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Babies grow quickly in the first year of life, so they need plenty of energy (kilojoules) and nutrients. Children's growth isn't always steady and even but can be in spurts, which means that appetite and hunger can be unpredictable. The amounts of foods eaten by your baby and their interest in food may be a little different from day to day. This is normal and shouldn't cause any concerns if your baby is growing well.
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Later feeding skills
At nine to 12 months your baby will develop other feeding skills including:
- Showing an interest in self-feeding
- Ability to chew lumps in food
- Ability to use a feeding cup
- Independent eating with some assistance.
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Weaning
When solid foods are introduced, it is sometimes referred to as 'weaning'. This is when your baby changes from having milk only to solid foods. From around 12 months on your baby should be ready to eat normal family foods.
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Introduce solids between four and six months of age
Breast milk or infant formula is important food for babies until at least 12 months of age, but it is essential that solid foods are also introduced at the right time. By about six months of age, a baby's iron stores are low and extra foods will be needed to prevent later nutritional problems such as iron deficiency. Start to introduce solids around six months of age - depending on the developmental needs of your child.
Starting solids too early can cause problems
Hungry babies should be offered more breast or formula feeds until they are ready for solids. Some parents want to try solids before four months, believing this may help baby grow, sleep or settle better. Giving solids too early rarely helps these problems and may lead to other difficulties including:
- Greater chance of developing food allergies
- Poor growth, if the solid food replaces breast milk or formula
- Loose bowel actions or diarrhoea, if baby cannot digest the food.
Don't leave starting solids too late
It's also important that starting solids is not left too late, as this may lead to problems including:
- Poor growth due to low energy intake
- Iron deficiency anaemia
- Feeding problems, particularly if not started before about seven to nine months of age.
Clues that your baby is ready for solids
When your baby starts to need the nutrients that solid food can provide, there will also be other obvious signs they are ready to try new foods including:
- Watching and leaning forwards when food is around
- Putting fingers in mouth
- Opening the mouth when food is offered
- Ability to move tongue up and down
- Reaching out to grab food or spoons.
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Physical readiness for solids
Your baby's organs and body grow and develop certain physical traits between four to six months. This indicates that their body is ready physically for solids. This maturing process includes:
- Digestive system - digestive enzymes that help to digest food are developed.
- Immune system - immune gut defence mechanism is fully developed.
- Mouth and tongue - baby is able to move food to the back of the mouth and swallow safely.
- Head and neck - baby is able to hold head up, head control helps baby sit up straight and swallow.
- Kidneys - baby's kidneys can now handle the increased liquid load produced by solids.
Signs that your baby is full
Signs that your baby isn't yet interested or is full may include closing the mouth tightly and turning the head away when fed. They may cry when the food is offered, or push the spoon away. If this happens at your first attempts to feed your baby, relax and try again in a few days. While most babies naturally spit food out when first given solids, they soon learn to swallow if you continue. Getting to know when your baby is hungry or full is important to having happy, relaxed and enjoyable mealtimes.
Tips for introducing solids
Food should never be placed in a feeding bottle, but given on a small, infant-size spoon. Tips for introducing solids include:
- Be calm and relaxed when you start to feed your baby.
- Make sure your child is sitting comfortably and is not too hungry.
- Stay with your baby when they are eating, and let them sit with the family to watch and learn.
- Be patient. Your baby may only take a spoonful at first, but this will increase with time and practice.
- Be prepared, as all babies will make a mess as they learn to eat.
- Stay with your child while eating to avoid accidents such as choking.
- Try again in a day or so if your baby refuses the first time.
- Introduce a new food every few days.
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Suggested first foods
First foods can be prepared easily and cheaply at home without salt, seasonings and sweeteners. The foods should at first be finely mashed and smooth, but you can move on to coarsely mashed foods after a few months. General suggestions include:
- Start with a single food rather than a mixture.
- Offer infant rice cereal first as it makes an ideal first food.
- Give vegetables and fruits next.
- Introduce meats and chicken from six to seven months.
- Give small amounts of cow's milk in custard, yoghurt and on cereal from eight months of age.
- Don't use foods that may cause allergy (egg white and peanut butter) until baby is 10 to 12 months.
- Avoid small hard foods, such as nuts, because babies might choke.
- Fruit juice is not suitable for babies.
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Coarsen the texture
While a baby's first solids should be finely mashed and smooth, they soon need variety in the texture as well as the type of food. Other suggestions include:
- Give finger foods, such as pieces of cooked vegetables and crusts, at about seven months to encourage chewing and self-feeding.
- Give baby a small spoon to encourage self-feeding, even while you continue to give most of the food.
- Encourage drinking from a cup from about seven to eight months of age.
- Progress from food that is pureed to food that is mashed then chopped into small pieces.
By the end of 12 months your baby should be ready to eat a wide variety of family food.
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Introducing cow's milk
Suggestions include:
- Cow's milk is a poor source of iron and is never a substitute for breast milk or formula for babies under 12 months. Continue breastfeeding or using infant formula until your baby is at least one year old.
- Cow's milk contains higher levels of protein, salt, potassium and calcium than breast milk or formula. This can increase the load on the kidneys.
- Cow's milk may be included from about seven months in small amounts as custard or yoghurt or on cereal.
- Milk should not be the main drink until after one year of age or until a range of food is eaten each day, including meat.
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Allergy and vegetarianism
There are issues to consider when you introduce solids to your baby, especially if your baby has shown signs of allergies or your family eats a vegetarian diet.
- Allergy - if there is a strong history of allergy in your family, be cautious when you introduce solids. Seek advice from your doctor or Maternal and Child Health nurse.
- Vegetarians - your baby may need extra nutrients if fed on a vegetarian diet. Seek advice from your doctor or Maternal and Child Health nurse.
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Unsuitable foods
Some foods are not suitable for babies under 12 months. These include:
- Honey - there is a potential risk of bacterial infection from honey.
- Tea - contains tannins that can restrict vitamin uptake.
- Whole nuts - should be avoided due to the risk of choking. If there is no food allergy in your family, nut pastes can be used after 12 months.
- Fruit juice - contains no nutritional benefit and can reduce the amount of milk consumed.
- Reduced fat milk - not suitable for children under two.
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Where to get help
- Your doctor
- Community dietitian
- Maternal and Child Health nurse
Things to remember
- Start to introduce solids around six months of age.
- First solids should be finely mashed and smooth, then graded to coarsely mashed quickly.
- Your baby may only take a spoonful at first, but this will increase with time and practice.
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