What age did you start your baby on solids?

[October89]

My baby is 5 months old next week. I think she would really benefit from some solid food. She has about 7oz 5 times a day and now she's started to notice and stare when I eat and makes chewing motions. What age did you introduce solids? Google tells me no sooner than 6 months.

Why did the guidelines change? I was weaned at 3 months so was my sister, born late 60's early 70's. My brother who was born in the early 80's was weaned as per guidelines at 4 months. What is the benefit/ dis advantages of early v late weaning?

6 months

@ilovepixie

Why did the guidelines change? I was weaned at 3 months so was my sister, born late 60's early 70's. My brother who was born in the early 80's was weaned as per guidelines at 4 months. What is the benefit/ dis advantages of early v late weaning?

From what I remember the midwife saying, something about can cause stomach issues later in life (not all the time obviously)

23 weeks with my first (purées etc)
26 weeks with my 2nd BLW,
So between 5.5-6mo
I would wait a few more weeks if possible due to possible stomach issues later in life.

20 weeks old. I copied my sister in law who’d done that with her ds. My dd was starving and inhaled everything given. She was never that keen on milk.

Yeah, my baby also stared obsessively at me eating, at that age. Still does! I still waited until he was six months old. And it turns out that his interest in me eating does not remotely translate to an interest in him eating - we've been working on weaning for about 8 weeks now and he remains sublimely uninterested in any form of finger food or any purée of any consistency, delivered in any manner. I have lovingly prepared every imaginable form of baby soup, yogurt, curry, pancake, muffin, scrambled egg, fruit, porridge finger and steamed vegetable, and I can't even remember what else, and then equally lovingly watched them all be hurled on the floor with startling efficiency.

Also, it's an epic messy faff.

Also also, he was apparently so unsettled by the mere suggestion that there might be some form of nutrition other than boobs that his sleep went completely out of the window and he now won't go in his cot at all, screams hysterically if put there, and essentially wants to be within touching distance of a boob the whole time. Preferably actually touching it. Or maybe just sort of half latched on for convenience... And he's not slept for more than two hours at a stretch since we started weaning. Suffice to say, he does not seem to be a fan of solid food, no matter how much he enjoys seeing other people eat it!

I thought the guidance was back to between 4 and 6 months again after postponing too long was found to increase allergies?

DC1 sometime after 5 months when she grabbed a bit of banana.
DC2 can’t remember.

Recent research in 2017 by Fewtrell et al found that in developed countries there were no disadvantages to beginning weaning onto solid food between four to six months compared to waiting to six months.

Here's the link:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28027215/

Our DC is 5.5 months and I’ve started giving mashed stuff from our plate for tastes but will start blw in a week or so

Tried at 6m but she wasn't at all interested. She started properly about 8m.

A little over 5 months. We started with with finger foods and a bit of mushed parsnip - DS ate well from the get go. You’ll be fine in a few weeks OP. The guidance is around 6 months, not 6 months in the dot. Some on here can be evangelical about waiting until exactly 6 months, but they seem to correlate with the ones who insist that your baby must never be spoon fed, must eat only what you eat etc. There’s no absolute right way of doing things, just follow your baby’s lead.

Current guidelines are 6 months. Don't think that your child "is missing out", they're not. (Unless advised by the doctor, of course. This can happen if there are concerns about their weight gain)

DD2 actually didn't accept food until about 8 months. Trust me, she was chubby!! Some kids don't eat until 1 year old. It's ok!

5 months on the advice if the paediatrician as she was medicated for reflux. We went slowly and she took to it very well.

DC 1 4 months
DC 2 4 months
DC 3 4.5 months
DC 4 5 months

Took my cues from them, no health issues or allergies in any of them.

6 months for both of mine.

Dd really wasnt fussed about food so it took her until about 7months to get used to it.

Ds was a gannet - 10lb 1 at birth - that he used to ape us at the dinner table - he wanted food earlier but i waited.

@Phyzzy

The guidance was 4 months when mine were babies. One started solids at 4 months the other wasn't interested until 6 months. Big deal at the time, in hindsight it's insignificant in the great scheme of things.

4 months was the guide when mine was a baby. He took to solid food like a duck to water (and hasn't stopped eating since)!

4.5 months.

4, 5, 6 months are all OK and there is no special evidence to suggest otherwise.
scienceofmom.com/2015/05/14/starting-solids-4-months-6-months-or-somewhere-in-between/

I started at 4.5 months because I decided on balance that slightly earlier exposure to iron and other micronutrients and to allergens was looking like it was slightly better. The evidence is not "solid" (sorry for puns) either way, though. It's up to you.

5-6 months ish. The day she grabbed pasta off my plate. Going the baby-led-weaning route means you can take it easy re guidelines and also be terribly smug, right up until they decide they don't want to eat anything ever again except bread and butter.

5 months for all 3

17 weeks and he loved it. It made a massive difference to his reflux too. Hoping to do the same with DC2.

@ilovepixie

Why did the guidelines change? I was weaned at 3 months so was my sister, born late 60's early 70's. My brother who was born in the early 80's was weaned as per guidelines at 4 months. What is the benefit/ dis advantages of early v late weaning?

Over 20 years ago it changed to weaning around 26 weeks. Pro is there gut it fully developed so in theory less likely to cause long term issues eg IBS and IBD and you don’t have to bother with puree. Cons later weaning can be linked to increased allergies, although both mine have allergies from birth. I introduced the top 12 which they weren’t already allergic to very quickly after starting weaning.

I warned DD1 at 26 weeks and it was fine DD2 at 25 week, it was too soon for DD2 but she does have a sensitive gut.

@PippinStar

17 weeks and he loved it. It made a massive difference to his reflux too. Hoping to do the same with DC2.

Mine was much the same, his digestion was better once he started eating.

6 months.

I really wouldn’t rush it (for many very good reasons) but as much as anything, I would delay the extra faff and mess for as long as possible

12 weeks for first DC as was the 'experts' advice at the time.

6 months for second DC.

DC1 6 months
DC2 5.5 months
DC3 5 months bang on

DC1 wasn't fussed about food, DC2 was an inhaler of food so started earlier, DC3 has CMPA and was refusing milk so started early to settle them- they eat the most out of the lot and since weaning have upped their milk intake to the recommended amount.