I Know its been done a million times before, but I honestly was shocked..

[AllTogetherInTheTeamBathsheba]

I have a 5 month old DD3 - there is a mummyin the school playground who has mentioned a few times "being on solids"...and no, she isn't yet - she isn;t ready and she isn;t looking for them. I frankly have enough problems getting milk down her some days never mind needing anything else.

My other 2 DDs were weaned at 6 months.

I am not in any way obsessed with weaning and the evils of early weaning, but she told me today that her Dd (who is 4) was on solids at 8 weeks and her DS, who is 5 and in DD1's class was on solids at 4 weeks - "Not that you'd know now as he is really skinny".

I can't even imagine HOW you would physically feed a 4 week old...

At theat point the bell rang and I didn;t get a chance to ask further what he had been fed at 4 weeks and why, but I have to say I was

You dont need a licence to be a parent...YANBU

some people are just compulsive liars though - hers were probably potty trained at 8 months too!

ignore her

Don't be shocked.

Remember that once people's children are all school age they forget the ages in months that they did things, the baby years all seem a blur, so take what she says with a pinch of salt. She probably means four months.

My gran always insisted my uncle started walking at 6 months

I was apparently weaned at 3 days - the answer is fortified formula/baby rice in milk, slush rather than solids per se.

Yes, Dilys...that's likely what she meant by 'solids'.

When DD was a baby, she suffered terribly with reflux. At 4 months old, the paediatrician told us that it was okay to start her on solids(because it could help her condition, and it did)...when I looked a bit [sceptical], she did say that the 6 month thing had more to do with wanting people to breastfeed longer...and not so much to do with the physical development of the baby.

When I was a baby in the 70's, feeding 'solids' at 8 weeks wasn't unusual.

Each to their own.

take it with a pinch of salt. I have a friend who insists her DD was sitting up unaided at 3 months and cruising at 5 months

4 months is an acceptable time for weaning. I know the WHO stipulates 6 months but other organisations such as the Paediatric Dietetic Association now advise 4 months.......other european countries such as france and germany follow a 4 months guideline too AFAIK. It's all about when you think your child is ready IMO.

Apparently I was on solids at 8 weeks (my parents kept a baby book). I asked my dad (he is GP) and he said thats what they recommended for hungry babies in those days.

yes, and some people mean a v diluted form of baby rice as 'solids'. when i was a baby, it was normal to give a little diluted baby rice in the last bottle of the day, from about 2 - 3 months, as it helped the baby sleep longer at night.

MIL is convinced that dh was on mushed up carrots at 10 weeks - but then, it was her mother who was raising him at that age, so i don't rely on her memory, which has a way of redefining history at the best of times.

I had baby rice in my milk bottle before I was 4 wks old. Proper 3 meals a day by the time I was 2 months, according to my baby book.

Same story for us with dd1 re reflux and weaning at 4 months as evewasframed.

my brother was weaned when he was a few weeks, but that meant baby rice or some such thing - apparently in an effort to get him to stop puking everywhere.

both my dd's were sitting unaided at 4 months, can't remember when they started cruising but possibly 6 months and certainly dd2 took her first step the day after she was 9 months so I guess your friend might not have been exaggerating too much, diamondsandtiaras!

DS had pureed fruit at 3 1/2 months as very hungrey baby stopped sleeping through etc. Didn't have proper 'solids' untill 11 months as had no teeth so would suck solid food but not consume them.

my cousin put baby rice in her dd's bottle the first night home from hospital. "it's great, they sleep for ages. you should try it." she said. i didn't.

most of my friends have weaned from 3months as they had 'hungry' babies. when i had ds [4] it was recommended by hvs 2 wean at 4months and now its 6months. ive just started ds [6months] and she is really enjoying it!

mumbar babies can consume solids without any teeth! my dd18 months has only 1 tooth but her gums are so hard she can bite chunks out of apples!! she also eats the same food as i do, with or without teeth!

My friend has started giving her 2mo baby porridge, she "gobbles" it down apparently!

overmydeadbody my sister actually did start walking at six months. We have her Christening pictures, running around like the baby in Ally McBeal!

My baby had a tongue tie and was losing weight so I was advised to wean at 9 weeks. Started with baby rice and swiftly moved onto carrot puree.

diamondsandtiaras - my DD was starting to cruise at 5 months, although not sitting at 3 monthd - she was 17weeks, so 4 months. Not all claims are a lie. We have the cruising (whilst holding onto an older child's hand) on video.

I still don't believe a 4 week was truely having solids - maybe rice in milk. Still not good.

My dh was weaned on eggs at 2 weeks of age.

His alimentary canal is utterly f*cked - e.g. can't digest anything vaguely wheat, can't drink coffee and juice in one sitting without bloating up like a hot air balloon for 24 hours and belching like a pig and lots of other stuff. He once ate a caper and his nose swelled up so fat and fast, it actually split the skin. Awful.

Of course, we can't prove it was being weaned so early.....

I thought there were operations for tongue tie? My ds was tongue tied and they're were going to snip it but he was feeding fine so they didn't bother.

I've never understood the rush to get babies onto solids. Weaning is a hassle. Isn't it much easier - and scientifically proven over and over - to be much safer to keep them on milk for at least 6 months?