When did you try your baby with food

[mumbunforever]

Just a general question really to gage when the average age of weaning is for most babies I know government guidelines say 6 months but most parents I have known have tried their babies younger.

DD2 is 4 months and I think I tried my first when she was 5 and a half months...I'm going to wait as long as I can but I may try her before the six month mark to see if she takes an interest...She is a big baby and is still having feeds every two hours so feeling like she may be interested in food sooner than my first.

If anyone did start their LOs sooner than six months what was the reason if any?

Thanks in advance

I agree grabbing at food in the manor babies grab at everything is not a sign of readiness, however as with my dd, sitting unaided on a picnic blanket and purposely clasping at food, looking at it and then tearing a chunk off and moving around the mouth is a sign of readiness as far as I’m concerned. I get why the 6 month rule exists but just like with every milestone some babies will reach it early and some later

Manner not manor

Yeah my four month old DD grabbed some of my coleslaw yesterday and tried to put it in her mouth when she was sitting on my knee in a cafe. But she also does that with books, random pieces of cardboard, and her feet 🤷‍♀️

4 and a half months with the eldest, almost 6 with the youngest. Both weaned on purees and took about 2-3 weeks to go from a fully milk diet to 4 meals a day with milk in between. We didn't do the baby led weaning thing and they didn't start feeding themselves until they were about 10+ months.

6 months as recommended

About 5 months with tasting purée and then almost 6 months with more BLW foods (much to inlaws horror). She cried so much in general that we thought she might be hungry but it didn’t make a difference.

Looking back I would have just waited until 6 months. I put way too much pressure on myself to get her eating. Although it has paid off as she does really well with her food now, and is quite skilled with her eating at 11 months. I’d hate to have done purée until now as you basically have to wean them again and teach them to eat.

At 17 weeks on the advice of health visitor to see if it would help settle her reflux. It did. She was better able to keep milk down and was much happier and more settled. Started to gain weight better.

Baby 2 at 6 months as there was no reason to start any earlier. She always prefered milk anyway.

Both of them slept through the night a couple of months into earning when they started eating a reasonable amount.

Didn't see any reason to go wildly against the guidelines, so about a week before 6 months we tried some ready brek. DC yummed it down.

Exactly 6 months. I was dreading the mess and faffing about and DS wasn't that interested in food until about 8 months so I found it all quite stressful.
He's now a 3yo human dustbin and eats like a teenager so I needn't have worried.

At 4 months we started with 4 teaspoons of baby rice made up with a little bit of formula which we gave at about 4pm and it got us 6hrs of chill time while he slept. He was otherwise breastfed every 2 hours day and night.

At 5 months he grabbed DPs yoghurt and ate it all. We started purees and food 'play' at 5.5 months in addition to loads of breastfeeds and the babyrice.

Big 9lb baby, was crawling at 5 months and pulling to stand on furniture at 4.5 months.

Now 20 months and eats anything and everything.

17 weeks on paed advice. From the first few spoonfuls her reflux and thus general demeanour improved immeasurably. Still quite sicky as she’s constantly (at 7 months) trying to be on the move straight after meals, but it’s painless.

I'm so bemused as to why people give their babies liquid rice. It contains arsenic, has little nutritional value, is constipating, and tastes awful! Roasted veg is a great way to start little ones off with solids - high in vitamins, minerals, fibre, and taste.

Autoimmune disease is constantly rising, and it is linked to gut health. Giving babies food before their gut is ready is potentially linked to future autoimmune diseases. There's no rush!

I gave dd a bit of mashed banana today mixed with formula. She is 23wks on Wednesday. She wasn't fussed so I might hold off a while. I am surprised at all the 5 month responses on here, all my real life friends have had their babies a similar age to dd on various foods for ages. Dd is only 25th centile and didn't seem fussed at all today about the banana so I think I will leave it a couple of weeks at least.

Im going to puree first.

They're ready when they can sit up, no tongue thrust reflex, can pick up food, put it in their mouths, chew and swallow. Usually happens around 6 months. DD was 26 weeks, DS was 24 weeks

DS could do all this by 5 months. My DD’s were 6 months by the time they were ready.

I waited until the guidelines said which was 6 months. They advised that this was when the digestive system was ready. I never used purees, straight in with steamed easy foods.

Four months, because that is what the weaning guidelines were back then.

I started weaning at 4 months using jar foods/blended foods. Couldn't sit up properly on her own but could hold her own head up. Never had a problem with this, she's never gagged on food or hoked on

Choked on foods. Was eating foods the same as us by 9/10months old. Also, I work in a day nursery, most babies I know are weaning before six months despite advice/guidelines, but it is entirely up to yourself.

I gave dd a bit of mashed banana today mixed with formula.

DS never liked mashed banana. He liked everything else.

6 months. No one I know tried earlier.

4 months starting on homemade fruit and vegetable purées following the Gina Ford book. He’s a very big baby who can sit up, grabs food and has lost his tongue reflex so I tried it - so far he loves pear. My DS will be with a childminder at 6 months and won’t take a bottle so some form of early weaning is essential imo.

5 months and most of our baby group friends were the same. I was advised to wean him at 10 weeks by gp but held off. Tried him with some purée at 17, 19 and 20 weeks and he wasn't bothered/ready. Then at 22 weeks he wolfed down the lot.

I should add i’m hoping taking to food will mean he starts taking a cup/bottle of milk before going to the childminder, i’m not cutting down breastfeeding yet at all.

Should also say that he's off the charts weight wise and if I was going by the 2.5oz of formula per 1lb weight rule I'd need to be feeding him 60oz of formula per day!
To get the iron/vitamins he needs weaning has been essential.

Isn't the six month rule now suspected to be responsible for the rise in allergies? I think government regulations are due to change, op. Break open the baby rice!