Showing interest at 5 months...

**Charlyfrog** · November 7th, 2007, 05:24 PM

Just wondering......

I know its recommended to start babies on solids at 6 months (earlier if advised of course) and DD is a chunky munchkin and exclusively BF atm. My question is that she is showing extreme interest if anyone is eating or drinking near by. She will watch like a hawk the food, cutlery and you eating........it is really only 5 weeks approx til she offically hits 6 months and she is currently 7.6kg & 64cm long so not wasting away.

Do you think she's ready anyways or seeing as she is so chubbily happy

I should still hold of as long as she's bf fine.....?

Ta! xx

**Ca Plane Pour Moi** · November 7th, 2007, 05:31 PM

I'd hold off as long as possible.

What does she do when you're holding her and you are eating? Does she try to grab the food? Maybe try her with a cooked carrot stick or a chunk of apple - if she eats it then she's ready, a baby not ready for solids will put it in the mouth but spit it out again.

**Pretty Butterfly** · November 7th, 2007, 05:34 PM

I have bf all my babies past 12 months, but they so far have all started solids just before 6 months!! Start with just a couple little teaspoons of rice cereal and see what she thinks. You can mix it with your bm so she has nothing else foreign. Barb would prob have some good advice for you, this is just my opinion!!!

**Emma1979** · November 7th, 2007, 06:11 PM

if it were me (and it was) i would be offering her little tastes of fruits and basic foods from a spoon just to give her a taste and gauge her reaction, then build from there.... i think its ridiculous that 6 months is pushed as the magical golden age that is correct for ALL babies to start eating, they develop at different rates and you should go by your babies cues, not a hard and fast golden rule that is applied to all, no matter what the circumstances.... just like some will be ready earlier, some will not be ready at 6 months, it doesn't make sense and its not logical to have someone else stipulate what your baby is ready for. just my opinion.

**Barb Glare** · November 7th, 2007, 06:51 PM

Hi,
She is watching and learning - up to exactly the right stage for her age. But she doesn't want or need solids! You have identified that she is happy, chubby and healthy. You will spend enough hours of your life spooning food into children - get a book, kick bak on the couch and enjoy breastfeeding her while you still can. Emma, I tend to agree with you, but I believe that, in the long run evidence will demonstrate that breastfed babies do not need to take solids until later in the first year. When formula fed babies need solids is another story altogether, and it may well be advisable to start them on solids earlier to help overcome the inadequacies of formula.
Barb

**RhiChiChi** · November 7th, 2007, 06:58 PM

Hi Charlyfrog,

One of my gf exclusively bf's her ds, but he showed more than just an interest in food. She put a spoon to his mouth and he knew exactly what to do and he was approx 5 mths old. I tried the same with my DD but she has no idea, just looks at the spoon and if you try to push it in a bit she pushes it out with her tounge - no idea! Mind you she watches us likes hawks if we eat or drink something and tries to swipe at my DH beer bottle - cheeky monkey.
Whilst it is recommended that you don't introduce solids until 6 months, I would speak to your MCHN about it and see what they recommend and tell them what she is doing is you offer her a spoon and/or food.

**BellyBelly** · November 7th, 2007, 07:10 PM

Totally agree Barb, great advice.

**Olive** · November 7th, 2007, 07:13 PM

yep agree again with barb!!!

sophie wasnt really interested until aroung 7.5 months in solids and i miss those days of just whipping put the boob!!

**Lucy** · November 7th, 2007, 07:34 PM

You will spend enough hours of your life spooning food into children

Oh Barb..........so true!

With Olivia I was as keen as mustard and started her on her "6 month" birthday to the dot.

With Charlie I had recent enough memories of the mess, so held off till he was 6.5 months.......

With Lexie I just kept wishing she would stay about 4 months forever.....her 6 month birthday loomed with dread in relation to mush!

That said, all of them appear to be thriving and despite holding off as long as I could with Lexie (7 months) she cheerfully chomps on a chop at 13 months..........

Charlyfrog, in answer to your question, honestly, science aside, I would hold off as long as you can............

**Ca Plane Pour Moi** · November 7th, 2007, 09:10 PM

Not if you do baby-led weaning - I only spoon-feed DS his breakfast and his pudding at dinner, he self-feeds the rest of the time.

I did want to hold off with DS until he was 7 months or more, but he didn't. He screamed when I ate and he wasn't eating. He grabbed my food and ate it - yes, ate it, not put it in his mouth and spat it out. He ate it and came back for more. Which is why I suggest not spoon-feeding but self-feeding to see if baby is ready. When I did a spoon he grabbed it and licked it clean the first time I introduced it.

Some babies are ready for solids earlier and tbh a blanket 6 months is more harmful than not. I agonised for ages and starved DS because he was only 5m old. That said, ith the next I'll be holding off for as longas possible too.

**Barb Glare** · November 8th, 2007, 04:15 AM

Good point Caryn! I had my first 14 years ago where we were instructed to feed at 4 mnths. Interestingly, even then ABA and the World health Org said 6mnths. So it was spoon feeding. My 3rd daughter didn't start solids for somewhere beyond 7mnths, and always fed herself. The great thing is after 6mnths you don't have to do all that mushing and squashing. They can eat "proper" food
Barb

**krisp** · November 8th, 2007, 05:54 AM

Honestly, I don't really understand the "magic" 6 month mark either Emma.

If you think your bub is ready try her on a bit of rice cereal or something, if she gobbles it up then she's ready, if she doesn't get it then leave it for another week or so.

Our DS seemed very keen to get started with food, grabbing at spoons etc when he was 5 months but he didn't seem to know what to do with the food and he just pushed it out of his little mouth, so we waited a week and tried again, and he's not looked back.

We decided to take our cues from our bub not what the "right" age is meant to be.

**Trillian** · November 8th, 2007, 07:22 AM

Everyone is going to have differing opinions about when is the best time to move baby onto solid foods, but even having done it before with three babies, this time I am going to do it differently. Why? Because the most important thing to me now in regards to introducing solids is if I start my child too early I could be putting my child at risk of a life threatening allergy - it is just not worth rushing them if I have to spend the rest of their childhood, possibly even their life getting them to avoid certain foods.

Serious food allergies/intollerances is on the rise and no one knows exactly why that it. So I want to hold off for as long as I can to be sure that I have given him the best chance of avoiding an allergy - he already looks like he has excema and there are strong links between allergies and excema already. If he does develop an allergy, then I will know that it's not because I gave him solids before his gut was ready to handle them.

At the end of the day though, you will do with your child what you think is best. Good luck.

**Charlyfrog** · November 8th, 2007, 05:51 PM

DD has eczema - her older sister had it as a baby and seems to have grown out of it however has now developed an allergy - to what we have no idea, she has simply broken out in a red welt like rash twice, we've treated it, racked our brains over what she has consumed and been exposed to and have not discovered the source. With an anti hystimene (sp?) the rash goes within the day. So if I can somehow avoid this with DD#2 that would be the best.

Its so great reading everyone's thoughts on this - never thought deeper than "6 months = solids" with DD#1 as I never had more info, but am feeling great that I have so much more to think about meaning I feel like I am making a far better and informed decision with DD's well being really being considered. (and in turn not feeling like a neglectful bad mummy as have now learnt that starting solids at the 6 month mark is no longer gospel)

Imo, after reading all your suggestions/thoughts/advice/guidance DD#2 isn't really ready apart from looking on in interest. So am going to sit back now and relax with that book Barb (lol! - will probably be a children's one though as I still have an almost 3yr old to entertain.....haha!)

I am so glad I have BB to mull over things with! xx Thanks so much!!

Mwa!!

**Barb Glare** · November 9th, 2007, 04:24 AM

Hi,
Caro, I don't think that is actually factually correct. Less than 10% of Australian babies now make it to 6mnths without solids or artificial milks. This is probably as high a rate of "other" feeding ast here has ever been. And it has only been in the last couple of years that Australian Health authorities have recommended solids begin at 6mnths. Even the last big study (that's on the belly belly pages - prob under news and current affairs) demonstrated that exclusive breastfeeding for 6 mnths reduced the rate of eczema. The hypthesis that breastfeeding reduces asthma came in for mixed results - showing that children who were exclusively breastfed for 6mnths or more (and in their study "esclusive" didn't actually mean "exclusive") had a lower incidence of asthma up until the age of 7, but between the ages of 7 and the early forties there was no difference, or maybe slightly higher correlation between breastfeeding and asthma. But it's not at all clear....
Regards
Barb

**katie82** · November 9th, 2007, 05:08 AM

I was just reading all your comments and i have choosen to not to open my mouth as my baby hasz been eating for quiet some time now and he is just over 5 months! ok he is bottle feed so may be different but i say just go with the flow do what you think is right within certain limits of course! if you want to try a little just give it ago! Only your baby knows what it wants!

**Trillian** · November 9th, 2007, 06:27 AM

Katie, my children were fully FF by 4mths and with my first baby the thinking at the time was that solids were started at 4mths, which I dutifully did. My girls were started a fair bit later (5mths and nearly 7mths), but they never had eczema either. Maybe I have just been lucky that my older children haven't had allergies or intolerances, but if I knew then what I know now I would have held off for longer the first time around.

I still think that even FF babies don't need to be started on solids any earlier than their BF counterparts.

**christy** · November 9th, 2007, 06:54 AM

My baby has intolerance & food allergies and I can say that had I introduced solids earlier we would have been in serious strife. Her system wouldn't have been able to cope with it. Not just the digestive tract problems associated with early introduction of solids, but the types of solids that we can introduce which are high in salicylates can exacerbate intolerances & allergies. Avocado & banana are often first foods but they are both super high in salicylates. So introducing them early to babies with intolerances CAN and WILL make it worse. This isn't an opinion either, this is factual. All you need to do is read books like Friendly Food from the Royal Alfred Hospital Allergy Unit & you can see how this can happen with babies.