Is starting early really that bad?

[Isadora]

DD is 4.5 months old and has been having solids morning and night, so twice a day. It is not replacing a milk feed. She loves her food. Is is really that bad to introduce solids earlier than 6 months?

[onthefly]

There are a number of things to consider. food does displace milk (even if she's having the same number of feeds, she is likely to be taking somewhat lessoverall). Then there's the question of gut rediness, etc.
Is it bad? Well, on average it might be, for one particular child, who knows? I suppose you and she are probably best able to tell that.

[Charlotte91]

Its really your decision. I dont think it would do any hard at all.

You have to go with your gut.

[Artechim]

'They' are now recommending that solids can be introduced from 4 months. If you and she are happy then go for it

[Isadora]

Thanks Ladies. Maybe I should limit to one solids intake a day, seeing as I often have supply issues. I might see how she goes without her morning brekky.

Arte - I heard the 4 month thing too.

[RainbowBrite]

Recommendations change all the time...they go back and forth so I think you should trust your instincts and your babies cues.
When I had my first 2 (and even to an extent my second two) the recommendation was 4 months and none of them have allergies or gut issues.

[Catastrophic]

Heaven hit the nail on the head... As long as "you make an informed decision" it will be the best one for your child.


Love MN ;-)

[CoNNiE_Melb]

I think it really depends on your child... my DS is a big boy, and at 4.5 months no amount of milk was satisfying him, so we started him on solids (his paed recommended this), we have never looked back. We've had no issues with allergies or illness at this point.

[Babyluv]

The WHO recommends 6 months & I saw on the morning show the other morning they they're reviewing this. Apparently babies that have started solids earlier are less likely to develop allergies. I think it's a personal choice. We started early because dd wasn't gaining enough weight and she has really taken off now. She is still only on one meal a day at dinner time but I'm thinking of introducing a breaky as well. She was well and truly ready, would try and take food off our plates was chewing on everything and now she gets really grumpy if she doesn't get dinner on time. Like with everything we get told so many contradicting things when it comes to our children. If you've made an educated choice that you think is right for your bub then that's great

[hj1981]

its like the breastfeeding vs formula thing!

You do what you think is best for your baby!

If you think your baby is ready and bub is handling it fine than go for it! at the end of the day you are the mum and mum's (and dad's) know what is best for their own bubba's!

(we started at 4.5mths)

[Jellyfish]

I guess the other side is, is it so bad to wait a bit longer? In regards to allergies I've also read a factor is whether the baby is still receiving breastmilk when introduced to potential allergenic foods so I felt comfortabe starting at 6 months knowing this would be the case and ensuring to expose her to them quite promptly when beginning. If I was starting early I would definitely at least be doing BLS so baby could have more control over what and how much they eat. You really just need to weigh up the pros and cons and decide what you are comfortable with.

[RhiChiChi]

You know your baby & what is right for them. Some of my friends started early b/c their child was interested and has had no reactions to any sorts of foods. I think it is a bit based on the child themselves - who knows why 6 months is the 'magic' age - I think it is a guide and sounds to me that your DD is coping fine

[onthefly]

I think Heaven's post gives a good rundown on the reasons 6 months is recommended. It's based on a lot of research. No doubt there are individual variations between children, but on average digestive systems will be mature enough by around 6 months. And we know breastmilk provides all babies need to this age so it's probably not unti around this age that they need other food.
I think we all agree that it's up to parents to decide, but it's always helpful to have information when making decisions. Jellyfish also asks a very good question - is there any harm in waiting? I like to let my kids decide when they're ready. I am particularly motivated by my desire to delay disgusting solids-poos for as long as possible

[Isadora]

Wow, thanks everyone, some great comments and advice there. I can see the pros and cons for both sides. But over all I agree, really it does come down to what you think is best for your child.

[ferrals5]

never hurt my boys they have no food intolerences or allergies no digestive problems or skin problems and they were all started at 3 months but that was 13-18 years ago.

[[M]umma[M]ia]

DD is 4.5 months old and has been having solids morning and night, so twice a day. It is not replacing a milk feed. She loves her food. Is is really that bad to introduce solids earlier than 6 months?

Ofcourse not. Your her mother and you know her better than anyone else. Great work xx