Sharing tips on introducing solids to baby. Traditional weaning with purees versus baby led weaning, what foods to start with, and what you` need to get started.
When to start a baby on solids
Starting solids with a baby is a HUGE milestone! I was so excited to start solids with both of my kids. Seeing them try new foods, experience new flavors and develop a love for food is an amazing experience.
Pediatricians typically recommend starting solids between 4-6 months when you baby is showing signs of readiness. They’ll probably give you advice on when to start. Watch your baby and read their cues to decide the right time frame for you and your family! No one knows your baby better then YOU! You’ll know when you’re both ready.
Signs of readiness
- Can your baby sit up on their own?
- Does your baby have good head and neck control?
- Is your baby showing an interest in food – watching you eat, reaching for food, opening mouth for a spoon?
Traditional Weaning
Traditional weaning usually mean mom and dad spoon feed baby purees. You begin introducing small amounts of thin well blended single ingredient purees called stage one purees. Parents introduce a new food every few days watching for possible allergies then try another food. Over time your baby will increase the amount of food they eat, try thicker textured purees, and begin eating stage 2 combination purees.
Baby-Led Weaning
Baby-led weaning is super popular right now. BLW as opposed to traditional weaning refers to feeding your baby finger foods, usually similar to what the rest of the family is eating from the start of their solids journey. The idea is that babies has ownership of their meal, learning to self regulate and stop eating when they’re full. It also allows baby to explore a variety of flavors, be part of family meals, and work on fine motor skills.
Our Approach To Introducing Solids
We began solid foods with my daughter around 5 months. She was showing all the signs of readiness and our pediatrician recommended we start with baby oatmeal. We offered her baby oatmeal mixed with breast milk as her first food, then tried a variety of other homemade purees as well as finger foods, switching to a new food every few days. We ended up taking a combined approach between traditional and baby-led weaning. Many sources advise against this but it worked well for us.
We started with one meal a day and gradually build to 3 meals, while breastfeeding on demand. I don’t measure how much I give then and try to follow their lead watching for signs that they’re full or still hungry.
Our Experience With FPIES
When I had my second baby I was super excited about introducing solids. We began solids again around 5 months with the same approach and quickly discovered that we would need to take a different slower approach because my son had food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES) a rare food allergy that affects the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. FPIES is different then other food allergies and takes hours for symptoms to begin. Typical symptoms of FPIES include severe vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration two hours after eating.
Our first reaction was to banana. After his initial reaction we met with an allergist, determined a food trial plan with potential safe foods and slowly introduced more solids. The need for a lot of control over what/how much he was consuming in the beginning meant I needed to feed him all homemade purees. After a few months of building a list of safe foods we started offering those same foods as finger foods. The entire weaning process has been much slower.
The important thing to remember is not to stress about how much or the variety of food your baby is eating during this time. The important thing is to allow your baby to enjoy trying some new flavors, and try your best to give them a positive experience with food. Before one your babies primary source of nutrition will still be breast milk or formula.
Must Haves For Starting Solids With Babies
Homemade Baby Food or Store Bought
I’m not going to lie, store bought baby food is SUPER convenient. When I found out that baby food is meant to last years on a shelf I decided it was important to me to make my own to ensure I knew the freshness and quality of the food I was giving my baby. Most jars and pouches also include extra preservative ingredients we try to avoid (or in the case of my son with food allergies have to avoid.)
I make our using our Vitamix blender and freeze purees in ice cube trays for one ounce portions or in small glass jars for four ounce portions. The one once portions are great when your baby is eating smaller portions and they work well for creating combination purees. You can take one of eat and warm them together for a new flavor.
Adding Herb + Spices
While you should avoid adding salt or sugar to your babies food many other spices are fair game. Baby food doesn’t have to be bland and boring! Here are some of the herbs and spice combinations we’ve used:
- Cinnamon in apples, pears, sweet potatoes or oatmeal.
- Peas with mint.
- Pear and cloves.
- Avocado and cilantro.
- Green beans and Parsley.
- Pumpkin and thyme.
- Carrots, chicken and rosemary.
The book Little Foodie in an amazing resource for creative baby food recipes!
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