Introducing Solids - Miami Beach,FL

Either way, banana or rice, don't see that it makes a big difference. I started with banana and quickly mixed the two. Mine is going on 7 months and here is my advice for you: Happy Bellies Organic Cereal. You can buy it on-line. I way prefer it to anything I found in the grocery store.

Rice cereal was the first. I put it in her bottle to help with acid reflux and/or keep tummy fuller. I mixed it with formula in a bowl to feed her. Bananas are easy to smush and can add flavor. My girls loved real bananas by themselves. As my girls got older the cereals were preferred to be thickened up. I hated the smell of rice cereal so i used oatmeal. You have to experiment with thickness and applesauce is a good flavor adder.

Warning hold off a bit on oranges ,strawberries, and peanuts(after 2yrs) if there is allergies in the family

Also, the green veggies are STRONG in odor. I waited abit and just let baby get the greens as finger foods. SHe cant get enough of them. Finally dont buy the meat and gravy mix. It looks and smells AWFULL! Look for the meat and veggie or pasta mix. Kids love those.

Whatever way you introduce solids, this is one tip that is very important:

You are nursing. I did too.
Per our Pediatrician. ALWAYS breastfeed first, before solids. (like 1 hour before solids). Do not 'replace' nursing with solids or other liquids. If so, your milk output will decrease. And your baby may 'wean' from breast. Because a baby will get too full to nurse, if nursed after, solids.

For the 1st year of life: a baby's PRIMARY source of nutrition, is from breastmilk or Formula. NOT solids and NOT other liquids.

For the 1st year of life, "solids" is merely an 'introduction' to foods and eating. It is not their 'main course.'

A baby at this age, does NOT have to, eat solids 3 times a day, like adults. It is gradually worked up to. For now, just introducing solids, once a day.

Portion sizing, is per a baby's tummy. It is only in terms of teaspoons or tablespoons. Not in terms of "jars."

Nurse, on-demand. Still. Always. Even if your baby is on solids.
Otherwise, your milk supply output, will get affected. Lessening.

At 6 months old, (and every 3 months thereafter), it is a "Growth-Spurt" time in a baby. So, their intake increases and the frequency of their hunger. Nurse. Not replacing nursing with solids.

Babies also 'cluster feed' which means they feed even every single hour. And this is normal too.

I would not start solids with 'sweet' things first. Some babies will then not want to eat anything else and they get used to 'sweet' things only.

This is a good link for information on solids:
http://www.babycenter.com/0_age-by-age-guide-to-feeding-y...

Some babies, do not readily take to solids. If so, then wait. Try again later.
There is no need to rush.

all the best,
Susan

My wonderful pediatrician, when we were ready to introduce solids, recommended that we "open the cupboards and have fun." She said not to worry too much about what you decide to start with, you don't have to start with cereal, we did bananas, followed by sweet potatoes and avocados. For the record, I don't buy the argument that you have to start with veggies or they will only want to eat fruit. I think the point my doc was trying to make was that there isn't any need to stress about starting solids, keep breastfeeding and enjoy watching your little one experience the new tastes and textures.

I second Happy Bellies organic cereal. It's really much better tasting than any other brand out there and has DHA in it. You can find it at target. We were told by our pediatrician to try rice cereal first because it is known to cause the least allergies possible. I am not sure about bananas--I would check with your doctor. Either way you can eventually mix the two anyways!

Take pictures of that first bites of everything if you can-their faces are priceless!

This page has a lot of great info that isn't the usual cereal first line. Worth checking out.

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/first-foods.html

My mom bfed all four of us exclusively, then started with the bananas. We all eat veggies fine. Likewise both my kids. I just think rice cereal's pretty much empty calories. At six months, I did a new food every three days, but--as SH says below--it's mostly for practice at this point! I started with bananas, pears, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, acorn squash, etc. I made my own (they don't eat a whole jar and I like the taste of the homemade stuff better). I like this site: www.wholesomebabyfood.com

But do have fun with it!

Do cereal, then veggies, then fruits. The fruits are so sweet that sometimes after they take the fruits they do not want the veggies. I did this with both of mine and they both love a ton of veggies. We spanned out introduction of new items by 3 days for each new solid due to risk of allergic reaction (it is commonly recommended plus we do have food allergies in the family with DD). I pretty much spent the first month with just introducing cereal and getting the babies used to eating off a spoon and then started the jarred organic veggies in month 7 and fruits once the veggies were well established. Don't quit trying ones that your baby doesn't seem to like- it can take 10-15 times of trying a new food for your baby to develop the taste for it.... Spoon out just what you need for a feeding and put it in a dish and feed from that -- put the jars in the fridge (unless you are making your own, but same advice) then once open -- so you aren't double-dipping in the actual jars when they are tiny and introducing bacteria to make it spoil faster. Around 10 mos we started the transition to table foods (with baby foods still being incorporated). I nursed my little DS till 12 mos and pumped milk for bottles while at work. Enjoy the next stage!

I've also heard that it doesn't matter too much what you start with when you wait until 6 months. I don't buy the sweets first will ruin them for veggies theory either. You could start veggies first and STILL have them prefer fruits later on anyway. :)

I totally skipped rice cereal since I don't think it has any nutritional value at all and started with oatmeal instead. I think it's more important to give each food a few days to make sure there are no reactions and go slow since you may get some interesting diapers in the beginning. I'd also hold off on tomatoes and citrus stuff until closer to a year since those are acidic and can give sore bottoms.

My only other advice is to move on to table foods (once you know there are no allergies and you've hit lots of foods) and encourage them to self feed as much as possible. Baby food is such a pain and expensive. It's much easier on the cook when you're all eating the same thing. You don't need teeth to chew either. I figured if I could smash something between two fingers they could do it with their gums. You breastfeed so you know how strong those gums are!!! Also you're more likely to eat your own food somewhat warm if baby is busy attempting to feed themselves rather than you spooning peas into their mouth your whole meal. I got this bright idea by the time my second one came. As a result, my second mastered forks and spoons much faster than my first did.

Also, SH's info on nursing and solids was dead on.

Congrats on 6 months of exclusive nursing! WTG! Enjoy your next feeding stage! (It's a messy one.) =)

bananas.
and then look at WestonPrice.com, and perhaps Nourshing Traditions- a cookbook.
Amazing that they are still recommending cereal- with all the wheat allergies. Strange. If you do want a kind of grain make sure it is organic, and whole grain.
best, k

be prepared for some constipation after introducing solids, especially rice cereal. You can counteract it with fruit such as pears.

If you have time, you can make your own baby food and freeze it in ice cube trays. It makes it easy to combine different foods and you waste less. It can be cheaper than buying it pre-made in jars.

I thought about responding with information, but then I read AllisonF's post, and she said everything I was going to say. We are introducing solids to our second right now. My older daughter is not a picky eater at all, and we started cereal and veggies first. We'll see what happens with this one! =) Have fun, and buy lots of bibs, lol.

cereal i started both of my boys on it rice then oatmeal then rice with bananas once that is done bananas are safe. and go to rice or oatmeal with apples etc. then bananas and apples are safe and go from there

i'd start with avocado. it is packed with amazing nutrition! cereal has no nutrition whatsoever. it's more for getting them used to eating. so start with something that has awesome nutrition. smash some avocado and loosen it up with some breast milk. don't start with bananas. they tend to lead to constipation. which is no fun in a 6 month old. good luck!

I always started with basic rice cereal then after a few days I introducted applesauce-I have heard to introduce veggies before fruits but I think either is fine, but I would surely start with the rice cereal first. I also started baby at 4 months on solids-

Yes. What Allison said.

If you try cereal, start with oatmeal because rice binds them up. Bananas are binding as well so maybe do peaches, pears or apple. Back in the day we started meats first, then vegetables, then fruits last. This order insured protein, and they accepted the meats/vegs before the sweetness of the fruits!

FEED ORGANIC!!!!