Introducing solid food to baby can be a bit tricky if it’s your first time. This article will give you all the tips and info you need about introducing solid food to baby. If you have any questions about introducing solid food to baby, feel free to contact us for more info.

Generally, the baby becomes capable of handling solid food when he is around six months old, so that is a very good time to introduce him to his new diet. Until then, all his nutritional needs are managed by breastfeeding or formula feeding. You should be very careful about not giving him any solid food until he nears the six months old mark.

 

Ready for introducing solid foot to baby?

Here are some of the signs that will help you in guessing exactly when your baby is ready to go beyond the fluid-only diet:

  • Your baby starts keeping his head under control; you don’t need to support it any longer.
  • Your baby stops using his tongue to ‘eject’ food from his mouth.
  • He is sitting well without any support.
  • Your baby makes chewing motion in his mouth.
  • Growing appetite (number of breastfeeding sessions increase considerably) and significant weight gain.
  • He starts ‘eyeing’ what you eat.

 

Tips for introducing solid food to baby

You can use the following steps as a guide:

  1. Nurse him first with your milk or the bottle.
  2. Take a rubber-tipped spoon, pour some formula or your own milk into it and then dissolve some rice or cereal into it to form a semi-liquid paste.
  3. Feed this to him using the tip of the spoon.
  4. Be careful in not thrusting the spoon directly into his mouth. Give him some time to analyze the food and form his opinion. If he eats it, he is interested and if he doesn’t, then try this some other time.
  5. Start with only one feeding a day. Gradually, your baby will eat what’s on the first spoon, then go onto the next, and then onto the next feeding. Also, increase the consistency of the food and make it more solid in the days that follow.
  6. Continue breastfeeding or formula-feeding for at least a year or so.

When your baby starts turning his mouth away from the food, playing with the spoon (or food), or simply refuses to open his mouth (allow him time to swallow first), be quick to realize that he has had enough.

Gradually, introduce more solid food but wait for at least three days before you introduce another one into his diet. This will allow you time to judge whether he is allergic to a certain food or not (diarrhea or gas can be some of the signs). Introduce him first to semi-liquid-fluid-mixed food first, then go onto strained and mashed vegetables and fruits and then to finely chopped things including meat.

Try to set up a routine with his eating time, so that he becomes more relaxed and disciplined early in his life.

You may also find interesting:

  1. Introducing Solid Foods To Infants
  2. What to Feed Babies With?
  3. Baby Gags, What To Do?
  4. Feeding An Infant To Sleep Through The Night
  5. Best Baby Finger Foods

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Filed under: Feeding & Nutrition For Infants

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