Starting solids early?

Marcellus thats what I was thinking of doing ;)
Jen DS1 didnt like to be spoon fed either...but do you think that this has attributed to him not wanting to eat much? I look at other kids who were spoon fed and they eat heaps? Or is that cause they were force fed iykwim?

Hi,

Popping in very late (have been away for a couple of weeks - just reading/responding sporadically)
The Australian guidelines as articulated by the National Health and Medical Research council have not changed. It is recommended babies start solids at 6mnth. Nor have I heard that this is seriously being reviewed either Federally or by any states. This recommendation is in line with the World Health Organisation.
The Allergists Association is fairly much out on a limb in pushing "solids at 4 mnths" Unfortunately they seem to have gained some traction. Their hypothesis is that, in the time that we have been introducing solids at 6mnths allergy rates have soared. There are a couple of problems with this. There has been a very poor uptake of the 6mnths recommendation (many experts believe it takes a good 5 years after new guidelines are introduced for any sort of acceptance in the community) and it overlooks the fact that virtually every Australian child is exposed to foods other than breastmilk by 6mnths. While the statistics are hard to work out, it seem as though possibly as few as 1% of Australian children are exclusively breastfed to 6mnths. Almost every Australian child has formula before the age of 6mnths.
However, even the Allergists Association reinforces (in bold on their website) that solids should not be introduced before 4 mnths, and that food should definately be introduced while the baby is still breastfed.
WHO research shows that when babies are introduced to solid foods before 6 mnths this tends to displace breastmilk in the child's diet. Breastmilk is all babies need for the first 6mnths of life, and is their major food in the second 6mnths of their life. Babies who are introduced to solid food early tend to be weaned at an earlier age.
Apart from this, many of the enzymes needed to digest food do not develop until around 6mnths. Babies cannot adequately digest solid foods when their system is so immature.
Boomba, it sounds like you are doing a great job of sifting through this information, and have a thoughtful approach to apparenting, working with the guidelines and watching your child's cues. You'll surely do the right thing by your little one.

Boomba, are you still an ABA member? If you have a look in the January 2010 edition of Essence there is a fantastic article by Gill Rapley (who came up with the term Baby Led Weaning and is considered the expert on it). It talks about why BLS does and doesn't work with a baby under 6 months. It works because the baby will only actually eat the food when he is ready to do so. However, when BLS is started early, there is a big risk that an adult will put food in the baby's mouth at some stage (either a parent or a well meaning other family member or friend), and so there is a high risk of food actually being consumed before the baby is ready. For this reason Gill recommends not starting BLS until 6 months.

Boomba, I think you have fantastic instincts and I am sure you will use them wisely. If you suspect that DS is ready now, perhaps you could try putting some finger food in front of him and see what he does. This would be a better option than feeding him on a spoon, as this way he will get the food whether he actually wants/needs it or not. Otherwise, waiting another couple of weeks won't hurt.

And I do want to reiterate for everyone that the guidelines are still for solids to be started at 6 months. The guidelines have NOT changed.