When did you start weaning your baby?

[Meganrose2000]

Hi everyone,
when did you all start weaning your baby and what were the signs for you that they was ready? My baby girl is coming up to 5 months and she is going to be a little foodie she likes to be involved when we’re all eating she will cry for her bottles and even after that will dribble and try to reach out for our food and opens her mouth it makes me laugh honestly 😂 I have bought pouches of baby food for when she is ready without the textures which is from 4+ months, I know guidelines are to start them on solids from 6 months but parenting doesn’t have a manual. I remember my lad starting at 4 months but can’t remember the signs of him being ready as it was 6 years ago now and he is healthy and caused no issues, I will give her a taste of the sauces from our food on her dummy and she will suck the life out of it and then spit it out for more and she is very advanced for her age, so just wondering about your signs of them being ready.

At six months old as per the most up to date guidance.

I know that you are excited but the best thing you can do is to wait until your baby is around 6 months and shows all the signs of readiness. Babies that are weaned too early are at increased risk of digestive issues, obesity in later life, asthma and many other health problems.
This quiz goes through the signs of readiness.
https://www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/baby/weaning/ready-or-not-weaning-quiz/
The pouches are very misleading as they say from 4 months but they still should not be given until 6 months. There has been a lot in the news recently about baby food and part of that is to do with misleading labelling which will hopefully change soon. Also be aware that the pouches are not a nutritionally complete or a replacement for a meal.https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62j0l0gg4go.amp

The best thing to do is to read the NHS guidance on weaning which is clear about which foods they can have etc. Your health visitor will also be able to give advice and may run courses on weaning. If you want to try more solid foods try the Solid Starts app which shows how to prepare foods safely for different ages (you don't need to pay for it just use the free parts).
https://www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/baby/weaning/how-to-start-weaning-your-baby/

Has there been actually any research into this? I know many people who weaned their child earlier than 6 months and still have no issues later on in life, I was only asking what was the signs of your babies being ready I’m not saying I’m going to do it tomorrow or in a week… not every child is the same & information on children changes so much it’s not the same as it was 6+ years ago, like you can’t keep boiled water in room temp it has to be stored in the fridge so many midwives & health visitors have said the same it’s constantly changing. But yes it is an exciting moment but I know my baby better than anybody so I will start her off whenever I feel like she’s ready not from professionals who don’t know my baby and has only spent 30 minutes for one day in her life, anyways thank you for the advice it is appreciated as always!! 😊

But what if she is showing all of these signs already? She is so advanced she’s even trying to stand & walk 😂 health visitor said it’s a reflex that she’ll grow out of by 3/4 months but she hasn’t, 2025 babies are definitely built differently my son was floppy until 4 months then he started holding his head up on his own whereas she has been doing it since birth

They need to show the signs of readiness and be 6 months I'm afraid. The best thing you can do for her is to hold off till then. Luckily you don't have long to wait if she's 5 months.
It's lovely how proud of your daughter you are though. Good luck with your weaning journey!

Has there been actually any research into this? Yes a very large amount of research which has shown that waiting to 6m is better for babies. This is why the NHS guidance is 6m.

Yes, obviously there has been lots of research. Wait until 6 months.

The NHS don’t pluck recommendations out of thin air. Yes this has been well researched to justify the current recommendations. She is not trying to stand and walk at 4 months, as the health visitor says, it’s reflexive and totally normal - lots of babies do it.

Have a look at the quiz a pp posted earlier and see how she’s doing in terms of signs of readiness, but it’s highly unlikely at 4 months she’s showing all of these. I’d wait at least another month and then re look at it. Our daughter was ready just after 6 months, our son just after 5 months. Being interested in food is not a sign of readiness. You can’t predict how well they will take to it, both mine seemed really interested and desperate to eat. One has been a brilliant baby to wean, the other a total nightmare. There is no need to buy pouches, in fact it is recommended you don’t - they’re mostly full of fruit and are too sweet to use day to day, plus they are highly processed and a lot have minimal nutritional value. They’re fine for emergencies but that’s it. Have a look at some books for suggestions of what you can make at home easily (which is also much cheaper too). Local libraries usually have weaning books or second hand book shops, as people only ever use them short term. Hope it goes well when you do get started!

Why would you ask if you're just going to do what you want anyway? People are trying to help and you just rubbished their replies in your second post

@Grapewine76 re your list of health problems associated with weaning before six months, are you sure you're not thinking of breastfeeding? That sounds to me like the list of benefits of breastfeeding?

OP, the evidence about waiting until six months is mixed, some studies have shown benefits while others have shown the reverse:

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-12180052.amp

https://repository.norland.ac.uk/id/eprint/41/1/Prescott%20Infant%20Weaning.pdf

@GreenAndWhiteStripes No, definitely not thinking of breastfeeding. There is a long list of health issues that are associated with early weaning beyond those I have outlined.
The article that you have linked to is 14 years old. A lot has changed in that time.

That article is more than a decade old! There is some evidence that early introduction of allergens can help prevent allergies, but, on the whole, it's agreed that it's better to wait until 6 months.

Yes a lot has changed in 14 years but not much has changed in 6. The wait until 6 months guidance has been around for at least 9 years, it was definitely around when my eldest was born!

information on children changes so much it’s not the same as it was 6+ years ago, like you can’t keep boiled water in room temp it has to be stored in the fridge

I don’t know what you were reading 6 years ago but this advice has been around for a lot longer than that.

Which is why I also linked to a 2024 paper.

The NHS is behind the times in this actually as research shows early introduction of allergens reduces risks of allergies. Solids should be introduced between 4 and 6 months (6 months being the very latest) when your baby shows signs of readiness - sitting with support (so able to sit up in a normal high chair without falling over or wobbling around), bringing things to their mouth and doesn't push them back out with their tongue. Introduce the main allergens and keep giving them regularly. And just tasting amounts until closer to 6 months, as it mustn't replace milk consumption yet.

This is the advice of the health service in my country, which is evidence based.

Did you read the 2024 paper?

Yes! Did you? It basically shows that the answer isn't clear cut in either direction and there's a lot of inconsistency.

I did. I thought it leant pretty heavily on waiting until 6 months.

It was no earlier than 4 months and the closer to 6 months the better in 1996 when I weaned my first.

My son at 4 months took a bit of toast of my pal, he told us he was ready. I started giving him yoghurts around 4.5 months. I was then advised by hv to start early. He's 9 now and still loves his toast. No other health issues of getting solids early.

What’s the rush? I’d wait the extra month until she’s 6 months as it all goes by in such a flash anyway. The NHS guidance is based on research. They only recommend early weaning for babies with extreme reflux or other issues, as otherwise the risks (e.g. increased likelihood of contracting coeliac disease etc) outweigh the benefits. Congratulations on your little girl x

I did baby led weaning, so absolutely no blended food. Instead, they are given solids from the word go ( pieces of pear, lightly steamed broccoli, banana, strips of chicken or beef that they gnaw on - whatever they can hold onto). When they are very little they grip response is very limited so they can’t do things like pick up a blueberry, which they might otherwise choke on.

The key to BL weaning is you don’t start it until they are able to sit up on their own as they have to be able to lean forward to be able to cough if they need to. For my daughter that was 5.5 months old. It can be messy, as you can imagine, but it means they develop a very sophisticated gag reflex (babies fed mush choke more), they eat what everyone else is eating (and not that horrible baby food), you don’t spend hours blending stuff

I never asked for advice on what age for weaning a baby, I asked what was the signs of them wanting to wean. I know people are trying to help and that’s why I said thanks for the advice.

Ahh thank you, i suppose it is all about texture I think that’s what my problem with my lad was because he started off on purées instead of textured foods he was so fussy about what he ate. Even till today he is fussy about what he eats, he prefers bland foods it’s a struggle to get him to eat his veg so I have to give him multivitamins as well to make sure he’s getting some goodness into his system