Starting weaning before 6 months.

[Iamnotloobrushphobic]

Has anybody here started weaning before 6 months old successfully?
My baby has a couple of allergies including cows milk allergy. The paediatrician advised us to start weaning at around 22 weeks and to start with hypoallergenic foods and introduce a new food every three days to assess for reactions. This method would allow baby to be eating a small variety of foods by 26 weeks old (the usual recommended weaning age).
My baby is 20 weeks old. He tries to grab my breakfast every day and stuff it into his mouth, cue me trying to wrestle it from him. When we sit at the table for dinner he sits with us in his high chair but has started crying to get out and when I put him on my knee he promptly tries to snatch food from my plate.
He has lost the tongue thrust reflex, can hold his head steady very well for a long time and can sit unaided but only for a very very short time. Would it be terrible to start offering him plain veggies now? Could he be ready for solids?

I know advice has changed, but mt youngest is 11yo, and advice for her and my older DC was to wean at 4 months. Everybody started at 16/17 weeks so it is certainly possible.
If your doctor has advised starting early, I would follow his advice, but wait until the 22 weeks.

Seeing as you're under the care of a paediatrician, I would follow their advice. 1 or 2 weeks is no time at all to wait to follow the plan set out for you by the paed.

The trying to grab food thing is just because you're interacting with food and he's curious. At the moment he doesn't have a clue that food is related to hunger. It's not a sign of being ready to wean.

Thanks for the advice speak and seeline.

I do understand that he is too young to associate food with hunger I was just trying to explain that he was interested in food because he sees other people eating and that he has the ability to pick up food and bring it to his mouth which I thought were signs that a baby is getting ready for weaning.

I will probably wait until 22 weeks as it is only another 2 weeks. It is all confusing though that they tell you not to start weaning before 26 weeks but also tell you that you need to start before 7 months otherwise baby might struggle with lumps etc. They also tell you that you need to start at 6 months as breast milk is no longer sufficient on its own past this stage due to iron levels. Obviously I have been advised to start 4 weeks early anyway but I can't understand why that would be okay when usual advice is 26 weeks. I am definitely overthinking this.

What happens if somebody starts weaning at 6 months but baby doesn't take to it for a couple of months, is the lumpy food learning window missed and will baby become iron deficient?

The NHS advice is to start weaning at around 26 weeks. So in my view, a week or two either side would be ok. The iron in breastmilk thing is not as simple as it sounds. The iron in breastmilk is much more easy for a baby to absorb than iron in food or formula. Babies iron stores from birth start to decline from 6 months, but that doesn't mean that there isn't enough iron in breastmilk plus complimentary foods. If you're worried about iron levels then you can give a supplement from 6 months, which is what I did. I gave the Wellbaby drops which have iron plus other vitamins and minerals.

I agree that you're overthinking it - the paed isn't asking you to do anything that is really extreme or unusual.

We did as baby was allergic to milk, and lactose plus bad reflux and extra acid.

But that was under guidance of Doctor, dietician and paediatrician. She was just over 4 months.

10 months old now. Eats everything and anything. Still has nutrimigen formula but 3 meals a day plus snacks. Start with small bits first.