This 'not weaning till 6 months' thing

[Twiglett]

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Well, this time round I didn't really think about the guidelines, I just started solids the minute I thought it was hunger waking her up and as I noticed that the time between bottles was less and she was taking more in each one. So I think it was about 5 months. She's bottlefed and it was hunger waking her as when we started on food she slept again. Guidelines were 16 wks when ds was born (97) too.

My dd2 is/was a big gorgeous fatty as well and she was totally content on breastmilk only until six months - and after that.
Why do you want to start now if she's happy? Tbh I hate all the mess that comes with starting solids, delay it as long as possible I say!

And according to the WHO and the Department of Health it's six months, not 4 to 6 months.

It's been six months for years. It was certainly that when ds was a baby and he's nearly 9.

It is only recently our gov took the WHO recommendations.

Yep, it was 6 months when my dd1 was a baby and she's 10.

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my dd seemed to look interested in food from about 5 months but she would not eat until almost 8 mths. I think she was more curious about the activity and not the eating.

When dd1 was born in 1997 the guidelines were 16 weeks, dd1 started her solids around 18 weeks. Hv mentioned starting solids to us the other day, dd2 is 17 weeks. I'll admit that we did try her with a tiny bit of baby rice just to see if she liked it but she just spat it right out again. Not going to bother trying again until we come back from our holiday in October.

Twiglett, don't worry about the sweet tooth, babies are born with a 'sweet tooth' breastmilk is basically sugar and fat! It's very, very sweet. Sweeter than Calgel. She's content, and I'd stay away from solids for the next couple of months. After all, she'll be eating solid food for the next 80 to 100 years!!

Twiglett I know how you feel. Started DS at 17 weeks and DD is now 18. Started DS on daytime formula at 3 months too (because of going back to work).

DH keeps mentioning the food thing. And some friends and Mum and MIL have too.

But for me its harder because DD is not putting on the weight like your DD. She started out on the 75th %ile and has now dropped to the 25th (well that was two weeks ago and was due to take her on Tues because of injections but can't because of DS's cp so not sure). But health visitor says to stick to what I'm doing and try to ensure she gets more hind milk (ie longer feeds).

But I can't stop thinking about it - and trying to decide what to start her on and when to start finger foods. And I even walk up the baby food aisle at the supermarket - even though I've never bought a jar in my life. Have got baby rice, rice cakes etc from there though. OK I Know I'm weird.

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Hey Bozza,
Don't worry about the weight charts. My bf knowledgible HV said that they were made for formula fed babies and they do put on more wieght than bf babies initially. SO your bf baby is probably fine if she seems bright enough and developing normally.
I would wait until the last moment as it is such a mess and a stress to give them food. It is boring boring boring to feed three times a day and then tidy up the mess three times a day.
Ds was weaned at 5 1/2 months, and I am bored of shovelling the food in day in day out.
It does get better, as at a year he is eating pretty muchg what we eat, so I don't have to do all the puree and mashing and stuff.

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The longer you leave it, the more mature her gut will be and the more you are protecting her from all sorts of adult diseases. You will never know whether waiting that extra month and a half made any difference, but that is better IMO than wondering if (insert any later health issue here) was caused by introducing solids when you did. Congratulate yourself on having super nutritious breastmilk and a lovely dd and give it another few weeks.

We went the with the 6 months. I had heard so much about the health benefits of waiting on solids that I figured better safe than sorry.

When DD was 4 months or so I desperately wanted to started on solids, but I read up on it and agonized about it and didn't. It was a terribly hard decision for about a week, and then it wasn't any more. I don't know why. We gave her ice, and she learned to use a sippy cup of water. It wasn't really an issue.

At 6 months, it didn't seem like too late or anything. It still took a week for her to get even kind of into the swing of things, and 3 weeks in she's waking more often, if anything. Then again she doesn't eat all that much; today was as usual more than ever before, which amounted to maybe a teaspoon or two of cereal (bits she can eat as finger food, not mush), a small plum, a tablespoon of carrots, and a teaspoon of chicken-apricot-lentil stuff. It's not like I could get a jar of babyfood or a couple of tablespoons of baby rice into her without force majeure.

I have a friend whose son is autistic, although actually rediagnosed recently as Aspergers. She has always wondered whether weaning early (pressure from her mother) made a difference. SOme of you may think this is ridiculous, but he was not autistic at birth, unlike my DS, but developed autistic behaviours later on and he also is sensitive to diet, additives etc. No harm in waiting, even if she's wrong, the fact that she wonders is bad enough.