011

I started Gray on solids way earlier than is suggested for babies. He was eating rice cereal at about 11 weeks. I spoke with his pediatrician about it first, because he had severe acid reflux and until he was 14 months old he spit up his milk with even the tiniest burp....fucking frustrating! I never forced him to eat solids and I took it slow with the feeding, but I have to agree that generally speaking it's BEST to follow readiness signs and the advice of professionals before deciding to introduce solids.

Joy - posted on 05/25/2011

I'm avoiding everything but the Laura's original question :P



I think the signs are a good guide to follow. How many things regarding our children are we told not to push? Solids, walking, potty training, the list goes on. One of the reasons we're told not to push these things or start them too early is because sometimes in doing so, it can cause more harm than good. My son was 6 months old the first time I tried giving him solids. It was peas, I think. He had the tongue thrust reflex going on and ended up wearing most of it so I waited about two more weeks. This time, he got more in, but still not much. Waited another week. Tried carrotts and he devoured them. Still made quite a mess but, most of it went IN, not ON his face. He was about 7 months before he really had the hang of eating the mushy stuff. I don't remember exactly, but I think for finger foods he was around 8 months before I felt comfortable giving him food he could actually pick up from his tray and eat himself. My memory is shit lately though, so I'll have to go check the baby book (a.k.a. my wall calendar from 2007 lol).



Edited to add: Although I don't remember his exact age when he started on finger foods (like diced carrotts, peas, small pieces of banana, etc), I do know that he had all the signs. He could sit up on his own for awhile, he could pick small things up and get them to his mouth, his tongue thrust was gone.

Mel - posted on 05/25/2011

yeah I get that with both kids I was told to use a pillow behind them in the high chair, because Paige does it too she slumps. But they are both getting physio now to move them along a bit