What food I can give her?
You can give her cereal and baby food. Some babies at this age still have their tongue reflex, where they push food out of the mouth instead of to the back of the mouth. And some don't really care for it. My daughter didn't like food until she was about 7 mos. But if you haven't introduced cereal yet, start there. She isn't ready for regular table food yet.
I disagree with Jessica about cereal. It's a good first start to teach your daughter how to push food to the back of her mouth with her tongue. Start with about a table spoon mixed with either breast milk or formula and feed it to her by spoon. You can also start her on pureed fruits and veggies, but I would suggest start with the veggies. Once they get a taste of the sweet stuff it can be difficult to get them to like the veggies. Also, stick to one food for 3-4 days before introducing something else just in case she has an allergic reaction to some foods. It'll be easier to keep track of that way.
Check out http://wholesomebabyfood.com/solids.htm . This site was great help when I started feeding my son solids. They have easy recipes and a great age/food chart for all stages. Happy pureeing!
I agree with Gwen. I spoke to my Pediatrician about this several times as Formula and Breastmilk wasn't Satisfying him. I would try Rice or Oatmeal single grain cereal. Mix 1 tablespoon of Cereal with 3 tablespoons of Formula or Breastmilk. This makes it a bit watered down but good to start slow until she gets use to it. As she gets use to it, you can make it thicker by adding more cereal or less Formula/BM. I would try that for a couple of weeks... then move to Stage 1 pureed veggies. I tried the carrots and squash. My son loves those as they are a bit sweeter then other vegetables. Then I would move onto fruit. My Peditrician told me that it is best to start with Veggies first. If you introduce fruit 1st, she might not want to eat Vegetables because the fruit is much sweeter.
My peditrician gave me a baby food chart which tells me by age, what to feed him and how much. Perhaps your peditrician can you give you one of those as well.
She is old enough to have fruits, vegetables and cereal. Cereal doesn't have much in the way of vitamins etc, but will help to fill her up so she isn't hungry all the time. And it's easy on the tummy. Just be sure to mix it so it's not lumpy, make it runny. And you might want to mix a little fruit with it for flavor. She will spit most of it out at first. It's not that she doesn't like it so much as she doesn't know how to get it to the back of her mouth to swallow it. Give her time, she will learn. In the meantime, be prepared for messes! haha
Hi S.,
At six months, you should just be introducing baby's first foods (purees) and only introducing one new food every few days, to identify any food allergies. You can start with whole grain baby cereals (not that white rice cereal that used to be baby's first food), vegetables and fruits. Remember that baby's milk is still her primary nutrition, food doesn't give her much nutrition at this stage, so solids are not to replace milk feeds and should be given after a nursing or a bottle.
Good luck
Hi S.,
My son is 5 months next week. The doctor told me to start this week trying with cereal either rice or oat. It will take them sometime to get the feeling of actually eating swallowing the food from a spoon. 2-3 wks after the cereal is going well introduce fruit. Give the same fruit no other type for 3 days to make sure there is not an allergic reaction. After the fruit is going well for 2-3 wks add in veggies.
Hope that helps.
Hi, there -
Infants @ 6 months of age can start solid foods. Our ped recommends rice cereal first (for 3-5 days). Then, veggies, one at a time, each for 3-5 days. With our 2nd daughter, I did rice cereal for her @ 4 mos., then JUST started her on baby oatmeal 4 days ago. Tried peas for 4 days, did fine (also fine w/ oatmeal). Just this morning, I tried sweet potatoes. Do NOT give your baby juice or water. Infants under 12 mos are ONLY supposed to have breast milk or formula, because their bodies are NOT mature enough to break down juice in their little bodies yet. With my older daughter, I didn't give her any juice until about 13-14 mos., and when I did, I gave her 4 oz. max. That's all they really need.
Hope that helps, good luck!
Most pediatricians (mine included) recommend starting with cereals b/c they are bland and soft. You have to make it very watery and don't force it. She may not be ready. If she pushes the food out of her mouth, wait a week and try again. Remember that her primary source of nutrition should still be the formula/breast milk.
After she has been successful for at least two weeks with cereal, you can introduce some veggies. I'm pretty sure that mine recommended the "yellow and orange" first and then the green. He cautioned against doing fruits first b/c then the baby gets used to sweet things and may not eat the others.
Do not attempt anything with texture just yet or meats at this point. Remember to introduce foods very slowly and one at a time. Watch for reactions and always call your pediatrician with concerns, especially rashes and changes in bowel movements.
rice cereral stage 1 foods. When i asked my doctor about the order in which to introduce foods, he said that it was up to me. Just do it one food at a time for at least 3-5 days before introducting a new food to check for allergies and what not. Do not mix flavors until later, although you can mix fruit with the cereral.
I started with sweet fruits like mashed up bananas, apples, pears, peaches, apricots, and moved on to veggies and combos from there.
If you are interested in making your own baby food, there are several websites and books that are helpful in teaching you how (which is very easy) and ideas on what to introduce when. Hope that this is helpful.
You could try the following:
1. Gerber Rice Cereal
2. Gerber Oatmeal Cereal
3. Gerber Barley Cereal
4. Applesauce
5. Squash
6. Sweet potatoes
7. Green beans
Make sure that your daughter's first solid meal is rice cereal (easiest to digest) mixed with breast milk or formula. Thin consistency. Feed her with a soft rubber baby spoon so it's easy on the gums.
Keep your camera out. It'll make a great picture!
S., just a follow up suggestion to do your own research on rice cereal. While some peds recommend it it's really not necessary and contains lots of carbs which babies already get in your breastmilk. Check out the book "real food for mom and baby"...
Good luck!
