What age did you start to introduce baby rice / baby yogs etc

[jemima1988]

I have heard you can start weaning from 4 months. just wondering g when everyone else started and what you started with?

I started at 6 months with steamed veg, pieces of meat, normal plain yoghurt, breakfast cereals etc. I never fed my kids baby rice or baby yoghurt - they are overpriced, unnecessary and not particularly nutritious.

I started with baby rice and home-made purées from 6 months. And introduced a finger foods as well a few weeks on from there. Advice is generally to wait until 6m unless GP or HV suggests otherwise.

Advice at the mo is 6mo, I started on veg purée at 4.5mo as DD had bad reflux and was very hungry (with dr's blessing). Wouldn't bother with baby rice as it's pretty much nutritionless gloop. Good luck.

Exactly the same as pootlebug. Six months, no baby rice or other baby products. Fruit, veg sticks, cheese, full fat yoghurt basically whatever we had minus salt.

Six months here too, with finger foods. Think shr had her first yoghurt at about 8mo as I was anxious about the mess (didnt do spoonfeeding). She got it everywhere but loved it!

Never. Used real natural/greek yog and real rice /rice pudding as much healthier than the baby processed versions.

Around 6 months.

Also same as pootlebug - no baby rice / yoghurt just regular rice and yoghurt and started at 6 months (gave him our food, didn't spoon feed)

Six months and straight on to our food as finger food also. Didn't bother with baby rice at all either.

If you do wean before 6 months, I believe the advice is to avoid dairy before 6 months due to the risk of allergies.

I never fed my baby those products. I waited until she was six months and was guaranteed to have a digestive system formed and then just gave her normal food. No purees, no jars, nothing mashed unless it was mashed potato or something as part of an actual meal.

another one for 'normal' food here! we started at 6 months with finger food, mainly veg and fruit sticks, he does hav 'baby' rice cakes,bread sticks & crackers.

at 7 months he has all sorts, a roast dinner is a particular favourite minus stuffing and gravy!

I started at 4 months with ds1 as he seemed ready. Natural yoghurt and pureed fruit and veg for first couple of months. If you have a slow cooker you can cook porridge in it overnight and it becomes a good consistency for weaning.

IMO hold out to 6 months! Weaning is a faff but obviously mainly as its meant to be 6 months. I gave plain greek tig with puréed fruit or on its own from start and not really much baby rice it's like wallpaper paste

6 months on 'normal' food just small pieces and slightly mashed. Full-fat plain yoghurt with fruit in it. All 'baby' food is over-priced and not particularly nutritious. Even out and about I would rather take a cheese sandwich than use a jar or mystery gloop.

I don't use baby rice either (although with DS I did buy some fruit pots with baby rice in them as he liked them) it is not necessary if you wait till six months, you can use ordinary food either as finger food or blended. Even if you want to start earlier I'd say fruit and veg purees are a better choice than baby rice. The guidelines are six months for good reasons. As for yoghurt, I did give DS some kids yoghurts from about 7 months but full fat plain yogurt with fresh fruit added is much healthier

You should give solids when your baby is sitting up, has lost the tongue thrust reflex and can pick up food, put it in their mouth, chew and swallow. This generally happens somewhere around 26 weeks.

Being hungry, waking up more, watching you eat, dribbling, chewing hands, being 'big' etc are not signs of weaning readiness.

I weaned mine at 27 and 28 weeks respectively. When they were ready. They both just picked up food and off they went. Both went straight onto normal food and just ate with us. No honey, avoid added salt and sugar and no whole nuts.

About 20 and 23 weeks for my 2. 20 week old started with purees, 23 week old started on finger food.

17 weeks is the absolute minimum age. Most babies are on solids before 6 months though.

Another one who didn't bother with baby rice or similar, just straight onto finger food at about seven months. Always kept to the maxim that 'food is for fun until one' as both were also bf until past 2yrs.

Is there any evidence behind that maxim Mrs? Shouldn't food be providing about 50% of nutrition by 12 months?

Same as everyone else. Six months, and tried fullfat plain yoghurt with cut up fruit, boiled veg sticks/mashed veg, babybel cheese, soft toast, cucumber sticks etc. You can get tiny pasta - like the kind you get in soups, I really liked those for having with tomato/veg sauce.
We did try baby porridge, but to be honest it was a nightmare to make up, like cheap wallpaper paste and I gave up and just used normal oats or weetabix.

Started at 6 months with both DC, no baby rice, just real food.

Both were EBF until then, and DC2 was 98th centile in weight, so it's not necessarily the case that big, breastfed babies need weaning earlier.

I think some parents prioritise the fun (LOL!) and excitement of weaning over what's best for the baby's development and gut, and wean too early.

Also, if your baby is waking up more at night, it's likely either the notorious 4-month sleep regression, or, if a need for more food, then it should be more milk. Not food of the sort that's not going to fill up small tummies.

My DS got to almost 6 months before I weaned. It was pureed veg and then finger food. I did try baby rice but he didn't like it much. DD just grabbed herself a piece of DS's banana at 5 months so I figured she was ready. Someone had given me a little steamer than also pureed food so I tended to give her pureed fruit and veg

At around 8 months for DS1 - we spent 3 months weaning him from lactose free to regular formula and didn't want to push it. I think milk contributes for most calories until 12 months or so. Obviously some babies need to take on board more calories earlier (e.g. preterm babies) but DS1 was a huge baby so fine to wait a little longer.

Another who did baby led weaning from 5.5 months, just fruit and veg til 6mo. She has 'adult' porridge oats and full fat natural yoghurt.