6 months - am I the only one waiting?!

[exBrightonBell]

Although the guidance is very clear to wait till 6 months, nearly everyone I know with a small baby has started weaning sometime soon after 4 months. I don't understand why people are so keen to go against the advice being given to them. My ds is 5 months, but it feels like I am the only one who isn't giving solids. It's not just me, is it? I'm planning on trying BLW if that makes a difference.

[Kveta]

I wanted to wait with both of mine - but both showed signs of readiness much earlier than 6 months. As we were doing the baby led (aka deeply lazy) approach though, I figured that putting food in front of them was not true weaning - if ready, they would eat it; if not, they wouldn't.

Sure enough, DS was ready from 21 weeks, ate everything in front of him from then on - but DD (who was sitting and grabbing at stuff much earlier than DS, at 19 weeks) wasn't ready until more recently, so closer to 24 weeks.

it has made bugger all difference to their sleep btw, but makes our meal times quieter, as we can lob food at them, and leave them to their own devices whilst we eat our hot meals. win-win really!

[jaggythistle]

i waited with both mine, they both sat up/picked things up etc at around 6 months anyway. DS1 started a few days before 6 months and DS2 about a week after. DS2 was actually sitting quite well before 6 months but i was too busy and possibly lazy to start any food.

DS1 had a mixture of mush and finger food and was on 3 little meals a day within a month or 2. DS2 wouldn't touch a spoon for weeks so just had bits of pasta, toast, veg etc. he's 8 mo and still not overly fussy about missing meals.

most people that i know who have weaned earlier have wanted baby to sleep more, or just decided the baby was ready for some arbitrary reason.

others my MIL think that guidelines of around 6 months only apply to 3rd world countries. my own mum said in almost every phone call when DS1 was tiny about how he'll sleep better once he's on solids. it's made bugger all difference to sleep for either of mine. I got less hassle about DS2 eating, mostly because he is rather huge anyway!

[Panzee]

I waited. It's much easier to just give milk!

[LeBFG]

The problem with setting targets (in all walks of life) is that people try to blindly meet them. It's not neccessarily the right thing to do. I started foods at 5 months but this started very much as little tastes of our food on our fingers. DS was really interested and loved it. A friend though had a DD who was just not interested in food at all. Wouldn't eat. Mum was quite brave and just refused to push her. Finally, her DD started solids at 9 months and I think this was a good thing for her. We should all start listening more to our children I think - not 'oh, look, he's chewing his fist' but really looking out for real signs of interest and readiness. Then starting foods really slowly at first. That's my philosophy at least.

[StarOfLightMcKings3]

DS is 6.5 months and I'm still waiting.

[sleeplessinderbyshire]

I waited til 6 months with DD1, she wasn't really ready then and is still a rubbish eater at 3yrs. DD2 started grabbing spoons and was desperate to try food from about 4 months. From 5 months I've let her have tiny tastes of things and now she's 24 weeks we're doing actual meals 2-3 times a day. I've gone for when the baby seemed ready not any arbitrary age

[VisualiseAHorse]

I started weaning at 18 weeks. Felt baby was ready - sitting up etc, plus he had terrible reflux (still has it, but no where near as bad). A couple of spoons of puree made a huge difference to his reflux.

He had nothing but fruit puree until he was about 5.5 months, then starting on both more spoon feeding plus finger foods.

Also, I chose to wean early because of things that I'd read. I did a bit of research, and from what I found, deduced that the best time to begin introducing foods was between 4 and 6 months.

[blacktreaclecat]

DS was 25 weeks and we started very slowly. Glad we waited, weaning is a pain

[RacHoHoHog]

Ds is 23 weeks and I know that Mil and sil are going to try to feed my ds on Tuesday. They have already told me that he should be on food by now. Their babies were on 3 meals a day by now and I can't possibly start off with solids, it has to be purees.

Sil and dp's cousin have tried to make him over rule me in the food dept and told him if they babysit he will be getting fed. Needless to say they won't be babysitting ever if they can't respect our parenting choices.

[LimeFlower]

I think that weaning has a lot of mixed opinions what's right and what's not.I tried blw with DS(nearly 6.5 mo),he takes food into his mouth and chews it and then spits the majority out.Some bits are going through but he's not overly enthusiastic about finger foods despite being able to grab things and stick them into his mouth.He's fine with mashed veg.

I was told by HV when he was 5.5 mo that I'd have to start weaning him soon as he'll be depleted of iron.Somebody here kindly told me that it was rubbish.So off I went to research...

Some babies are conscious about food earlier (but their gut is nowhere ready yet),some are older and still not interested.There's a thread about 9mo somewhere here that is still not interested in food.What the mother is supposed to do?Force feed?The child is obviously taking its time for whatever reasons.

There's a video on you tube of a 6mo baby eating chicken leg,my DS is 2 weeks older but nowhere near such ability to feed himself.I'll wait till he's fully ready and offer him bits to eat in the meantime but never on the grounds that i should or worse have to because somebody told me so.

[Loislane78]

I'll be waiting for the signs of readiness, at 19 wks there aren't many so we'll wait.

I find it a bit silly how some people seem to get hung up on the actual number and '6 month rule' though: lots of babies will smile at 6 wks but some don't, some babies will roll over at 4 months, lots don't, some babies get teeth... some babies will walk and talk...

I don't disagree with the science but as I've posted before, guidelinex for huge populations look like a bell curve; some babies will be ready before and some later.

I'd love to meet the baby that adheres to the development calendar precisely - do they exist?

[MumOfTheMoos]

I started blw at 24 weeks when my DS was showing all the signs (sitting up, no tongue thrust reflex, able to hold things). He loved it but didn't eat that much for the first 6 weeks or so. Just played with it but I did it at the right tie or us.

[ballroompink]

I waited until 6m. DS showed no signs of interest in wanting or needing anything other than milk, and I didn't see the point of feeding him tiny amounts of what limited food he could have before six months. It just seemed like such a faff. I also had people asking me whether or not he needed baby rice and telling me I should give him water to drink at night to stop him waking up for a feed (have always bf).

[poohdoctor]

there are 2 issues here: 1. developmental readiness of the baby and 2. medical reasons to start weaning early (not before 17 weeks) eg reflux.
my lo has GORD and CMPA and we were advised to start early weaning (4.5 months) despite her not being ready. Every baby is different and no "one size fits all".

[CommanderShepard]

I waited til the 3 signs of readiness (about 6mos 2w in our case), per the NHS guidelines, not some bollocks peddled by the baby food manufacturers. Probably, in Aloha's world, I lack maternal instinct but what the hell. DD is 7 months now and still barely eats anything - one 'meal' a day and it's a lot if she's eaten a couple of satsuma segments. Still, she's happy and healthy and it'll come.

[TroubleAndFyfe]

Oops, sorry, just read bits and pieces of the thread...that wasn't intended to be inflammatory, it was a reply to the OP and not aimed at those who didn't wait!

[TroubleAndFyfe]

I waited. Read this and you'll be so proud that you are! kellymom.com/nutrition/starting-solids/delay-solids/

[Weezie85]

We waited till 6 months. We were the only ones not giving baby rice by that point. Could not be bothered with the faff so we wanted to wait to do BLW.
Relatives all told me she should of been eating, even tried to offer a biscuit to her but she dropped it on the floor at 4 months. I was very annoyed by that, they also told me she needed to drink water as breastmilk doesn't help her thirst(she was born in summer). Honestly. I do wonder about some people.
Anyhoo, she is almost 7 months and seems to be doing well with food, although still not sleeping through the night but nevermind.

[rednellie]

Of gin. Damn you sleighbells. Damn you.

[rednellie]

Once I'd got them on solids by their first hour, it was only a matter of time before I started explaining the finer points between different brands if gin...

[IShallCallYouSquishy]

I wanted to wait until 6 months but started at 23 weeks due to problems with my DD's weight.

I was very upset to do it early (irrational and PFB!) but it's what my DD needed. She's now 30 weeks and loves her food so was definitely the right decision for us.

[Aloha31]

• she not age

[Aloha31]

It's always relatives! My dn and dd are same age, at a family do (in uk, im from there) an uncle gave dn a bit of cake! He was only 5mo, sister was livid! I spent same party with aunties telling me I had to give my ebf dd, 4mo, juice as age needed it, breastmilk didn't quench thirst!
I just smiled and said I would later on....

[exBrightonBell]

Thanks Blondie

I just know that my relatives will be asking on Xmas day if he'll be having anything...

[Aloha31]

I don't think you did say that, tbh. I'm sorry if you think that.

I'm in one of the 65% of eu countries which has interpreted the guidelines as a window between 17 and 26 weeks rather than a blanket rule. As you can imagine, a thread like this wouldn't be relevant. It's quite common for research to be interpreted differently, no one is "right".

Mums are just doing their best!