Seeking Suggestions on First Foods

I started my son on carrots, he ate one jar a day for the first week, if he tolerated it I would give him more at night time. I always tried out the veggies first for one week at a time. Then I intruduced the desserts. He loved them all. One thing you want too do is look for signs that he's full. My son would be real eager at the beginning of the feeding then he would start getting distracted or try playing with the food ( he was then). If he is spitting up within 5 min his stomach may not be ready yet for solid food. You could try mixing the baby food in with some cearal and see if that helps.

On the other I just joined a SAHM play group in Broken Arrow. You may try doing that. Good Luck

He could have acid reflux, which seems to be very popular with infants lately. I would try another food and see if he has the same problem.

I did cereal first then mixed in with a veggie or a fruit. It isn't as messing either. But make sure that you are feeding him one food at a time until you know how he handles it. That way you know exactly what he is unable to tolerate. Also, little funny story, when my oldest was an infant she loved sweet potatoes and squash. So, as very young mom I fed those to her all of the time because I knew she would eat them. And of course I hated peas so I wasn't about to give her those. Then one day my mother noticed that her skin seemed very yellow and that I should get her checked for jaundice. Turns out, that the yellow and orange veggies were turning her skin yellow.

The reason they say veggies first is because they aren't as sweet as fruit. I used to do whatever I was eating and just puree it for my kids. I had alot less trouble introducing solids that way. As for spitting up, if it's just on sweet potatoes quit them for a while and introduce them again later. Also, if you puree what you eat it's cheaper than buying all that baby food. Good Luck!

I was told by many doctors (I have few pediatricians in the family) that it really doesn't matter about the order. This is also according to the the American Academy of Pediatrics. The key is to start with a teaspoon sized portion and introduce foods gradually. Give it 3 days or so before introducing something new. This website was so wonderfully helpful to me and hopefully you will love it too: www.wholesomebabyfood.com

I've made my own babyfood/toddler food for my daughter, it's really healthy (and because she had food allergies that I wasn't aware of, it probably saved her life).

If you've been laying him down soon after eating, I'd try to keep him upright at least 20 minutes after eating. Maybe not totally upright, but in a bouncy seat or something. And as long as you're avoiding the top allergenic foods for the first year, don't worry about the order of foods, many doctors now think it's unimportant. As for the spitting up, if it's not projectile or copious amounts, it's probably normal and will probably lessen as he gets older and spends more time upright. Oh- and once you move on to stage 2s, I recommend cubes of silken tofu. My daughter has always loved it and it's so healthy (and doesn't stain!). Good luck and have fun!

Hi, I have a five month old and have had the same questions/problems. First, I find Zout stain remover to work the best. Secondly, I started Hanna with fruits first because I wanted her to start slow and have something that didn't irritate her system or cause her to dislike eating. She now eats some veggies with her fruit. The spitting up may be caused by swallowed air also...does it only occur with the sweet potatoes? My little girl sometimes spits up a little after she has eaten in excitment and swallowed air, but she also seemed to spit up more - say 1/2 hour after eating after eating butternut squash on more than one occasion so I have decided to hold back on that food and continue with others for now. I will retry it in several weeks. Anyways, best of luck to you.

-B.

He might be having a reaction to the sweet potatoes. You could stop them and try something else and see if he has the same reaction.

As far as what to give and when. I have heard so many different ways since starting my own Day Care. Pediatrician's views have changed so much from when when my twins were born 4 years ago. Their doctor at the time of starting new foods was to start with a couple of veggies (sweet pot and squash), then try a fruit then back to veggie, fruit and alternate like that every 3-4 days until we were through all of them leaving Prunes for the very last. Just don't give all of the orange foods (i think there are four) right in a row or your baby might have a slight orange tint to his skin for a short time.

Hope this helps.
J.

I agree with your pediatrician. Veggies then fruits. My son was kind of picky so I would do two spoons of veggies then one spoon of fruit. They like the fruits better. Always make sure they are getting the veggies and baby cereal. I gave cereal in the morning with fruit, veggies and fruit for lunch and ceral and fruit for dinner. You child should eat one full jar of each at one serving. Hope this helps!

Welcome to Kansas!
We started our son on bananas. It seems the easiest to digest... and have slowly introduced pears... recently sweet potato... oh and cereal too.
I would say that after he eats... maybe lay him down, where his stomach is being pushed up from the sitting up position... at least this is the case with our son.

Good Luck!

HI K., I am a "old-fashioned mom", so most drs. would not agree with me.I started all 3 of my kids on rice cereal @ the age of 3 months, then it went to fruit, then I introduced them to fruits & veggies slowly.What is your definition of spitting up? small amounts or large?I think the spitting up is a natural thing,if its small.It may be that he has too much on his tummy or it could mean that he ate too fast.Unfortunately, we did not get a manual when we had our kids. Its a lot of trial and error. I would start out with very small portions then slowly increase, as far as what to feed him, I would stick to the basics first, all 3 of mine liked variety. I would give a taste of veggies, then fruit, then fruit and veggies. You seem to be a good mom, just take your time and don't give up.

Hello K.,
I am a grandma of a beautiful 7 month little girl.

I would strongly suggest this web site:
De lmonte Quality

What�s the best way to introduce
solid foods to baby?
The easiest way to introduce baby to solid foods is to mix formula or breast milk with a small amount of single grain dry cereal (such as Rice or Oatmeal). Start out with a very watery consistency to ease baby�s transition to food from a spoon. You can gradually increase the thickness of the mixture over time as baby becomes more accustomed to eating. Once baby has begun to accept cereal well, you can move on to Step 1 vegetables, then onto Step 1 fruits. All of Del Monte� Nature�s GoodnessTM Step 1 products are single source products, which help baby become accustomed to new tastes while giving you the opportunity to test for food allergies (see tips below for more on food allergies).

How much should baby eat each day?
Obviously, babies have varying appetites and your baby is still nursing or getting frequent bottles. As a general rule, your baby should receive 4-8 ounces of breast milk or formula at each feeding. In addition, the morning feeding can include 1-3 tablespoons of fortified single-grain cereal, and afternoon and evening feedings could include 1-3 tablespoons of fortified single-grain cereal and an equal amount of vegetable or fruit.

Good Luck to you

When my daughter was starting on Stage 1 foods, her doctor recommended that we start on veggies first and try them for 4-7 days each before moving onto the next one. That was supposed to help us determine what, if any, she was allergic to. If she reacted in a negative way toward any of them, we would move on to the next veggie and not try again on that until much later. I don't know how much food you are feeding your son, but my doctor recommended 1 jar/day and I usually split the jar between lunch and supper. Also, I would sometimes add cereal to her meal if she didn't seem full from the veggies and milk. All babies are different and this may not be the solution for you, but it seemed to work great for my daughter. Good luck! :)

Congratulations on your baby! I am from New Mexico and recently moved to Illinois. My daughter is 2 and this is my advice about food. Every baby is different, and all babies take time to adjust to new foods. Remember they have only had formula or breast milk for quite some time! Food will be a foriegn object for a while! He may not even be ready for large amounts anyway or a schedule. If you are a stay at home you have the advantage and can really watch him and pay attention to likes and dislikes and what works etc. My daughter ate sweet potatoes 2wice and that was it. She would only eat food that was prepared by me, like peas, grapes, cheese, and especially pasta. But she was ready for it and fruits or veggies, does not matter, it's what your baby likes just so long as they are getting the proper balance. A good tip is that it takes at least 15 times to introduce a new food to a baby's diet before he will "accept" it. It is for the most part true. Also at his young age it would be best to introduce foods one at a time. Like say, sweet potatoes for a week, then peas the next, so you can determine if he has any allergies. As far as the spitting up goes that is normal and as he gets used to eating food he will do it less and less. There were many times I had my little girl in the high chair and going in for a spoonful of oatmeal and she would vomit like a firefighters hose across the kitchen! Look out! And good luck.

what we've done with our 2 boys:
Give a new veggie and have them on it for 3 days. If you notice a very red irritated bottom or diaper rash, they itch their eyes a lot when they eat it, or have little bumps around their mouth, they are allergic. Otherwise, they are just adjusting or overeating.
After that, add a new fruit for three days along with the veggie that they aren't allergic to. Watch for signs with that.
Then, a new veggie with the same fruit for 3 days. Then a new fruit with that veggie, etc. etc.
You get the point. This is reccomended from several pediatricians and the city's best allergic pediactric specialist!
Good luck!

I started my 8 month old daughter on rice cereal, which she loved. Per my pediatrician's advise I started with veggies first, yellow and orange ones, then green ones. We had half of a container at dinner to start with, staying with the same kind of veggie for 2-3 days to be sure she didn't get an upset stomach from it, then tried another one. Then on to fruits and now we are on stage two meats. It took some time for her to get used to new foods and sometimes she still spits up some of what she ate. Depending on how many times he has had sweet potatoes, I would try it at least 2-3 times. All my reading suggests, it takes up to 10 times for children to try and learn to like new foods. I sometimes will mix her foods with rice cereal and formula. I especially do this with carrots and green beans, which she doesn't like, you might try that also. Good luck to you in this new adventure!

Most moms and docs say:

Dilute rice cereal in formula or breastmilk first, then if the baby likes solids move on to mashed bananas, and progress by color of food groups, orange foods for a week, then green, so on. Most say wait for fruits because your child will like the sweetness and reuse other foods, (I haven't found this is too true).

The main reason docs and moms suggest one color food group at a time is to detect allergies. Everyone will tell you something different. Go with your gut. If you don't have food allergies in your family there probably isn't a huge threat of allergic reactions. Go with what your child will eat. Spitting up is normal, unless it is projectile vomiting then that's cause for concern.

The biggest issue is babies have to get used to the texture of these new foods so they often push it out of their mouth because it is a strange feeling or texture. Our son LOVED sweet potatoes, mango, papaya and such. He hated all the green foods. He's huge and healthy now, so don't worry too much.

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/solids.htm

www.babycenter.com/refcap/baby/babyfeeding/113.html

For starters, try one food for 4-7 days before moving on to another. Such as, squash for 4 days, then try something else. Also, if your baby doesn't like something the first time, keep giving it to them. This is all new to them, so they may not like it the first time around. With my daughter, my ped suggested starting with cereal, then moving on to yellow fruits and veggies, then the green. The green (peas, spinach, etc.) tend to cause more gas that younger digestive systems can't tolerate yet. I started both of my kids on squash, then bananas, then carrots, etc. I alternated fruits and veggies so that once they had a few of each, I could give a fruit in the morning and a veggie at dinner. Right now my son who is 5 1/2 mos is on prunes. So, we have prunes and cereal for breakfast, and a veggie that he's already had (like sweet potatoes) and cereal for dinner. My ped said to wait until at least 6 mos. before starting meats. With my daughter it became a balancing act with which fruit to give with which veggie. Some veggies like squash made her slightly constipated, so I'd pair that with pears to help loosen her stools. Also, she couldn't eat anything apple until after she was a year old because it gave her horrible gas pains. She also spit up, but it wasn't very much and it was basically with all foods so I just continued with everything. You'll get a lot of advice, so just pick the one that sounds like what you're comfortable with and go with it. Good luck!