Ready, Steady, Go! : Starting Baby on Solids

Newborn babies are usually fed only breast milk or formula until they are at least 4 months of age. These are easiest to digest and provide all the essential nutrients for proper growth and development. The Joint Working Group of the Canadian Paediatric Society, Dieticians of Canada and Health Canada recommends that complementary foods (to breast milk or formula) should be introduced at 4 to 6 months of age to meet the infant’s increasing nutritional requirements and developmental needs. It is during this time that infants should be able to adapt to different foods, food textures, colours, and ways of feeding.

The ability to manipulate, chew and swallow different textured foods is an important learned developmental skill. For this reason, being able to vary the consistency of your baby food, from puréed and later to mashed with some more solid pieces, is important in the development of your child’s eating skills. Most often in Canada, babies are first introduced to iron-fortified cereal, then to vegetables, fruits, and finally meats and alternatives.

How do you know if your baby is ready to eat solid foods? By observing your child’s early physical development, you will know when to begin introducing solids to your baby’s diet, usually at 4 to 6 months of age.

Your baby is ready to eat solid foods when:

• Your baby can sit up with support or propped up;

• Your baby can hold up her own head, which means the food can travel down her throat without any problems;

• If breast-fed, your baby needs more than 8 to 10 feedings in 24 hours, empties both breasts at each feeding, and always seems hungry;

• If bottle-fed, your baby drinks at least 1.2 L (40 ounces) per day, empties all bottles, and still seems hungry;

• Your baby has control of her head and neck muscles so that she can lean her head forward to tell you to continue feeding, and pull back or turn her head to tell you to stop feeding;

• Your baby can close her mouth around a spoon when offered food on a spoon.

A few things to consider when introducing new foods to your child are:

• Introduce new foods one at a time, several days apart. This way, if your baby has a REACTION, you will know which food caused it.

• Seat your baby in a high chair for meals.

• Wait for your baby to pay attention to each spoonful before you feed her.

• Give your baby a very little amount of food at first: begin with 1 teaspoon and start with just one solid feed during the day, preferably at lunchtime.

• Listen to when he shows signs of being full. Perhaps try one more time just to make sure but then finish feeding right away so as not to build up feelings of frustration.

• In the beginning, serve solid foods after breast milk/formula so that solid foods do not stop your baby from drinking breast milk/formula. You should not reduce the milk intake as it is till the most important factor for your baby’s growth and development. Once all of the GRAINS have been introduced...

• Introduce new foods in the morning or at lunchtime when the baby is less likely to be fussy.

• Do not force your baby to eat a new food if it is refused. Try again later.

• Use a small and shallow plastic spoon so that your baby can take the food with her lips (babies are not able to lick food off a spoon with their tongues).

• Serve foods in small unbreakable bowls and drinks in plastic cups with lids.

• Do not add butter, margarine, salt, spices, herbs, sugar, and molasses for the first year of life, as these seasonings are difficult to digest.

• Do not use honey or corn syrup for the first year of your baby’s life. Even pasteurised honey can have bacteria, which can make a baby very sick.

Food for your Baby’s First Year - A General Infant Feeding Guide

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