is four months too young?

I was just wondering if it was okay, or advisable, to start solids at 4 months old? My daughter is a big girl, born over 9lb and 55cm, and last time she was weighed and measured, she was in the highest percentile for weight and height in her age range. Lately, she seems to be losing weight. She's still very chubby and all but her tummy is less pudgy. Also, whenever I bathe her or have a shower with her, she tries to drink the water. She should be getting plenty of breast milk as I offer her the breast frequently and she seems contented after a feed, and when she refuses the breast (which we've had problems with lately) I give her expressed milk, so I was thinking it might be time to give her a taste of real food? I keep hearing conflicting opinions about this . . .

They say ideally 6 months but I think anywhere from 4 months is fine. It's up to you and when you feel your bub is ready. Even though I kept offering solids, my 2nd bub would only have the boob until she was 8 months old!! Wouldn't even drink milk from a bottle.

Hi, Baby Socks,

You've had a tough time of it lately with your little one's breast refusal, and it sounds like you are really concerned about your baby.
Can you tell me, has she actually lost weight? Or does she look slimmer? Or is it that she is moving to a lower centile?
Babies grow very rapidly in the fist 3 months, but this rapid growth is not meant to be sustained - they reach a plateau around 3-4 months where their weight gains are much lower (say, around 100g per week) Tell me, what sort of build are you and her dad? At some point, genetics play a part. A baby's size at birth will often reflect how effective your placenta was. You sure grow a nice baby! But if, genetically, your baby was not meant to be one of the tallest in the population she will have to slow her growth to meet her genetic potential.
When they have a period of breast refusal, it might be normal that they don't grow quickly. Breast refusal is always temporary and transient at 4 mnths - she is meant to breastfeed. Usually they stay well hydrated - and they are fine.
If your baby really is losing weight then it's more breastmilk she needs, not food. Think about the first foods we introduce - things like rice cereal or pear - not exactly high cal. They may fill her up, but won't help her to gain weight.
Drinking the water in the shower is more in the nature of play.
Get back to me about the weight. You have done a great job coping with the breast refusal - it's stressful. You'll work this out too.
Barb

I dont know how true this is but, i was watching this show & it said that babies that are fed solids before 6 months are more likely to develop food allergies??
I started giving Mya small amounts of solids from 4 months, she is fine. She just "seemed" ready.
Bodhi on the other hand,wouldnt have a barr of any solids till he was about 6-7 months. Like your baby he was also quite large.....9.5lb.
If you feel your baby is ready, maybe just give her a little try. She will soon let you know if she is ready.
Like barb said tho.........."Think about the first foods we introduce - things like rice cereal or pear - not exactly high cal. They may fill her up, but won't help her to gain weight."

Good luck with it all:)

My daughter has heinz pumpkin and sweetcorn 4-6mths every 2nd day and she also has the puree fruit. I also fed my boys early too and they are fine.

You really shouldn't feed bubs solids earlier than six months b/c they can develop food allergies later in life and also their tiny tummies aren't ready to cope with food. There is a valve in the stomach that remains open until 6 mths, which aids digestion of BM/AF. You will know if your little one is ready for food, they show a real interest in what you are eating, open their mouths wide and don't have the tongue thrusting reflex - where they push out food with their tongues. My DD is nearly 7 mths old, ff and even though we have introduced solids, she isn't really interested, a few mouthhfuls and that is it. Remember that milk is the main source of food for babies up until 12 mths. I'd get back to Barb with the info she has asked you and persevere with the BF. Even though your DD was born large, your body should make enough bm to satisfy her, good luck sounds like you've had a couple of rough patches.

Firstly, Barb's advice is very good. I would like to just add a couple of things.

Firstly, food labelling is misleading. The Australian recommendations are for no solids before 6 months. Any food which is labelled as 3months+ or 4months+ is NO DIFFERENT to the food labelled for 6 months+. It is labelled contrary to the Australian standards due to a loop hole in the law for overseas companies. This does not mean that those foods are any better for young bubs than the others.

Secondly, WRT to food allergies, there is a lot of evidence to show that food allergies are more likely if solids are introduced before 6 months (there was a thread a while ago with some great links). These allergies do not necessarily show up straight away, they can take months or even years to appear. So when people say that they introduced solids early and there was no allergy, the truth is that they don't know yet.

Having said all that, there are some babies who are ready for solids earlier than others. There are signs to look for such as losing the tongue-thrust reflex, getting teeth and showing an interest in food (but JUST showing an interest in food is not a sign on it's own as they will all do this before they are ready). I personally wouldn't introduce solids before 6 months, but I respect that others do. If you do wish to I recommend making sure they really are ready by looking for the signs. At around 4 - 5 months they often go through a fussy period and seem to be extra hungry. This is not a sign they need solids.

Great post Mantaray....agree totally with your comments.
I would be heading off to baby clinic to get your baby weighed....and monitor it over 7 -14 days.
I personally think 4 months is way too young, but each to their own.
Can she support her own head?? Ithought it was a no-no to give baby solids when their head control is still developing ??
Good luck in your decision....

Baby Socks

I listened to lots of conflicting advice about breastfeeding that totally stuffed me up - so when it came to solids I decided to go with my gut instinct, rightly or wrongly.

So I started my daughter at 4 and a half months because she was REALLY interested in food and was copying our chewing action when we ate. She has taken to it like a duck to water. We don't have a history of allergies - I'm sure I would be more reticent if we did. Plus, she started to seem extremely bored with having a bottle. She is still absolutely fascinated with eating and I have just eaten my lunch in front of her and she went from being a little whingy to smiling and laughing at me eating my food! And that's without me even giving her any obviously.

BUT I wouldn't use the potential weight slowing down as a reason to start. I'd look at all the other signs that can show she's developmentally ready as the others have listed above.

It just depends on your bub, like manta ray says.
My mum started me on solids at 3 months!! just custards and so forth, the only allergies i have are to msg and preservatives.
I started my dd at 4 months - on my mummy's advice!

Thanks for all the replies.

Barb - i love you, you're so helpful! TY for the nice words :D . I was looking at photos of her when she was about 2 months old and she's definately not as fat as she was, though she's still got lovely big rolls on her arms and legs! The main thing I noticed was that when she's lying down and doesn't have a full tummy, I can see a little bit of her rib cage protruding when she breathes. Is that normal? I haven't been *too* concerned seeing as how she seems perfectly healthy in every other way. Perhaps her colic contributed to her weight loss? Me and my partner both have big builds naturally.

mbear - She's been able to support her head for quite a while now, at least a month. Though I don't know if that means she's physically ready for solids or not.

I'm going to make an appointment with the child health nurse, I tried to before I just never get in in time. Hopefully she'll come to my house because I have no transport right now. I took Aurelia to a GP a few days ago because of her colic (which has finally gone away - YAY!) and he said she healthy (though he didn't weigh her).

HI,

Good thinking- going to the child health nurse. I think you will be surprised to see how much weight she has put on. Try not to worry about it. She will get what she needs

Barb

baby socks - Asha is on solids she was just really ready iykwim? she has about two tablespoons of food each day (though this was built up really slowly) and she loves it and is doing really well with it..
good idea about seeing your community health nurse hope they can give you some good advice, i think it really depends on the bub some bubs arent ready some are :) best of luck with the health nurse if you dnt have any luck there ask your gp maybe..

Baby Socks, what is she doing developmentally? Is she rolling heaps, kicking her legs about a lot and just active in general? The more active they get, the more calories they are going to burn regardless of how much they eat. Another reason could be that she has grown longer too, and spreading her weight out over her length. If she is happy, sleeps well (by well I mean a good deep sleep) and has plenty of wet and pooey nappies, then she shouldn't need anything else.

When ds was 4 months old his paed recommended putting him on a small amount of farex after each feed as he said that even though he was only 4 months old he was the size of an average 6 month old. now his main reason for starting him on solids was that ds was a vomiter and was losing weight, and the hope was that the solids would settle his tummy. Ds took to his food like anything - loved it and started gaining weight again. He is now over 2 and has no food allergies or intolerances.

I am giving Madeleine some APPLE CEREAL by Nutricia twice a day, only a tablespoon or two. She is taking to it really well and really loves it. I know there are conflicting stories but she really enjoys it and her two bottom teeth are now visible.

Because I hear so many conflicting stories, I feel a bit strange giving them to her but it is working well so I hope I'm not doing the wrong thing!

I don't mean to be alarmist but you often won't know if your baby has allergies until much later in life. I started Charlie on solids at 5.5 months and in hindsight, I mistook his natural curiosity for being ready for solids, because it wasn't until he was close to 7 months that he really enjoyed the extra food. Anyone who has seen a 7 month old eat compared to a 4 month old will know what I mean. At 7/8 months (or older for some kids), they're eating not for the novelty value, but the desire to actually eat.

It also wasn't until he was 8 months old though that he presented with asthma (heriditary from both sides of the family). He is prone to allergies, luckily no food ones yet, but had I known, I would have held off on solids for a few more months, just to be absolutely safe. He really wouldn't have missed it at all.

I too fed my 2 older kids solids at 4 months (as was the way 18 years ago) and they turned out fine. But you don't know just how fine they will turn out until later, so knowing what I know now, it hardly seems worth the risk when we're only talking about a teeniest difference of 8 weeks between 4 months and 6 months in nutritional terms, but potentially a vast difference in terms of allergies or their health.

I can't imagine how I'd feel had I started Charlie on solids at 3/4 months only to find out later he's asthmatic and prone to allergies.

I second Sushee's post. Allergies don't necessarily occur at the first exposure, often you need to reach a certain level of exposure before they appear. We found this with DS's allergy - we didn't immediately know, it took a few weeks of the offending food for it to show. Sometimes it can even take years.

The decision to start solids earlier than the recommendation of 6 months is an individual one, and every situation is different. But if you decide it is right for you I would be wary of recommending it to others, as it might cause a problem for someone else's child.

Thanks for that advice, I might stop then. She's only had the solids for the last couple of days, would that have caused any harm do you think?

Hey there, interesting discussion, as I'm in the middle of deciding what to do for my 4.5 month daughter who's just started waking at night again.
I've decided to experiment with her daytime routine (which seems to be helping with night time sleep - thank you baby whisperer!), rather than start her on solids yet, BUT! my MCHN this week suggested it might be worth trying, and I thought it might be worth throwing her comments into the mix, for everyone to consider...
She's been keeping up with the research in Australia, and said that the 6 month mark doesn't have to be that precise, it's just 'around 6 months', and definitely not before 17 weeks. It all depends on the individual baby and their needs
I also have read that it's good not to hold off later than 6 months because that in turn can also contribute to the development of allergies.
I'm waiting til around 5.5 months before I get DD started, but thought people might like this info for food (he he) for thought!

Jus, really? You've heard that they can get allergies after? There are so many conflicting stories and I am really confused as to what to do. If it's not BPA causing cancer in baby bottles, it's considered giving solids at 4 months as not advisable!!! Arghhh, I'm about to rip my hair out as our Mums gave us solids when we were so young and we didn't get any allergies! What to do...hmmmm :wall:

This is what I have found:

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has found that feeding your infant solids before they are six months of age increases the chances of your child developing food allergies. Breast milk and/or formula provides them everything they will need until they are six months old. They also say that water, juice and other foods are unnecessary before six months.

You should always start your infant on a cereal first before fruits and vegetables. Do Not add cereal to your infant's bottle unless a pediatrician has instructed you to do so - it can make your child overweight.

Lastly, do not give your baby regular milk before they are a year old, because they may have a milk allergy. Make sure after they are a year old that you give them whole milk and not 2% or skim. The infant needs the fat in the whole milk for natural growth and development of the brain.

As always, make sure you talk to your pediatrician first before you make any decisions. They will steer you in the right direction.

We see our padiatrician on Tuesday for her 4 month check up, I'm going to ask him there....

Bindy hun, whether you stop or not is up to you. Sushee and I were just pointing out that you don't always know of a problem straight away. I think there are cases where babies are ready before 6 months and these children will display the signs of losing the tongue-thrust reflex, will have teeth and also be showing a real interest in food (which is very hard to tell as they put everything in their mouths). However I personally think, and this is JMO, that before 4 months is always too early.

If you are not sure that you are doing the right thing, I would err on the side of caution and stop. There is no harm done by starting later. If your DD is not ready for solids yet, stopping now will definitely minimise the impact from the solids she has already had. But this has to be your decision. Only you know what is best for your lo.

Jus, you are correct that there is conflicting info about starting solids and allergies. I know many MCHNs advocate starting solids early, mostly because many of them were trained when the recommendation was to start at 3 or 4 months. I think it is important to bear in mind that many people who start solids early to try and improve sleeping, find that it either doesn't work or makes matters worse. IMO that isn't the right reason to start solids early.

Also, I know that a recent study did show that for babies with a family history of coeliac disease, starting wheat/gluten before 7 months seemed to reduce the incidence of coeliac disease. However, this was only when there is a family history. For other babies there was no negative impact to delaying wheat/gluten eating. I know Ambah posted some links to great articles on this a while back, I will see if I can find them.

As with any aspect of parenting, each individual needs to do their own research and make their own decision. What one person does might not be right for another.

Thanks Manta, I might just hold off for now. I have a gut feeling to just wait a bit longer, thanks so much girls for your input. I really appreciate it!

I always say go with your gut Bindy! I think we often under-rate a mother's instinct!!

true, thanks for that! you've been a big help xx