weaning at 4 months to do or not to do???

[libbylou]

I personally chose to wait until 6 months and went with BLW.

I wouldn't wean earlier unless it was recommended by my doctor, there is just too much research to suggest early weaning can cause issues with digestive systems and allergies for me to look past.

Companies still advertise their products from 4 months because in most countries there is no legislation otherwise and they can sell more product that way. I believe in Canada these companies cannot actually market any baby food before 6months

 

[jensha]

6 months!
Too many people start at 4 months because their babies drink ''too much milk'', which in fact is just a normal growth spurt. If baby needs more milk, then just give him more milk.

 

[youngwife20]

I dint read all replys but the simple answer of " why say 4 months on jars" is THEY WANT TO MAKE MONEY. what do you think they are charity? like they care what you give to your baby. if you read some of the jars that say 4 months they contain gluten.. which babys arnt supposed to have till 6 months. New study is there for a reason, if you dont want to follow it thats upto the individual but do your research because if your just one of those people who say " well jar says this" instead of reading indepth about ingrediats then its best to wait till 6 months because the list of things they cant have at 4 months is alot longer.( Im not judging because i did give my daughter bannana at 5 months) but now i wonder what was the rush?

 

[youngwife20]

I was weaned at 4 months and im obese lol i could blame that ( we wont mention the choclate bar ive just polished.. but it could have been that lol)

 

[youngwife20]

I weaned al 4 months and would recommend it if baby is ready. My girl was definitely ready and seems much happier on solids. She enjoys her food so much I barely need to use a bib as it all goes straight in! I think it varies from baby to baby though. I dont like sticking rigidly to guidelines as they dont account for the fact that human beings differ! To me it would have been wrong to wait another 2 months, but for another baby, they may not show any signs of wanting solids til then.

Yes you are right. Human beings differ. but can you please tell me how you can tell if a babys digestive system differs from the next by noticing your baby doesnt need a bib while she eats solids?..

 

[tinytabby]

What is the rush to do it at 4 months? Giving babies milk is so easy, why would you want to make life more complicated before you have to?

 

[babybrums]

We tried at four months because LO was sitting but he didn't want anything to do with the rice cereal. We tried fruit purees a little after five weeks and he loved it. I haven't read all the research TBH but I did ask my doctor when to start. He said they recommend six months now instead of four because usually when you start them on solids they gain weight and babies were putting on too much too early. I hadn't heard that before but we decided to start in the middle.

 

[Michelle80]

Personally I wouldn't. We're waiting until 6 months and also doing baby led. I don't see why a baby would need anything other than milk at such a young age.

Because you do get the odd baby that is hungrier and milk alone is not longer sufficient from 17 weeks-These cases are small but exist

 

[Twister]

Yes but how many people wean at 17 weeks or earlier just because? I understand weaning for medical reasons on the advice of a medical professional but apart from that if the physical signs aren't being displayed then there's no real reason to wean imo. Just up the milk intake

 

[overcomer79]

my dd is falling off the charts but isn't interested in food I was instructed to try at four months b/c of her weight but I'm not shoving a spoon in her mouth. She is just starting to readily grab the spoon and eat it herself.

 

[Michelle80]

I was weaned at 4 months and im not ok, i suffer with IBS which is one of the side affects of weaning too early.

My husband has IBS (badly) and he was baby-led weaned. Could be a hundred reasons why you have IBS.

 

[CoffeePuffin]

I have to wean Millie at 4 months at the advise of her cleft team, because she has to be weaned before her operation on her cleft palate at 6 months. I think if she didn't have this problem though I would have waited until 6 months.

 

[torch2010]

My 9 year old was weaned before 4 months, she is a happy healthy girl. My 16 month old however was not weaned until 6 months but again she is happy and healthy. My parents weaned all of us at 4 months with no issues. I think it's down to the parent

 

[staralfur]

Unfortunately anecdotal evidence holds little weight where science is concerned.

I'd suggest looking at peer-reviewed articles about recommended weaning ages, effects of early weaning, etc. before making the decision to wean before 6 months.

IMO if there is no legitimate medical reason for weaning before 6 months I can't for the life of me figure out why anyone would want to. Even if were just speculation that it could cause issues later in life or their digestive systems aren't ready before 6 months, why would you want to chance it?

Weaning isn't as exciting as people seem to think it is. It's incredibly messy and can make your baby all bunged up and when they DO poop it's disgusting. Enjoy your simple milk-only baby as long as you can.

Edit: If you think your 4 month old baby is showing signs of readiness (the actual ones, not "they seem to want more milk") then I'd discuss with a doctor before going ahead. I don't imagine there are all that many 4 month olds who are truly ready to be weaned but I'd throw that under "legitimate medical reason" that I mentioned earlier.

 

[kissyfacelala]

we started at 4 months and 2 days...with oatmeal cereal and then slowly introduced pineapple, mango and cantaloupe...they love the cereal...2 tbsp once a day along with 2 tbsp of fruit either only pineapple or cantaloupe or sometimes mixed fruits...

thinking vegetables next but until next week or so...my twins will be 20 weeks tomorrow...

key is to go slowly and introduce one thing at a time so you can catch a reaction and know what babies are allergic to....my babies started sucking on big pieces of pineapple or cantaloupe and loved it so now I puree it and they love it!

I heard four months was ok to start but now it seems 6 months is stated more...but my babies love it! and its only once a day! formula accounts for most of their nutrition!

 

[youngwife20]

we started at 4 months and 2 days...with oatmeal cereal and then slowly introduced pineapple, mango and cantaloupe...they love the cereal...2 tbsp once a day along with 2 tbsp of fruit either only pineapple or cantaloupe or sometimes mixed fruits...

thinking vegetables next but until next week or so...my twins will be 20 weeks tomorrow...

key is to go slowly and introduce one thing at a time so you can catch a reaction and know what babies are allergic to....my babies started sucking on big pieces of pineapple or cantaloupe and loved it so now I puree it and they love it!

I heard four months was ok to start but now it seems 6 months is stated more...but my babies love it! and its only once a day! formula accounts for most of their nutrition!

Did you do research before you started weaning them? you said " i heard 4 months is okay" that doesnt sound like adiquate research was done to make your disician. have you told your doctor you started weaning them?unfortunatly people seem to think that " pedietriations sometimes reccomend babys to be weaned before 6 months so that means its okay" but that isnt the reality. babys who have been told to wean early are for reasons such as reflux etc and they are moniterd by there doctor during the weaning process. when a parent just wakes up and decides to wean early when noeone is monitering there babys and only have " there loving it" for proof that they think everything is okay when your really not seeing the effects on there digestive system and you wont till there maybe an adult. for people with medical reason to wean the result outways the risk, but what here outways the risk if your weaning for the sake of it?

 

[KozmikKitten]

kissyface your twins are adorable! Love them!

 

[Rickles]

It's a bit of a debate (quite one sided on here) and so I expect to be eaten alive (no pun intended ).

I spoke to a dietician (was referred due to Maddie being CMPI and having reflux problems) and also a paediatrician. They both agreed before 17 weeks was a total no-no. BUT they said there was no strong evidence to say the difference between 20 - 26 weeks was going to make a difference, every baby is different and for my baby it was the right thing to do.

They advised me that the key was to see everything between 4 and 6 months as playing with tastes and textures - not feeding baby actual meals. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence to suggest babies are more willing to try different foods/tastes a little earlier than 6 months. Also that purees are a gentler way to get their digestive systems ready for food than handing them any finger food at 6 months. Finally if you're happy to go slow to help you rule out allergies it might be better to start a little earlier, to give you time to work through more foods before baby genuinely NEEDS nutrition from the food.

Every mum should do what is right for their baby and their family, but please don't beat yourself up if you happen to think it's ok to offer baby a little taste of food before 6 months. Take it slow and see what happens.

 

[Dk1234]

Coen could sit at 4 months and weighed over 22 pounds and showed major interest. So I called my dr and they said to start him on food slowly. Us recommendations are 4-6 months. Do what you want to do. BNB is a horrible place to ask this because people make you feel like crap about it. I have done the research and actually found just as much research suggesting waiting longer to wean is bad.

 

[kissyfacelala]

kissyface your twins are adorable! Love them!

thank-you kitten...I love them too