Can you wean before 6 months????

[goddess25]

All my books tell me that I should only BF till 6 months then start weaning, and my midwife told me the same. I get the feeling my LO will be ready before this. Why is this rule 6 months, can you start before this? It wont cause any problems will it? What should i start with? I know its a bit soon as he is only 10 weeks old but would like to know.

 

[moomin_troll]

i started to wean zane at 4 months! u will notice alot of jars and powdered rice ect will say from 4 months

 

[freckleonear]

The reason they give to wait as close to 6 months as possible is to minimise the risks of allergies, obesity and digestive disorders. However, all babies are different and some babies may need to start solids at 4 months. Go with your instincts as a mother, you know your baby best.

Some signs of being ready to wean are:

• loss of the tongue thrust reflex

• good head control

• able to sit unsupported

• able to put food in their own mouth

• able to use a pincer grip (hold objects between thumb and first finger)

Waking more often for milk (which often happens at the 4 month growth spurt) and being interested in your food (they are interested in most things!) are not necessarily signs of being ready for weaning.

Baby rice is a good first food, as are fruit and vegetable purees. Some people prefer to introduce vegetables before fruit so they don't develop a sweet tooth. Another option is baby led weaning which involves feeding finger foods instead of purees.

I notice you said "All my books tell me that I should only BF till 6 months". Don't feel that you have to stop then if you don't want to! Breastfeeding continues to be beneficial for you both well past 6 months, so carry on for as long as you like.

 

[mylittlebubs]

i started at 5 months with mainly vegetables and fruits puree,just a few teaspoon each day
and rice biscuit for a snack
the doctor said he was ready at 4 months but i waited another month longer,not sure why,lol

 

[mommyof3co]

They do change the recommendations alot but I personally think it's best to wait as long as possible, there are reasons for the 6mo recommendation. Here is a great article that explains why to wait.

https://askdrsears.com/html/3/T032000.asp

 

[leedsforever]

courtney was 4 and half months with baby rice...we quickly went on to pureed carrots and stuff

and then it wasnt long after she was having proper dinners

 

[Freya]

Eeek, my LO is 5 months old and shows very few signs of weaning. I'm starting to think she wont even be ready at 6 months!!! Interesting to read that 6 months is a good time to wait for developmental and allergy reasons, it seems we'll fit into that category by fluke.

A good few of the other mum's in my antenatal class have had to wean early at 4 months plus and I expected to do the same..... all bubs are different I guess.

xxx

 

[Flergle]

All my books tell me that I should only BF till 6 months then start weaning, and my midwife told me the same. I get the feeling my LO will be ready before this. Why is this rule 6 months, can you start before this? It wont cause any problems will it? What should i start with? I know its a bit soon as he is only 10 weeks old but would like to know.

As long as you DON'T wean them before 17 weeks old, I think it's a good idea to take the lead from your LO. I kept my eyes and ears open from 4 months onwards, but only really started weaning at about 5 months. I took it really slow and gave baby rice with breast milk intially. We did that for ages without introducing fruit and veg. Then we just kinda went for it!

You can harm your baby's growing digestive tract before 17 weeks as they do not produce the enzymes that break down food stuffs other than milk.

Hope this helps?

 

[icculcaz]

babies in my family seem to get done after 6 weeks... and thats on advice from HV. no real reason.... bar they not contented after getting fed every 1.5 - 2 hours. :s

 

[missjacey44]

I started at 4 and a half months because i felt he was ready, showing all the signs. Not every baby can wait untill 6months.

 

[polo_princess]

If theyre ready before 6 months then go for it!!

We started on baby rice at 3 1/2 months to help Brookes reflux

 

[AC81]

I started at 4 months with a bit of baby rice. Then I moved slowly to single vegetable purees.

 

[CamoQueen]

We started at 5 months (so about a week and a half ago). We tried it at 4 months due to our pediatrician's recommendation, but it was obvious that he wasn't ready. But when we tried it again this month, he was like a different baby -- eagerly opening his mouth for food and grabbing for the spoon, swallowing all the food like a champ, etc. But a few weeks earlier it would just be pushed out of his mouth, but now he loves it. I think that when you try it too early for your baby, they'll let you know by rejecting it. If you feel like he needs it at 4 months, go for it!

 

[XKatX]

There is absolutely no need to stop breastfeeding at 6 months. They still get nutrition from your milk - they just reduce the feeds to meet their needs. If you wanted to start weaning early, you could always try baby led weaning. This means that baby doesn't actually swallow any food until their body is physically ready and they adjust their milk feeds accordingly.

 

[malpal]

We had to start weaning at 3 and a half months. Lexie went from sleeping through the night to waking every 3 hours. I went with it for a week or so just in case it was a growth spurt but in the end i had to start.
She is now on 2 solid feeds a day and is doing really well. It was definately the best decision for us.
Not every baby is the same so son't be guided on someone else's timings, you will know when your LO is ready.
xx

 

[ryder]

I weaned with baby rice at 3 months. She is doing great and has prety much every fruit and veggie now. I also give the odd finger food. Here it is not recommended to do BLW or lots of finger foods until later (8months) because they dont have the fine motor skills to eat properly. At 6 months babies need an increased amount of iron to help with development, which is why baby rice and other iron fortiified cereals are an excellent start.

 

[claire1978]

With my first he was about 10 weeks old, I started it slowly with just a few spoons of baby rice, then moved onto veg, he was already on hungrier baby milk and waking every 2 hours and not settled in the day, as soon as I started weaning he started sleeping longer and was more content

I think my second was about 11/12 weeks, I dont think Jayden will be as early as he isnt on hungrier baby milk for all his bottles and currently is only having 6 ozs so has room to increase first

I think u will know when it is the right time

 

[Always&4ever]

I started at 6 months

 

[Dragonfly]

very useful thread. My other halfs mum was saying to start hi from 3 months and I didnt think it was right jut yet. I want to wait till 6 if thats possible as he cant even sit up yet and is just about holding the head up.