"Food before one is just for fun"

[user2468101214]

Do you agree?

Yes the baby shouldn't stop drinking their milk and rely on meals for all their nutritional needs.

I don’t think it is true. While they still need to get most of their nutrients from formula or breast milk (and definitely shouldn’t stop these milk feeds altogether) they also need some nutrients from food so should be eating some nutrient rich food. Exploring food and trying different things is more important than the overall amount of food.

Yes. especially if breastfeeding - breast milk is a complete food.

No. I saw something NHS related that said by 11 months babies get 90% of their nutrients from solid food. Fnck if I can find it again...

I think it depends really.. my 14 month old was on 3 meals a day by 9.5 months and 3 bottles. Dropped the 3rd bottle at 11 months and now on 2... well... 1 and a half because he's not too interested in the morning one.
He would scream blue murder if he didn't get real food - from about 8 months.

MY friends baby is 13 months and had little interest in food until recently. Much preferred milk and still had 5 bottles a day until last month.

I think its important for them to try and taste things, and not to stop milk whilst doing so but I think it depends on the baby. I know for sure my DS wanted food a lot more than milk early on

I agree as I learned forst hand ,my son was very poorly and he only had breastmilk for his first year ,though I offered him food regularly he basically ate nothing and he's now thriving at 4 ,he's so tall and very healthy and has an incredible immune system which is a huge relief ,When we all get ill he doesn't etc ,he is a little fussy but apart from that really thriving ,I do think food should be given that's very nutritious but nobody should be worrying about how much food they actually eat only what milk they're receiving for the first year ,definitely shouldn't be swapping a bottle for a meal anyway. At the time I was so upset worrying and everyone would tell me it's okay mama he's going to be just fine as food for one is just for fun but it made no difference to my anxiety at the time but looking back it's a very true statement

I would say disagree. I think babies are probably fine with nutrients etc but for me it's more that they need to learn to eat.

My 9 nearly 10 month old still isn't that interested in food, will only tolerate mush, gags quite a lot as struggles to move food around her mouth. But it's not like she'll get to 1 and suddenly start eating so I feel this time is important for her to be getting her practice in. Whereas if it is just all just thrown on the floor and mushed in her hair, she is going to struggle, especially when she's at nursery all day soon without my boobs for back up.

So while we keep it 'fun', I think that word is a bit misleading as I think it is quite important.

No, I don't. Good food habits start from weaning, aside from any nutritional issues. What would be better to say is 'food before one is fine to be fun', which means it's fine for them to mash, chuck, throw, whatever. But it doesn't mean that laying the foundations of healthy eating and mealtimes are unimportant or that there aren't nutritional benefits. It's not 'just' for fun.

Absolutely not. By one DC need to be weaned onto solids, supplemented by milk.

I know sometimes parents need a little reassurance when babies take a while to figure solids out, but I've seen this spouted on breastfeeding groups about 11 month olds who are hardly eating but are bfing round the clock. God knows what their irons stores were like.

My now 16 month DD wouldn't have accepted just milk. She was on 3 meals a day at 8 month old. She has 1 bottle at bed time and even that's just for comfort and only drinks 4oz. There isn't anything she doesn't like at the minute food wise.

This is not true by one year. Breast fed babies need to wean at six months as their iron stores will be depleting. In that respect it's less crucial four formula fed babies as there is iron in formula.

The NHS also advises bf babies should also have vitamin D from birth.

It’s trite and unhelpful. Weaning is a graduated process across the second six months. There is huge individual variation and that is fine. Offer healthy food and the ratio of milk and food will shift dramatically across the time although individual days will look very different. Early weaning foods should include good sources of iron and common allergens but in an acceptance that the baby should lead. My eldest and youngest show the differences as one weary straight into meals after eating a load of fish pie for his first tea and then ate everything we did while his brother was significantly milk fed at one and ate very few solids for months.

Yes one hundred percent

DD barely ate solids until after her first birthday

She's an extremely healthy, very tall teen now

That phrase doesn't mean weaning or eating solids isn't important

It means that the volume or level of interest isn't a specific concern - it should be 'fun' experimenting with different types of food, textures & types.

It's still important to do it, and to ensure a broad selection of food is made available to babies at this point. Just don't worry much about what or how much they are eating, and recognise that milk is still a core part of their nutrition till 1.

The NHS also advises bf babies should also have vitamin D from birth.

All babies in Ireland, regardless of how they are fed, are advised to have Vit D.

agree.

Was for my dd, exclusively breastfed, she wasn't really interested in food at all until about 8/9months. She was definitely over 1 before she would eat 3 meals/day

Scientifically it’s not true. Babies are only born with enough iron reserves for around 6 months. After that they need to consume iron - in extreme cases a lack of it can cause cognitive development damage. So no, ‘food after 6 months is essential for development’ is a better phrase.

It depends on the baby. My youngest was on the boob 24/7 and at 6 months had a huge appetite until the fussy toddler phase. They were tiny too.

I think it's a good message though. It serves as a reminder the keep up feeds and takes the pressure off meal times. When 90% of their dinner ends up on you/ the high chair/ the floor, or their refusing food you don't have to remake it or keep going- just let them explore at their own pace.

@Pontiouspilate

This is true of course.

That iron can be provided by iron-fortified cereals or porridge for example.

So it's still true that eating food is largely intended as a process of fun exploration and discovery, while still meeting developmental milestones & ensuring sufficient food is consumed for nutritional purposes.

I suppose it's a matter of how that statement is interpreted.

I think it's important to start introducing foods and getting babies used to a variety of flavours and textures and the concept of chewing from a young age.

I don't think there's a need to be overly concerned by how much they're eating when so young however. Once you're offering the food and doing your best to establish good eating habits, you can't force it on them until they're ready to show interest.

Definitely not fun…it’s stressful!!!!!

No. Read Bee Wilson's First Bite. Learning about flavour is really important from about 5/6 months.

It has to depend on the baby and family circumstances. My ds refused bottles after the first few weeks so was entirely ebf to six months but i had to leave him for short periods from 6mo on for unavoidable reasons so if he wouldn’t take a bottle he just had to eat food (and learn to use a cup) for those half days.