Quick guide to weaning baby onto solids
There are a number of signs that your baby will give you when they are ready to be weaned and start eating solids - such as showing an interest in food, chewing when you eat in front of them and the disappearance of the 'extrusion reflex'. This reflex causes babies to put their tongue forward and upwards when feeding, as if sucking, and prevents baby from taking food from a spoon. Current research indicates that, ideally, babies should be breastfed exclusively for the first six months before introducing solids. There have also been indications that starting babies on solids at too young an age can lead to food intolerances - usually caused because the baby's gut is not mature enough to digest certain foods.
Weaning tips
- start with rice cereal, mixed as directed on the packet. Once your baby has been eating this satisfactorily for a couple of weeks, you can start to introduce other foods
- introduce foods one at a time wait a couple of days before introducing another one so that you can isolate any adverse reactions
- start with vegetables, sweeter tasting fruits tend to be favoured over vegetables if fruits are introduced first
- never leave your baby alone with food - babies can choke on food and drink
- don't add extra salt or sugar - a baby's taste is more sensitive than an adult's and salt and sugar are not required. Salt in excess can be harmful.
- don't offer fried foods
Foods to avoid
The following foods are best avoided until your child is older - some because they are physically difficult for a baby to eat and could cause a choking hazard and others because early exposure has been found to potentially cause allergies and intolerances:
- small hard foods which could pose a choking hazard - nuts, uncooked hard vegetables & fruits (eg, carrots, apples)
- cows milk as the main milk drink until 1 year old - cow's milk does not have the right balance of nutrients for children under 1 year. Once introduced, use full cream milk, not skim milk)
- soy milk as the main milk drink
- honey until 1 year old
- egg white until 1 year old
- nuts, or even crunchy peanut butter, until 5 years old
- popcorn & corn chips - choking hazard
- sausages with skins on - choking hazard
Food allergies & intolerances
For more information on what causes, how to avoid and the signs of food allergies & intolerances, see the online guides below:
- Allergen Information Cards from Food Standards Australia
- Fed Up With Food Additives
- Recipes from Allergy Block
- Food Allergy Info from keepkidshealthy.com (US site)
Soy & infants
If you would like to read more about soy in infant diets, see these two websites for a range of viewpoints:
More information
Starting solids Parenting & Child Health section of the Child & Youth Health website, CYH, South Australia
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