Introducing Solids to an Infant

Yesterday my grandma was telling me that she swears that my brother is picky because my mom wouldn't let my grandma feed him table foods early in life. She says that I am not picky because she snuck me food all of the time. This made me laugh but in all seriousness it brought up the subject of when I'll be introducing other foods or drinks to little Leighton. As a very veteran mom I have strong opinions on this topic. Between personal experience and years of research I will not for any reason be introducing anything new to the baby until she's 6 months old. Cereal in bottle is a choking hazard. I'm ashamed to say that we did this with one of our children. Our pediatrician at the time said that thickening her milk would help her to not vomit constantly. She said that thicker consistencies settle better and tend to not come back up. Now I know how dangerous that was of us to do. Don't make the same mistake that we did. 

Early introduction of solids have proven risks including the risk of sucking food into their airway because they aren't mature enough to know how to chew and swallow. The risk of a baby over eating therefore not getting enough calories and nutrients from breastmilk or formula. There's an increased risk of obesity as well as the risk of simply upsetting the baby's belly for no reason. Also keep in mind that waiting until 6 months of age before introducing solid foods to babies who are exclusively breastfed can help ensure that they get the full health benefits of breastfeeding. Solid foods have been proven to not help young babies sleep better by the way so do not use that as your reason for early introduction. Plus you getting more sleep is never worth risking your baby's health. Babies will show readiness when it's time to start considering food introduction but just because your infant watches you eat does not mean he is ready. Watch for other signs and take things slow. Do not rush it. Does your baby hold his head up steadily and completely controlled? Can he sit up well with a little support? Can he move things from a plate to his mouth? These are much better indicators that your baby might be ready for solids. We always started with bland solids. Rice or oatmeal cereal first then veggies. I did fruits last because I didn't want my kids to reject veggies and meats since they had gotten a taste of more sweet and sugary foods. I did it once a day for a month or so before I increased their solids intake. I also did the same solid for no less than one week to make sure that I caught what caused an allergy if there was one. Our oldest has a carrot allergy so I was thankful to of known right away what caused her allergic reaction.

I'm so not ready for Eilee to be on solids. It'll just be another mile stone that reminds me how much my baby has grown. My conversation yesterday did get me thinking about the future though. I am going to introduce a sippy/water around the same time that I introduce solids. I've decided that I will keep boobs strictly for milk. I will not be sippy serving milk. It will be for water and juice only. I don't want to risk confusing her as we plan to breastfeed for atleast a year. 

Please educate yourselves on the safe introduction of solids to your infant. Don't trust me or anyone else! Every mom out there has their own opinion on this topic but at the end of the day making your own properly educated choice is the best thing to do.