Starting Solids/Homemade Baby Food #5

[MantaRay]

It is easy to feel like a failure hun, but please try not to. You are doing a great job. And it does get easier.

You could try finger foods too. Check out this thread for information on starting with finger foods.

[mako]

Hi I was just wondering when to start giving DS weetbix for brekkie?
He is 8 moths old and has been gradually starting to eat solids for the past 2 months.He doesn't like rice cereal(who'd blame him) but he eats many different vegies and fruit.He's not to fussed on meat atm but I'm guessing that'll come with time.He also likes to taste food off our plates which I'm ok with.He eats 1 main solid meal a day(either veg or fruit) and he has a 1/4 piece of toast for brekkie(off my plate) and tries bits and pieces of our food at other times and he's bf.
Thanks

[sportychick]

mako, I would give weetbix now then! My DS was eating weetbix with a mashed up banana and some full cream cows milk at 6months - If your DS is BF I'd put cows milk on his cereal - you don't want to get formula just for the bit on the cereal. I have had plenty of advice that says cows milk is fine to put in food, but not for bottles at this stage. You could also try some raisins mixed in with the weetbix - and I heat up the milk and give it to him warm. Anothr handy thing to try is those ready made sachets of instant porridge.

[mako]

Thanks Sportychick for your reply.Is cows milk REALLY ok to give an 8 month old??? I thought 12 months was the time it was safe?

I'm being very cautious with what I introduce as he has very bad eczema and will more than likely end up with asthma(this is what happened to me) as my DR and Paed have told me.

[MantaRay]

Mako, some dairy is usually ok under 12 months, but not cows' milk as the main drink. However in your case I would avoid it as it could cause a reaction. You can use warm water with weet bix at that age (I know it sounds yuk but kids don't seem to mind - still tastes better than rice cereal LOL) or EBM would be fine too.

I think weet bix is usually recommended after 12 months too due to the wheat, but if you are already giving wheat with no problems than you should be ok. If you prefer, another thing you could give instead is oats. Oats might even be preferable due to the sugar and salt content of the weetbix - although the kids weetbix is lower in both and while I am pretty fussy with what I give my boys, they both have kids weetbix - Jack from about 12 months and Tom from earlier than that, probably 8 or 9 months. HTH.

[mako]

Thanks MR. I know I was on a dairy free diet when I was a kid. Back then it was tough though cause it was mostly soy milk etc that I had and it was awful.

I might try the oats 1st and see how that goes.

[sportychick]

Sorry, Mako, let me clarify - cows milk is NOT recommended as a main drink - ie in bottles, but it is ok in small amounts in food. The basic problem is cows milk is not necessarily going to damage your child, it just doesn't have the wider nutricional content of BM/formula, so if it's ALL they're getting it won't provide them with the nutrients they need. Having said that, if there is a history of dairy allergy, you should probably avoid it - you may end up with outbreaks of excema etc. I have been putting it on DS's ceral from 6 months and he is fine, but he was BF and then when I went back to work he got formula in his bottles. Most of my friends also put cows milk on cereal with no problems, but again - there were no allergies in their families. I usually mash a banana up and then mix the weetbix in and then add only enough milk to make it the right consistency - or you can express BM. In the end I think it comes down to individuals and their history etc - you have to listen to the advice given you and then make up your mind about what suits you - and don't do anything you don't feel comfortable with. If you have doubts - don't do it!!!

[Lewis's Mummy]

Hi guys... just jumping in here for the first time today So I take it from the cows milk discussion happening that I could give DS some of our mashed potatoe and sweet potatoe even though we add a bit of milk to make it smoother... I tried to give him some the other day but took it out before we added the milk and it was rather lumpy that way and he just spat it back at me.

I cut him up some sticks of cheese yesterday too to suck and mush on and they went down a treat. Is normal yogurt fine at this stage too or is the whole dairy thing something to watch? The only dairy allergy in the family is his uncle and that was when he was a kid, no problem now... how close does the relationship have to be before you need to really worry? DS seems fine so far...

[sportychick]

I would give him full fat greek style natural yoghurt. I was giving it to my DS by that stage with a bit of stewed apple stirred in and he loved it. My favourite baby book is one called Baby Love, by Robin Barker, a very expereinced Australian Midwife, and she reckons youghurt is fine, as is the milk on weetbix and all the rest I've said above. I know that there are people out there who wouldn't agree with me, and that's fine too - but i am a little bit relaxed about it all. Especilly by the time your kid is crawling, there is not much point treating them like a "bubble child" because they eat all sorts of things off the floor anyway (my DS ate cat hair he pulled off the cat for a while). I would go for the mash with dairy, and the yoghurt and even some cream cheese on bread

[MantaRay]

I agree with sporty chick that these foods are usually ok under 12 months. But having had a DS with a dairy allergy (which he has grown out of), and no family history, I would start cautiously. With a dairy allergy, the more highly processed the food, the less likely/severe the reaction. So start with cheese which is highly processed, then yoghurt, then small amounts of milk. Once you have done this with no sign of allergy you can be less cautious.

[sportychick]

good point, MantaRay, re the processing. My paed told me when my DD had bad excema that often kids who don't tolerate fresh milk tolerate yoghurt and cheese very well, but I neglected to mention it here!

[danniellabella]

I started solids for my DD last night - she's one week away from being 5 months. We've been giving her little tastes of things on our fingers since just before 4 months old and she's been enjoying tasting. Yesterday at first she was pushing the spoon away but then after a couple of times she decided she liked it and would open her mouth up, take the spoon, swallow the food and then open her mouth for more before I'd even gotten the next spoon full ready. I guess she was ready to start solids!

[Sequoia]

I've just discovered this thread!

Now, how do I cook meat? For puree'ing purposes.

Do I pan fry then put in the blender, or poach it?

Any comments welcome.

SG

[Leeal]

Hi,

DD started solids about 3 weeks ago - she has had rice cereal, banana, apple, pumpkin, sweet potato and today avocado.

I have started giving her rice cereal in the morning and a vegie or fruit in the evening. I understand that I should only introduce something new every 4 days.

My question is when can I give her two things in one meal, initially separately, later mixed together. Does it matter???

Thanks for your advise.

[Jennifer13]

So everyone who needs this thread knows it's here!

[hj1981]

Nobody chats in here?!?!

[Jennifer13]

It's kind of been a bit of a hidden thread - so let's hope everyone finds it soon, hj!

What has your experience been with starting solids?

[indie24]

I started DD on solids 2 weeks before she turned 6 months old. She did well for the first 2 weeks with first farex then, pureed apple. After 2 weeks she just stopped wanting to eat so I stopped her and started again about a week ago.

DD has a little more interest in it now and is increasing how much she eats. So far we haven't had any reactions to food. I haven't been pushing the food thing. Some days she wants to eat, others she doesn't.

I have noticed that she prefers food to be pureed more rather than mashed. I am interested to hear fromm others what foods they have found that their b abies have enjoyed early on. Do you have any tips on how you have been making your food?