When are you planning to introduce solids?

[avabear73]

Finlay is nearly 22 weeks and still exclusively BF. I'm going to have to introduce some solids soon, and just wondered when the rest of you did or plan to?

 

[avabear73]

*bump* anyone?

 

[polaris]

I'm hoping to exclusively b/f until 6 months but EVERYONE is telling me that I am mad and that boys are very hungry and that I should give him solids as early as possible. Or that everyone thinks they will wait till 6 months but that the reality will be very different. So I will wait and see, but hopefully not until 6 months.

 

[grumpymoo]

I am waiting until 6 months actual age. Rose is exclusively bf, loves it, we both do (so lucky!) and is showing no interest in food yet. She feeds loads though, always has done but i dont mind. She usually wakes up once in the night.

I figure she will only be 4 and half months corrected when shes 6 months (you know what i mean ) so its a good time to start.

 

[grumpymoo]

Gosh Finlay, over 14lb now! Fab

 

[Kitten]

I'm waiting until he's 6months which is 26+2. He's 23 +3 so only a few weeks now. He's tried to take stuff though, hehe.

 

[tillymum]

My HV said they recommend starting anytime from 17wks as they find 6 months can be too long to wait for some babies. So long as gluten free foods are used up to 6 months and only introduce pureed vegs & fruits to start. I was going to wait until Chloe was at least 5 months but she has been so hungry over the last few days I'm thinking of maybe starting her soon - (she is 17wks now).

 

[becstar]

We're starting in a week or so, which is earlier than 6 months, obviously, but for various reasons (which I won't go into on here as I don't want to get into a debate about it) my GP, HV and even the hospital's bf experts have recommended we start early. We will only be on rice, porridge and fruits and veg until she's 6 months, at least. I am actually quite excited about it now. Ilana was 16 days late so she'd effectively be over 5 months by then.

 

[Kiddo]

I'm planning to wait till Harvey is 6 months but if he shows signs of needing solids earlier then we'll start soner.

 

[wishingonastar]

although they recommend waiting til 6 months, some babies show signs of needing to be given more than milk earlier. if you introduce solids before six months you must avoid gluten and certain other things to reduce risk of allergies and so on

also, i notice your LO was a preemie...the reason they say to start at 6 months is because thats when the iron levels that you passed over in pregnancy start to disappear so baby needs to take in its own iron to replenish its stocks, but with a preemie it wasn't in you as long as nature intended so its iron levels are likely to deplenish before six months so they are usually recommended to be weaned earlier than a full term baby (my friends preemie was 7 weeks early and she was advised to wean at 4.5/5 months for the above reason)

 

[Sherileigh]

I'll be starting next week...on boxing day! Luka will be 6 months then!

 

[grumpymoo]

although they recommend waiting til 6 months, some babies show signs of needing to be given more than milk earlier. if you introduce solids before six months you must avoid gluten and certain other things to reduce risk of allergies and so on

also, i notice your LO was a preemie...the reason they say to start at 6 months is because thats when the iron levels that you passed over in pregnancy start to disappear so baby needs to take in its own iron to replenish its stocks, but with a preemie it wasn't in you as long as nature intended so its iron levels are likely to deplenish before six months so they are usually recommended to be weaned earlier than a full term baby (my friends preemie was 7 weeks early and she was advised to wean at 4.5/5 months for the above reason)

A lot of premies are sent home with iron supplements etc, Rose has been having them. We have not been advised to wean early (or late ). x

 

[anothersquish]

At least 6 months. My son had a few bits around 5 months but I didnt agree with spooning him food (before I heard about official BLW) so I waited til he could learn to feed himself. He started around 6/6.5 months and built up over the next four months. I intend to do the same with this one and will NOT be using purees, porridges etc at all and I wont be introducing anything solid before 6 months, potentially longer.

 

[misswren]

I'm going to use a combination of being guided by my baba and advised by HV. When I had my older 2 the guideline was 4 months (approx 16 weeks) but my HV said I could start the basic stuff (baby rice etc) shortly after her 12 week check (which turned out to be about 14 weeks, plus she was 2 weeks overdue and so it pretty much fell in with guidelines.....)

Paloma is a very hungry baby so if I get the ok I may well give spoons of baby rice and mashed veg round 4 months BUT this is based on her being a good sized and overdue baby so she coulda been born a full month earlier and still not considered premature.

 

[ellismum]

My HV said they recommend starting anytime from 17wks as they find 6 months can be too long to wait for some babies. So long as gluten free foods are used up to 6 months and only introduce pureed vegs & fruits to start. I was going to wait until Chloe was at least 5 months but she has been so hungry over the last few days I'm thinking of maybe starting her soon - (she is 17wks now).

They go through a huge growth spurt at this age which is often mistaken for a need for food. Ellis was constantly feeding but it soon settled down.

 

[florabean1981]

i'm planning to introduce baby rice at 5 mths & homemade mashed veges at 6mths. at 4 mths, he'll be co,bination fed of breast milk & formula due to working shifts & having to be on-call & stuff... grrrr. (kinda hoping we can afford for me not to have to go back to work so i can bf for longer tho!)