Starting Solid Foods

Starting solid foods

The best time to start your baby on solid foods depends on both age and development.

Developmental milestones necessary to start solids

  • At 4-6 months a child should have these skills:
    Sit with support
    Good head and neck control
    Able to push up while lying face down
    Placing hands or toys in mouth
    Leans forward and opens mouth when interested in food; leans back and turns away when uninterested in foods or not hungry
  • At 8-10 months a child should have skills necessary to eat finger foods
    Sit independently, grasp and release food, chew food (even without teeth), and swallow
  • By 12 months
    Fine motor skills improve allowing children to grasp pieces of food between two fingers

Important to Know

  • Starting before 4-6 months may interfere with child’s ability to take in adequate number of calories or nutrients
  • Younger infants do not have the coordination to safely swallow solid foods, which could lead to choking and/or aspiration
  • Withholding solid foods after your infant is 6 months old, may lead to decreased growth because child may not consume enough calories from breastmilk or formula alone. Delaying solid foods can also lead to resistance.
  • No one food is recommended as first food. Single-ingredient foods should be first, one at a time. Can introduce a new food every 2-3 days.
  • As solid foods are introduced, formula intake should decrease, and breastfeeding will continue on demand.
  • Signs/symptoms of food allergies: hives or skin rash, facial swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, wheezing, respiratory difficulties

Precautions

  • Foods to avoid
    Cow’s milk (hard to digest and insufficient iron)
    Hard, round foods (nuts, grapes, hot dogs, raw carrots, candy, chips, popcorn, etc.)
    Honey (due to potential risk of harmful bacteria toxin poisoning)
  • Food allergies
    It is now suggested to introduce highly allergenic foods at 4-6 months to decrease risk of food allergies (talk with provider on proper introduction of these foods)
  • High risk for food allergies
    Child with parent or sibling who has allergy, asthma or eczema, or child having eczema
  • Highly allergenic foods
    Eggs, peanuts, soy, fish, cow’s milk

Cereal (1)

  • Single-grain infant cereal is a good first solid food as it provides calories and additional iron—rice or oat cereal
  • Prepared by adding breastmilk or infant formula—initially the consistency should be thin, can thicken over time
  • Spoon feed only, do NOT put cereal in bottle (unless recommended by provider) -Spoon feeding helps to develop infant’s ability to coordinate mouth and swallowing movements as well as enhance future speech development
  • Start with 1 tablespoon can increase to 4 tablespoons twice a day

Pureed Foods (2)

  • Start with single-ingredient pureed fruits and veggies—if no evidence of allergic reaction, can give multiple foods at once
  • The goal is to expose your infant to new flavors and textures of foods
  • By 8 months of age, baby should be eating ½ cup of vegetables and ½ cup of fruits daily

Finger Foods(3)

  • As a child gains the ability to feed himself/herself, a greater variety of “adult” foods can be offered including finely chopped, soft foods
  • Foods that you can smash between fingers (steamed veggies, soft fruits)
  • Finely ground meats and fish
  • Soft bread, noodles, rice, cheese
  • Cheerios, graham crackers
  • Babies do NOT need teeth for finger foods, can “gum” these foods

Do's And Don'ts

  • Do allow your child to feed himself/herself when able
  • Do allow your child to make a mess with food
  • Do introduce a variety of foods (textures and tastes)
  • Do encourage a regular eating routine with the child sitting in an appropriate seat at the table with family
  • Do NOT give cow’s milk, but DO give yogurt and cheese
  • Do NOT give juice
  • Do NOT give foods that are choking hazards
  • Do NOT put food in bottle

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