What solids to start with confused

[rebecca-isabella mum]

Hi

I am due to return to work on the 1st Nov BOO BOO!! I will only be doing three days a week so DD will be spending those three days split between my Mum and Aunt. I want to be prepared for everything so i dont have to worry when the dreading date arrives!!

I am completely confused about what solids i such introduce first. Can anyone please help??


Rebeccaxx

[Tonya]

They generally reccomend starting on veggies first, then fruits.
Yellow veggies first - squash, sweet potatoes, carrots.  Then the green veggies, green beans, peas, then fruits.
You want to do fruits after veggies, so they don't get addicted to sweets :lol: and only want fruit!

Make sure you go at least 5-7 days on each new item, so you can make sure there is no allergy.  Once they make it that long and no allergy shows, you can introduce the next food.  (All the while, still feeding the first food).

Make sense?  Hope that helps!

[maggieruth]

also, try new foods early in the day (breakfast or lunch) so that if you do get a bad reaction that you won't have a sleepless night because of it!

[GG]

I have just started ds on solids (after talking to his pediatrician and doing a little research on my own) and I agree with both these ladies.  :-)

I'll just add that, at first, you'll give a couple of tastes, so that dd starts getting used to something other than milk, not more than a tablespoon.  The lo's reaction is priceless!   

[rebecca-isabella mum]

Ok i may be asking a completely stupid question but how would you cook these? Whats the best method i mean?  :oops:  Do you feel sorry for my DP? He never gets fed!!

Rebeccaxx

[Tannis]

I thought you were supposed to start on rice cereal, and then move to other cereals? My little guy doesn't like rice cereal, is it ok to skip it??

[tylersmommy]

This website has a wealth of information on what to feed your baby, how to prepare and store it, etc.
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/solids.htm
Rebecca, if you're planning to make your own baby food instead of buying jarred food, you might consider getting a book to help you out. I've heard good things about Annabel Karmel's book, and I used Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. It has tons of info in it and is intended for babies new to solids all the way through toddlerhood. If you plan to make your own, skip carrots, green beans, and peas for now...homemade carrots aren't safe until your baby is older, and it's darn near impossible to get a smooth consistency with peas and green beans. Some of Tyler's first homemade purees were sweet potato, squash, avocado, and banana.

Tannis, you're correct, most people do start with rice or other baby cereal. It's not required, but it does help ease some babies' transition into solid food because it can be mixed with formula or breastmilk, an already-familiar taste, and you can easily control the consistency. It's okay if you're LO doesn't like rice cereal, you can try any other single-grain baby cereal (oatmeal, barley, etc), provided you wait a few days in between introductions to watch for allergies and tummy problems.

[rebecca-isabella mum]

Hi Melissa thanks for the link its great! I will also try to get those books from Amazon.

I thought i would make my own food for DD . I dont really like the idea of jarred baby food- you dont really know whats in them, and if i make my own i know exactly what she is having!

Also im not a fan of baby rice as i know a few people who started their babies on it and made them have bad tummies. But then not all babies are the same!

Thanks again Melissa

Rebeccaxx

[bheemeryck]

I used the 'Super Baby Food' book, and it's a WEALTH of information... she's even got me making my own homemade yogurt- (I feel a little like Martha  :wink: ) but it is a lot cheaper than the grocery store!! She has pages of foods to introduce and when, how to serve them to get the best nutritional value out of it, her meal suggestions veer a little to the vegetarian side, but it's good to consider all kinds of foods!!

[Tannis]

The Baby's Table is also a good book with how to cook and recipes and such!!

[Arwyn's mom]

Tannis, since we are in the same neck of the woods, here is my 2 cents worth.

All the literature given to me indicates to start with single grain cereals first in the following order... rice, barley, oats, wheat. Wheat is apparently highly allergenic so, you can choose to wait on it.

Next are veggies, then fruits, then meat after age 1.

I have the Baby's Table (great book) and also Homemade Baby Food Pure & Simple. I like both books. Pure & Simple has a chart of what foods to introduce when.

[Tannis]

Hi Ankie.. I am still sticking with the rice cereal for now. And I mix food in it. Some of the posts suggest holding of on the wheat for quite a bit and it makes sense to me. Right now he's teething and growing and moving and I'm having such a time getting him to sleep etc. that I don't need anything else disrupting him... such as wheat which is more allergenic. Ugh... so confusing. What is Arwyn on?

[Arwyn's mom]

Hi Tannis,

How old is your lo? And when did you introduce solids? I ask because once they are 6 months, they can have a whole bunch of fruits and veggies.

Arwyn has been on rice cereal for 10 days now. We just fed her sweet potatoes tonight. She seems to like it. I'm planning on sticking to rice cereal until Sunday. Then I'll introduce barley for a week and then oats. I don't plan to give wheat until 12 months. At this very moment, she is making a grand old mess of her arrowroot cookie. I don't know about the timing of such cookies but I figure so little of it gets into her that it doesn't matter.

You can shorten the wait time to introduce new foods to 3 days. I have just chosen to wait longer. I also made my own baby food using the two books in my previous post. It is SO easy!