Finally, its chow time!!! When to start your baby on solids is a question that is met by a lot of conflicting answers.
However, the current recommendation from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNICEF is that babies are exclusively breast-fed for the first 6 months. Solid foods should then be introduced from 6 months, with breastfeeding continuing up to 2 years. So yea, 6 months.
I know there’s a lot of pressure from family and friends to feed babies earlier than four months but let’s not forget that this recommendation is based on extensive research some of which was not available at the time that you and I were born.
I introduced solids to my little one when she was four months old because the American Academy of Pediatrics say it is best to introduce solid foods when your baby’s between 4 and 6 months. I was comfortable at four months because at four months my baby
- Could sit with very minimal support
- Was twice her birth weight
- Showed a lot of interest in my food
- Could swallow without pushing the food back
So you decide when it is okay to feed solids to your baby.
Here are a few things you will need when you decide to start your baby on solids
1. Food (Obviously)
2. Lot’s of bibs (ideally rubber or plastic easy to clean)
3. Feeding bowls and spoons
4. Water bottles (Shoprite has a lots of beautiful options
5. A good camera for all the lovely facial expressions
Enjoy the journey and bring your sense of humour because you can’t go back. they grow every minute.