Weaning - what age?

[Luhou]

Hi all,

I am aware that the current guidlines suggest you should wean at 6 months. My daughter however is the size of a 8.5month old weight wise and a 9 month old height wise (based on 50th percentile)

She is 23weeks currently. Opinions on waiting until she is 6months, just worried because of her size she will not be getting what she needs from milk alone.

She sits up unaided, sleeps through the night and is keen to eat food (reaching for ours, watching us etc)

Thanks!

NHS advice is ‘around six months’. We waited to 6 months do to family history but starting a few early is not a NHS no - no. Be aware that weaning can disrupt sleep and it’s a general PITA.

Thanks for your reply. Yeah I have heard it can distrupt thing, maybe I should just enjoy her sleeping through!

Think it's just because she's above normal size, worried she's not getting everything she needs from milk alone.

I think the only hard and fast rule is absolutely not before 17 weeks and best to wait until closer to 6 months. You are pretty close, so if you think it's the right time then crack on would be my opinion. You can take it slowly and see how it goes.

Thanks, I just think because she is hitting all the 6 months milestones and is bigger than average...she seems ready. Thanks for advice.

She will getting she needs from milk (if your breast feeding you need to vitamin D) but I can’t see an issue with starting now apart from the hassle which is weaning but some people enjoy it. She is around ‘6 months’.

I'm sure she's fine to start now, she's only a week away. I did mine at five months and she's was absolutely fine, that was under the guidance and advice of a gp and hv

Sounds like she’s ready OP, give it a go.

Thanks thatwentbadly, good to know she will get what she needs from milk still. Thanks all, my gut feeling was to start but always good to talk these things through!
Think I'll give it a go! - I am looking forward to it!

Size isn't really relevant as it's development related.

That said 23 weeks seems fine to me. For mine I always started off with BLW rather than spoon feeding, as I rather liked the theory that if they have the physical coordination to pick up food (you don't place it in their hand if doing this) and get it to their mouth and then actually taste and swallow, it's a pretty good bet that their internal (gut) development is ready for food as well. It can be a bit slow going at first but I really love the process of watching them try things out!

Research shows it's harmful to introduce solids before 16/17 weeks, but there isn't much of a consensus about ages between 17-26 weeks. There may even be an allergy protective effect from starting slightly before 6 months. I strongly suspect UK guidance errs on the side of 26 weeks simply because the cultural bias is towards doing it early, so if they say 17 weeks, people will wean at 13 weeks because "they're nearly there".

my 20 week old is 99.6th percentile weight and not even on the chart for height, he has 40oz of milk a day and we're aiming to hold off until 26 weeks as we really want to do BLW.

Thanks BertieBotts. Yeah I see what you mean about saying 6months, as there's always people that do it much earlier.

I think she would deffinetely have the coordination to pick food up and put it in her mouth...this is another reason I feel she may be ready as she is goint through a "put everything in my mouth" phase which seems like it should coinside with learning to eat!

1990 you can do BLW before 6 months. If they can't pick up food and get it to their mouth then they aren't ready! But that's the very definition of baby led. There's nothing wrong with offering them food to try before 6 months.

@1990shopefulftm, yeah I am not sure where my daughter falls. She is 8kg and 70cm, she also has around 40oz. Do you just feel she won't be ready for BLW before 26weeks?

We started DS on solids at 23 weeks because he'd launched himself halfway across the sofa to get at his dad's chips and once the health visitor had stopped laughing she said if he wanted food that badly give it to him. He did, most definitely, want food that badly. I think he was about seven months when he lifted a sausage straight out of the fridge and started gnawing while I was getting something else out.

Check with health visitor first, but some of them really are ready that bit earlier.

@zigzagzog12

I'm sure she's fine to start now, she's only a week away. I did mine at five months and she's was absolutely fine, that was under the guidance and advice of a gp and hv

26 weeks in half a year. 26-23 is 3 weeks off?

First foods are considerably less nutrient dense than milk, OP. I’d hold out a bit longer if you can.

@Amrythings bless, my daughter is the same stealing spoon of us and throwing a paddy because she wants a chicken goujon!

@TomHardyAndMe I see what you're saying about being less nutritious, although am I right in thinking to start with food is just complimentary and they still have the same amount of milk?

@BertieBotts his hand eye coordination is pretty good for his age so quite possibly he could pick it up , i m not sure the tongue thrust is has quite gone and i think he could sit a bit better in his highchair.

@Luhou I think he needs to sit a bit better before we give it a go, he slumps a bit in the high chair at the moment but there's a definite change in that this week.
He's 10kg and i think 75cm now but boys have quite a bit higher predictions i think.

[quote Luhou]@Amrythings bless, my daughter is the same stealing spoon of us and throwing a paddy because she wants a chicken goujon!

@TomHardyAndMe I see what you're saying about being less nutritious, although am I right in thinking to start with food is just complimentary and they still have the same amount of milk?[/quote]
Yeah food isn't to replace milk, food is fun until they are one really. Keep the milk the same abs introduce foods as an addition.

Then in a few months you can start small "meals"

I started off with sitting my daughter with us at the table and giving her finger food of what ever we had to try and built from there

Good luck

Oh and put a shower curtain under the high chair or if you have a dog, use that as your hoover it will get messy lol

Think it's just because she's above normal size, worried she's not getting everything she needs from milk alone.
Surely the fact she is doing so well shows that she is getting plenty from milk alone. If she was tiny then that might suggest she wasn't getting enough nutrition from milk. Your daughter is obviously thriving on it.

Nonetheless, starting weaning 3 weeks early isn't going to make much difference either way

@Amrythings

We started DS on solids at 23 weeks because he'd launched himself halfway across the sofa to get at his dad's chips and once the health visitor had stopped laughing she said if he wanted food that badly give it to him. He did, most definitely, want food that badly. I think he was about seven months when he lifted a sausage straight out of the fridge and started gnawing while I was getting something else out.

Check with health visitor first, but some of them really are ready that bit earlier.

My daughter was the same. When she was 5 months she grabbed a handful of my muffin, and just ate it. I figured if she could do that she could probably manage a steamed broccoli stem 🤣

@zigzagzog12 - thanks! Yeah I will look to keep things basic at first. Think my dog is very much looking forward to weaning! Fortunately we also have wood flooring! I need to invest in one of those coverall bibs.

@ChocOrange1 - fair point you make about her thriving, I guesd I am just concerned that even though it's been enough until now it will stop being now she is bigger...but probably just worrying! Thanks for advice!

Milk is the main source of nutrition until they're about 1 :) It's only the second year where food starts to become the main source.

Hi!

The age at which to introduce solids is different depending on the country you live in, just like the advice on which food you should feed your baby first.
I live in France and we get told to start with veg and fruit purées at 4 months. In Japan, it's 5 months.
As long as you don't start before 4 months, it is safe and it can even prevent some allergies to start sooner.
All these guidelines are just this, guidelines, and each country does things differently but we all turn out okay