A baby takes time to get used to chewing solid food and it remains a testing yet fun time for the parents, as it is always quite a sight to see the baby smearing food all around. Parents usually remain confused as to when and how to start introducing solid foods into a baby’s diet. It isn’t really that challenging as all you need to do is to follow a few rules and track a few goals in order to ensure that the baby’s diet is perfect for his growing body.

When to Start Introducing Solid Foods

1. The Time

If you go by the recommendations of American Academy of Pediatrics, a baby should be given exclusively breast or formula milk for the first six months. However, seeing that some babies usually show eagerness to eat solid foods after around four months, the ideal time for introducing solid food would be between the fourth and sixth months. There is no need to give your baby anything but breast or formula milk till then, as the milk offers enough calories and nourishment till that point.

2. Signs of Readiness

Your baby would give you enough clues that he is ready for solid food and you should look for these clues before introducing solid food into his diet.

• One of the cues that your baby will give you is that he will be able to sit upright. Sitting upright would help the baby in swallowing the food.
• Your baby may also start to drool less once he is ready for solid foods, as the baby would learn the chewing motion that would help in taking the food to the back of the mouth in order to swallow it. However, it’s not that big an indication as sometimes babies continue to drool even after learning the chewing motions because of teething.
• Your baby would show he’s ready by gaining weight as well. Usually, a baby is usually ready for solid food once has at least doubled his original birth weight.
• Other indicators include an eagerness and curiosity on the part of the baby about the foods that you eat and a hunger that doesn’t die out even after eight to ten milk feeding sessions each day.

How to Start Introducing Solid Foods

1. To Start With

• Feed Rice Cereals in Interval of Breastfeeding or Bottle Feeding

You can start introducing solid foods to your baby by introducing them between the baby’s milk feed. Starting with the normal breast or formula milk, you should make sure that you introduce a small amount of solid food just before your baby is about to have a full stomach. This would keep the baby interested in trying the solid food because the appetite is still there and you can always finish the meal with a little breast or formula milk.

You can start off with a teaspoon or two of baby cereal along with the breast or formula milk or even water so as to make it a soupy solution of sorts. However, you can also start with vegetables, fruits or pureed meats if baby cereal isn’t to yours or to your baby’s liking.

• Pick the Right Time

It doesn’t have to be the morning feed; pick a time that’s convenient for both you and your baby. Most parents have to experiment before they find a schedule that works.

• Be Patient and Let Your Baby Learn to Chew

You shouldn’t worry if your baby doesn’t eat much at the beginning and be patient while the baby struggles with the solid food initially. Once the baby starts to take in around three teaspoons of whichever solid food you were giving him, you should thicken the liquid so as to make your baby practice chewing and swallowing too. You can add another solid food into the diet at this point in time.

2. Then Introduce Fruits and Vegetables as well as Other Foods Gradually

Once your baby has grown accustomed to the first solid food you introduced i.e. cereal, you should include pureed meat, vegetables or fruits in his diet next. You should introduce the foods one by one and take a gap of around five days in order to see whether the baby shows any adverse reaction to any of the foods. Once you have introduced all of the single ingredient foods one by one and seen that the baby has no problems in digesting them, you can start to offer them in combination with one another.

2. Introduce Finger Foods

Once your baby starts to approach his first birthday or is nine or ten months old, you can actually start giving him finely chopped pieces of vegetables, fruits, cheese or any other finger food like baby crackers etc. You can even start to give the baby mashed or chopped versions of the family food once he is about to celebrate his first birthday.

Warnings: You should check with your doctor regarding allergies if any of the baby’s close relatives has a serious allergy. It actually remains a good idea to try allergenic food like peanuts or eggs to your baby once he is ready at home with oral antihistamine present just as a precaution.

How to Introduce Solids to Your Baby: the Signs They Are Ready and What Foods to Introduce at Different Ages

FAQ on Introducing Solid Foods

1. How to Know When My Baby’s Full?

Babies usually give an indication when they have had enough and you should look for these cues while feeding them. It is impossible to calculate on your own whether the baby has had enough food because the appetite can vary from one feeding to another. Usually when the baby starts to move his face away from the food, starts to lean back in his chair or doesn’t open his mouth for the next bite, you should know that the baby’s stomach is full.

2. Do I Still Need to Feed My Baby Breast Milk or Formula?

Until your baby celebrates his first birthday, your baby would need breast or formula milk. While solid foods would offer nutrients as well, they can’t offer all the nutrients that the baby needs during his first year, nutrients that breast and formula milk can provide.

3. How Many Times a Day Should My Baby Eat Solid Foods?

At the start, your baby shouldn’t be eating solid food more than once. However, at around seven months, the baby should be eating two meals having solid food while after eight months, your baby should eat solid food around three times a day.

4. Is Special Equipment Needed?

You would make it easier for your baby and for yourself by having a highchair, a splat mat and plastic spoons. You should also think about getting a baby food grinder if you intend on preparing the baby food on your own.

5. How Should I Introduce New Food?

You should introduce the food gradually and should wait around three to five days between introducing new solid food. You should start with pureed food and then move on to mashed food and finally give the baby finely cut pieces of finger food. Your baby’s stool would change odor and color once you give him solid food. If the stool seems too hard, it would be better to change the fruit or vegetable that you might be giving him.

Watch a Video for More: Introducing Solid Foods to Baby (Tips and Precautions)