Baby Food

Question: When did you start feeding baby food?

(Posted by: littlelins1 on 2007-08-03 05:11:54)

I am curious as to when people start feeding their children baby food (including cereal). I would like to know how old they were and how you knew they were ready. We had a doctor appt this week and they said I could start it if I wanted, but I'm hesitant because she has a really sensitive tummy. After being heart broken because I couldn't breast feed, it took a while to find a formula that would work. She is on Similac Allimentum and happy (no tummy pain), but not filled up. So, how old were your babies and how did you know they were ready?

Posted by: whiskeyman510 on 2007-08-03, 05:19:45

Well we started introducing foods at about the 5 month mark, in conjunction with still breastfeeding, which most doctors recommend you do for 1 year. We started with some plain cooked rice, and then began with level 1 jarred food - sweet potatoes, bananas, prunes, carrots. Just avoid any potential allergens for now - like dairy & wheat. And of course avoid anything with honey or corn syrup as those can cause botulism in babies. Now my wife makes our own food as it's a lot cheaper and more nutritious since it's not pasturized. Just buy whatever fruits & veggies you want, boil them, and puree them with hand blender, and they will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge in tupperware. My daughter loves food, but still loves to breastfeed too.

Posted by: tyedyestarz on 2007-08-03, 05:16:32

You know when they are ready when they drink and drink and never seem full..when they can swallow food properly just give her/ him a little at a time and wait at least 3-4 day between feeding him/ her something different to make sure he/ she isn't allergic

Posted by: Kovasmomma on 2007-08-03, 05:18:19

Well my oldest had a bad reaction to formula aswell i gave him some very watery oatmeal cereal at 2-3 months remember any time before that they haven't the tolerance for solids yet, they can't digest it and become bloated and swollen. But Technically you aren't to start until they are 3-4 months 4 months you can give them Jars aswell Start with the Oatmeal and then slowly thicken it after 3 weeks you should be in a good place Email me if you want Meg

Posted by: Stacey22 on 2007-08-03, 05:20:22

I started my daughter at almost 3 and half months. She would drink about 8 ounces ever 2 half to 3 hours..she never was full and wouldnt sleep though the night because she would stay hungry and she would watch me eat when i was eating, so i started putting cereal in her bottle and it didnt do to much but make her sleep through the night..and i started her eating green beans and peas she loved them.

Posted by: Katrina on 2007-08-03, 05:29:45

I started my babies on single grain cereals at 4 months old. The doctors recommend that if your baby has a sensitive tummy, or you have a family history of food allergies, to wait until baby is at least 6 months old. You can tell they are ready if they can hold their head up on their own, when they are much more aware of their surroundings. They may reach out for your food, put objects in their mouth, watch you closely as you eat and seem hungry after feedings. I introduced the cereals one at a time staying on only one kind for 4 to 7 days until I introduced all of them. I started stage 1 baby food about 1 month after the cereal. I started with the green veggies introducing them like the cereal, one at a time with about 4-7 days of exclusively that food (and the cereal already introduced) being the only new food. After green veggies I went to fruit and other veggies ending with meat. Mine were on stage 1 foods until they could easily eat them and keep the food in their mouth.

Posted by: bnspearson on 2007-08-03, 05:30:05

I waited until my child was 6 months! Some doctors are recommending as early as 4 months - but from the research that I had done - things said it was best to wait until 6 months unless there was a medical reason to start on cereal earlier. There are a ton of great resources out there on what to feed them when (like foods to avoid). These are guidelines and some people don't follow them. Here are some websites I found with more info: welcomeaddition.com/ feedingbaby/ solidfoods.aspx babycenter.com/ refcap/ baby/ babyfeeding/ 113.html verybestbaby.com/ MyBaby/ Solids.aspx?ArticleId= fdf63878-654b-4bc8-9928-70dd5d98f8e4 And here is my favorite - it has specific suggestions for each food group at each age: wholesomebabyfood.com/ solids.htm Some other tips...For allergy reasons, only start one new food each week or day (depending on the age). Also write down the date each new food was started. I kept this all on one sheet so I could provide a copy to anyone who was babysitting her. I personally didn't give her any nuts until the age of 2 (many wait longer - until 7 - if there is a history of this allergy in the family). Once you have introduced enough foods - you can start mixing. For example, if the baby has already had peaches and rice cereal - then you could combine them. All the stage 1 baby foods in the store are single foods (peaches, pears, apples, beans, etc). The stage 2 foods start mixing foods. The stage 3 foods start getting more texture. Then there are what one brand calls "graduates " - these are for kids who are starting to feed themselves. Some of these are good practice (like the puffs that disolve and don't have to be chewed). Others are just baby versions of adult foods - like crackers and cookies. I personally opted for starting to feed my child wholesome snacks from the other sections of the grocery store (such as whole grain crackers, cut up fruits, cooked veggies, etc). Hope that helps!

Posted by: roo on 2007-08-03, 05:30:53

I gave baby food to my daughter at 4 months old and she had a hard time with her formula she was switched 5 times befor we get the right one and she never had a hard time with baby food my dr. told me that babys tummys constanly change and just because they had tummy problems when the were born dosent mean that they will have them all there lifes it could only last a few months. but if you havd a had time getting her to eat off of a spoon get a feeder its a bottle the you put baby food in and after a wk or to the feeder had a spoon that can go in the place of the nippile so you baby will get use to the spoon insted of just a nipple.

Posted by: poodlelv on 2007-08-03, 05:33:42

My daughter had anal stinosis (diformaty of the rectal muscle) that we didn't know she had until she was about 2 months old and was always constipated. She had surgery at 8 months to correct it. But, anyhow, during that time we had tried several formulas and the one that seemed to satisfy, believe it or not, was a powdered milk called Nido by Nestle and is a powdered milk for kids in Mexico. Go figure! It smelled like butter and she REALLY liked it and seemed to stay fuller longer and no tummy pain. She was almost 4 months when we introduced oatmeal baby cereal and she ate the first bowl but the next time I gave it to her she wouldn't eat it. It tasted nasty. My sister in law gave her a bowl of liquid from a pot of black beans she was cooking and some crumbled up homemade corn tortillas (made with masa not corn meal) and she ate like there was no tomorrow! After that she wouldn't even eat her jar food except for the sweet potatoes - gives a really stinky diaper - or purred peaches. She used to eat baby apple sauce but the first time my sister in law introduced her to real apple (she took the edge of the spoon and scraped the meat inside) with a little under a half teaspoon at a time then that was all she would eat. She even would only eat scraped bananas too! 30 jars of baby food donated to the local food bank! When she was about 6 months old we were at a restaurant and she was watching us eat and would not eat what we brought for her - so I did the old indian thing - and chewed the green beans between my teeth (not chew it like I was going to eat it just the front teeth) and put it on a spoon and she loved it! Meat done the same way- chicken. From that day forward what ever we ate she ate and now it's very healthy food choices without me even making suggestions. They say the best thing for your baby is the real stuff like apples, bananas, pears, mixed with cereal first and the real fruit not the jars, then move up to table food mushed up by hand. You keep more of the nutrients naturally than the processed and added nutrients that baby food has. And definately do not give the rice cereal until they have been eating for at least a month - talk about gas wheeeewwww!

Posted by: denise on 2007-08-03, 08:30:54

I would check with your pediatrician first, but the usual guidelines for a formula fed baby are to start introducing them to cereal @ 4 months. Your baby is physically ready if she can hold her head up good on her own, can sit well with assistance from you, and if her reflex that causes her to push foreign objects out of her mouth with her tongue has gone away. I do not think that introducing solids before that is really unsafe, and babies can go until 6 months before taking solids into their diets. It is always best to trust your gut. I have gone through the solid thing with my four boys, and just introduced cereal to my baby girl......best of luck to you

Posted by: junecleaver1213 on 2007-08-06, 16:48:40

You can introduce ceral to them a 3 months. I started out mixing a small amount with formula.