Everyone is telling me to start weaning my 3 1/2 month old...should I?

[Cherrybaby]

My husband and I had a row last night over whether when to wean our baby girl. His family are all very keen on starting weaning early - his sister has a baby roughly around the same age, and started weaning him at 3 months. I know they keep pestering him about it when Im not there.

Also, he says that he has mothers meetings() with the women at work when they all talk babies, and they all started weaning their babies at 3 months or around then, and nothing "happened" to them.

When did you all start weaning your babies, and is the six month mark too late?

All comments welcome!

So Rsmum, what's the harm in waiting exactly?

No no no. dont unless your baby is giving you sings that they want to, which yours is not.

".....part of the reason for 6mth guideline is from the WHO due to lack of clean facilities for food preparation in developing countries."

This could be part of the reason. If it is part of the reason, that's because babies' guts are so immature and cannot handle anything other than milk.

I've never ever understood the rush to wean.

There is no harm in waiting apart from the fact that if your baby is ready they will be constantly hungry and miserable. How would you like to be constantly hungry and only be given tiny little bits of food to eat every couple of hours without ever really getting enough?

It is all about weighing up risks and benefits to both you and the child as is every decision you make in every aspect of life. I'm sure anyone who has weaned early has done so with the best interests of their child at heart and who is anyone else to criticise that?

Think what you want I really couldnt give a

I havent recommended anything to anyone on here......as like the majority of people who post I'm not qualified to do so. Parents instinct is just something you either have or dont have thats the only way I can say it, I personally believed i did what was right for my children and a few years down the line....no health problems and no mental trauma from being weaned early I was proved right.....in my case!

I'm not qualified, but the WHO is and so quoting their guidance is probably fairly safe!
How does parental instinct help you see if their gut's ready? I believe you have it or you don't but I still don't understand that bit.

I would like to add that no one should wean their baby before they believe their baby is ready, so don't listen to people who are trying to hurry you along.
However if you think your baby is ready before 6 months get some advice and delay for a while to make sure that the signs you think are showing readiness to wean are not something else. 6 months is still the best time to wean if you can wait that long, I couldn't.

Have you honestly got nothing better to worry about than someone who believes something different to you? Knowing your baby and just knowing that they may be ready to start weaning is part of that parents instinct....end of! I dont need a piece of medical equipment or xray eyes to tell me when to do something I think is right for MY child, I can think for myself thanks!

and Rsmum I couldnt have put it better myself, this site is just full of judgemental know it alls who live in a black and white ideal world where everything is either one way or the other and nothing in between is acceptable!

Nothing right at the moment no, apart from a mucky house which I am avoiding

I thought as much.....it stands out a mile from your posts

Just as lifes too short for cleaning (behind an immaculate house lies an extremely boring woman), lifes also too short to worry about how other people choose to bring up their children!

I'm with you stealthpolarbear on the mucky house front. I must go now and do something about it!

Rsmum - sorry but your claim to be a health professional doesnt fill me with confidence. I am yet to meet one who knows very much about weaning or brestfeeding

Cherrybaby, poor thing, I know how you feel. As another poster has suggested, just lie to your in-laws. We have had similar rows with MiL over baby milk - she thinks DS should have cows milk from 6 months They think they know it all because they lived through a few wars .

I was weaned early and from birth, my mum also used to give my brothers and I water with sugar in it . I had asthma as a toddler upto my teens, I still have hayfever, and we all have a sweet tooth. Many babies are ready a bit before 6 months, but 3 months is way too early and I have been as pissed off as you are trying to explain these things to relatives. Besides, food is fun till 1. A couple of spoons of baby rice won't add much nutritionally anyway.

Coincidentally, I started weaning DS today - he is 25 weeks (I think he is ready). Gave him some pureed carrot and he promptly took the spoon from me and stuck it in his mouth. Hmmm, perhaps baby led weaning beckons.

My DH was weaned at two weeks and he's now totally intolerant to wheat, can't handle most carbs actually and dairy.

I'd always err on the side of caution when it comes to weaning. Breastmilk in particular is full of great fats so the baby won't go hungry.

Ds was 5 1/2 months, he didn't take to it till 6 1/2 months properly though, he was on 11oz hungry baby formula before weaning.

Dd was 6 months, just because she seemed content on milk till then.

3 mths is ludicrous! Do what you feel best, don't do things because someone else said so, Mothers' instinct is best.

Kazzi I'm just curious as to why you're answering in such a defensive and aggressive way when you're so confident in your opinion?

I don't feel as though my posts are agressive, on the contrary I feel as though the aggression is aimed at me constantly asking questions that I've already answered, I've not once demanded an explanation from anyone yet people have demanded I explained myself.
People just don't seem to accept that something that is no longer the WHO advice worked perfectly fine and they keep telling me I'm wrong and can't say my children are fine. Certainly no aggression from my part but I have every right to tell people to mind their own business if they're making a judgement on my family that they've never met.
Again I've not made any aggressive posts all I've done is highlight that people should seek help from a health professional if unsure and that people shouldnt be so quick to judge others.
I know I did what was right for MY family so cant understand why people on here have such a problem with that, after all I'm not questionning the choice of others, theres a difference between aggression and assertiveness and my posts have certainly been the latter but deffo not aggressive unlike posts directed at me.......

Ok.

Can you point to the aggression that was directed towards you please so I can make up my own mind

Kazzi - you have stated on several occasions that early weaning has not harmed your children. People have pointed out that actually you cant know this for sure as damage in some cases (unlikely, yes, but possible) often doesnt show until adulthood.

read back through the posts and you'll quite clearly see

Just to clarify,

"this site is just full of judgemental know it alls who live in a black and white ideal world where everything is either one way or the other and nothing in between is acceptable!"

You're saying that here you were being assertive, and not aggressive. Because I'm sorry but you do sound rather offensive to me.

hercules....your point being?

"People on this site are pathetic the majority have a chip on their shoulder"

Yes, not aggressive at all.

thats how people come across on here, theyre the aggressive ones not willing to accept different views, I'm not gonna lie down and take crap off people who think they know it all about everything, and yes that IS assertive and not aggressive