OK ... so did you REALLY get to 6 months without solids??

[Ghosty]

Just a little survey really ...
DD is coming up to 4 months old now and I would be very rich if I had a $ for every person who has said to me in the last week, "You'll be thinking about solids soon then?"
I have not spoken to one person in real life who has made it to 6 months of exclusive milk (breast or bottle) ... In fact most people I know started solids between 3 and 4 months (me included with DS 4 years ago) ...
I am not in any rush to wean DD yet but I wanted to know ...
When did Mumsnetters introduce solids to their babies?

I'll start -
DS ... 13.5 weeks (shock, horror, gasp!!)
DD ... nothing yet ... she will be 16 weeks on Tuesday ...

DS1 was weaned at about 4 months, on advice from HV etc. Was planning to do roughly the same for DS2, but he had other ideas and did not want to touch any solids at all. He kept this up until he was 7.5 months, despite all my best efforts. Anyway, he then went right onto finger food and lumpy food and hasn't really had any problems since (touch wood). It was a bit worrying for me though.

Ds (now 3.9) was weaned at 4 months and one week, on my first day back at work by the childminder. It's not as bad as it sounds, as I'd said to her I was planning on starting that week.

I was following the advice I was given at the time - if I were to have one now, I would try to get to 6 months. That would be made easier by the extended maternity leave.

I used to have to express for Britain, as ds would drink so much during the day! He was taking over 12 fl.oz. EBM during the day (plus a BIG booby feed first thing, plus 2+ booby feeds in the evening) that by 6 months I was watering down some of his milk - I knew he was getting enough! Goes to show that by then I was totally relaxed about whatever weight he was! (having been a baby that slipped from 91st to underneath, but then moved back up to follow just under the 25th)

He liked his food then - would eat enything. But now he just eats cornflakes, toast, crackers with cheese, LOTS of ypghurts/fromage frais, biscuits, crisps, rasins, ham, chips, peas (occasionally - with ketchup) and of course chocolate! But I am told he eats well at the childminder! No veg though

But anyway, he's now a happy healthy 3.9 year old! Weights 33 lb - no idea where that is on the centiles. Nor do I know how tall he is! But he LOOKS in proportion.

hi,

my little boy has only JUST started eating solids in the last couple of weeks....and he is 1 year and 2 weeks old!

i have been offering from about 7 month onwards but he wasn't having any of it!

he is still getting about 95% of his calories from me and he appears to be thriving....but i don't know what he weighs.....

he was also a biggish baby but that doesn't seem to have made a difference....

people around me seem to be breathing a sigh of relief now that he is eating solids as well....seems they were getting very concerned about alsorts...although it is obvious he is well...positivly chunky even!

i seem to have topped everyone agewise....didn't think it was THAT uncommon!
if i was seeing a HV i probably would have given her a heart attack!

love
debs

Started DD1 on mushy solids at 4months on advice of health visitor who said it was just so she would get used to the spoon and solid food. Still did mostly breast feeding until 7 months. Would happily have exclusively breast fed as long as possible but wanted periods to start again so could go for number 2.

DD1 was 15 weeks (9 years ago now)
DS1 was 4 months exactly

DD2 got to 20 weeks (4 years ago) - only fed her organic baby food/organic pureed veg/fruit - NOW she is the most fussy eater I know - very reluctant to try anything.

The other 2 eat everything and anything.

DS1 made it to 6 months and beyond as he hated all pureed food and really didn't take to eating until he was 15 months at which point I was really tired of breast-feeding all of the time.

DD made it to 5 1/2 months but loved all food delivered by spoon.

DS2 showed much interest from about 4 1/2 months but was hospitalised twice for serious bacterial infections (ended up septic the first time) so we held off until he was 6 1/2 months hoping to stave off allergies etc.

So far so good as all 3 are healthy and are now big eaters!

dd was exclusively breastfed till 6 months. She had doubled her birthweight and was 17lbs then. She didn't seem to be feeding an awful lot more, and it took a good month to get her established on solids. By 6 months they can gulp milk down really fast. I am glad I did and saved several months of sterilsing (didn't bother to sterilise at all as she was older) and faffing around with slop and a messy face.

ds who I had first. I started at 20 weeks but stopped and he started again about 5 and a half months.

I know I'm in danger of repetition but most of the threads are to do with breast fed babies and my baby is exclusively formula fed. She is 21 weeks and has slept through the night since she was 2 months and has just started going through from 7pm to 7am (I know, lucky me!) She seems quite interested when she sees people eating and I have tried her with a couple of teaspoons of baby rice which she has swallowed, what do I do? Hold fire until she is 6 months? Is there any benefit to keeping her exclusively on formula milk for the next 6 weeks or so? My husband and I both have hayfever and I had childhood asthma and eczema so I want to be as careful as I can.

My ds was weaned onto solids at 14 weeks mainly as he was sleeping so badly I decided (and the health visitor) he must be hungry. Our baby clinic always recommended solids at 4 months anyway. It didn't make much difference on sleeping but he always enjoyed the food. I also gave up breastfeeding a couple of weeks later. Eats very well still generally (now 10 months) - although at nursery now so don't have as much input as I would like

DD2 is 24 weeks (2 weeks off 6 months) and isn't particularly interested in solids. Have been giving her little tastes of pureed fruit and baby rice every few days or so since she was 4 1/2 months. Gags and spits it out. She seems to be doing quite well on bmilk (98th centile). Sleeps well. So not too worried.
DD1 (nearly 5 yrs) I think started at 16 weeks as was reccomended by HV. It was frustrating and slow to catch on. Was hoping it would sort out her dreadful night wakings but never did. Only started sleeping through when I completely stopped bfeeding at (wait for this) 2 yrs and 8 months.
Every babe is different. I hate the rigid, proscriptive advice. Do what feels right. We could all do with less guilt. God knows we've got enough to deal with as is.

5 mths dd1, 6 months (to the day!) dd2
both good eaters. dd2 slightly smaller, i'd say this was genetic rather than a nutritional thing. i found it v straightforward once i'd decided to do it, ie not fazed by those "ooh are you starting on solids yet then?" questions

It's good to read some of these comments - I feel a lot less concerned that my now one year old is often just not interested in solids - I guess she can get what she needs from me. They really are all different

Reminds me that my (bottle fed I think) dh apparently refused all solids until he was over 1, when his godmother (matron at a big Glasgow hospital) put him on her knw, squeezed gis nose shut and shovelled food in!

He now eats just about anything, loves gourmet food and is passionate about wine!

K73 - it won't make any difference whether you give solids now or not as formula milk doesn't help with hay fever, asthma etc. The baby rice for just now should be fine.

Ds was 20 weeks and weighed 20 pounds when I started him on solids. Before this he was exclusively breastfed.
I think dd was about 5 months. The recommendation in those days (for both of them) was 4 months.
I only skimmed through the thread, so apologies if this has been mentioned, but is it true that the guidelines now say to introduce solids at 6 months, but no later than 6 months, because if solids are introduced too late, then the baby will not learn to chew/swallow properly?

My dd is exclusively bf at 23 weeks. She was 6lb 10oz at birth, has been gaining weight well (around 75th centile since 4 weeks) She is very oral/sucky baby and likes to put anything in mouth..thumb, fist etc since 10 weeks. Quite hungry baby, and FEEDS 2 or 3 times a night, but does NOT wake up! Just moans in her sleep till I wake and shove boob in mouth (she sleeps in the middle of dp and me)

I am determined to keep exclusive bf going till 6 months, despite pressure from my mum, who started the 'Is she on solids yet?' line at 3 months. So I tried babyrice at 4 months, which she wolfed down BUT like Aero's experience, she was displaying (unusually) colicky behaviour, and constipation. Crying, crying, crying like never before.

I have had severe reflux myself for years..weak stomach lining..acid. I have retched and vomited so much, as has my father..and I wonder if the early weaning proscribed for early generations has anything to do with this? Dunno..anyway I will try to keep it up. Tiring tho'!!!!

Wallace, guidelines say nothing about 'no later than 6 mths' and nothing about not chewing properly. The idea of a window of opportunity outside of which the baby won't learn to chew is utter b*ocks...not that that stops plenty of people who should know better propagating it. If you want some evidence to wave under someone's nose post again and I will dig something out

Hooray. Thanks Newt. Glad my child isn't abnormal. Stopping the solids has definately helped. Just need to get him to realise my boobs are not his dummy now so he can stop using the food source to help get him to sleep. Actually, I think he knows this already and is just making the preferable choice (naturally). Usually end up giving in (knowing I'm probably making a rod for my own back in the longer term). Try as I might to be strong, the majority of time I'll do anything for peace and quiet!

Lots of lovely comments here! I really wanted to b/f DD for at least 6 months, but at just short of 5 months old the little shards of glass on my nipples (sorry!) suggested teeth and she was using me as a teething ring.

Intro baby rice at 16 weeks. Continued b/f till 5 months then gradually replaced each feed with a bottle as she bit me at that feed. Make sense? Lasted with early morning cosy mum and babe in bed feeding till c. 7.5 months.

BTW. Also a big baby (10.10 and a half) but settled nicely into quite a lean, dinky dora on the 75th centile.

Now eats absolutely anything (except Avocado!)

Tiktok..please dig out that evidence. I don't understand why the health visitors at my local baby clinic talk about this chewing thing, AND they are encouraging mothers to start solids from 4 months...when does WHO advice filter down to clinics?

Newt, the health visitors talk about this because they are inadequately trained. It is not only WHO that recommends women be supported to bf excl to 6 months, but the UK dept of health. This has been the case for over a year now. Any HVs still talking about 4 mths (or worse, 16 weeks) for solids when a baby is thriving on milk alone need to get themselves informed.

The idea of a window of opportunity is discussed, and dismissed, by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, whose Maternal and Infant sub group advise the govt. They say in a report

"Concern is sometimes expressed that babies will not learn to chew if the introduction
of solids is later than six months. This 'window of opportunity' idea appears to have arisen
from an old paper presenting case studies of children who remained on a liquid diet for over 6
months, some of whom had developmental delays or disabilities (Illingworth and Lister, 1964).
A hypothesis was suggested that 'if children are not given solid foods to chew at a time when
they are first able to chew, troublesome feeding problems may occur.' This has since been
quoted as evidence and inappropriately extended to babies with normal development.'

Hope this helps!

Ghosty - 6 months no problem. However, it did take him several weeks to get used to the whole food thing. Also, I wouldn't take waking up more frequently in the night as an indication of hunger - I've read somewhere else that it's to do with neurological developments.
My first HV (4 years ago) got very jumpy when I hadn't started weaning at 15 weeks!

Good to read this thread. I am planning to go to at least 6 months but am finding it a fairly lonely decision. All the mothers I know are starting now (20 wks) and it does seem like fun. Also dd is feeding like a demon but sleeping through the night. It would be good to know one other mum who made it to 6 months. I think most mums would like to start solids before they return to work as they don't want to miss out on their babies development.

forgot to ask. which annabel karmel book would folks recommend at there seem to be quite a few. I am torn between the NEW COMPLETE BABY AND TODDLER MEAL PLANNER and NEW COMPLETE BABY AND TODDLER MEAL COOKBOOK. Any suggestions gratefully received.

hi pesme, am in the same boat too. dd is 18 weeks and mil and sil (oh, who else?!!) keep asking me when will move on to solids! I dont really want to, (hassle plus am already working full-time so would prefer to time it when am on long break) and paed has said it best to wait to 6 mth as am b/f and it reduces risks of dd developing allergies.

same like yours, pesme, my dd is also feeding like a demon and sleeping thro the nite. thats another dilemma for me, cos mil says maybe she'd feel fuller with solids. but i dont want to suddenly have her waking up nites as she's only NOW sleeping thro the nite (cept for occasional 3am feed)

sorry long post@