How can you ensure your baby is getting the right food to help their brain development? We’ve put together a list of 10 nutrient-rich food types that will and promote brain cell growth.

1. Breast Milk

   Your breast milk contains immune-boosting nutrients that will actively encourage the growth of myelin (mentioned above). Other immune-boosting components can only be found in breast milk.

2. Healthy Fats

   Healthy fats found in avocados, nuts, eggs, and raw oils, are necessary for your baby’s brain development. They both insulate and enhance growth in the nervous system. Healthy fats also help create new nerve connections and new growth of brain cells.

   You can still even go for less healthy full-fat dairy products from the age of 1, to help your child grow, but begin to cut down on these when they are two, according to the NHS.

3. B-complex

   B-complex supports brain health and improves mental performance by helping convert food to energy. The high levels of B-complex vitamins in avocados reduce the risk of hypertension in babies. You can also find it in oats, dairy, eggs, leafy greens and seeds. B vitamins are not produced in your baby’s body so need to come from their diet.

   Soft foods like these can officially be introduced from six months.

4. Omega Fatty Acids

   The three main types of omega fatty acids are found in flaxseed and fish. Broccoli is high in DHA, (as well as oleic acid which protects myelin), making it a great food for your baby’s cognitive growth. It can also reduce inflammation and lower the risk of chronic disease later in life.

   Fish specifically can be introduced from six months, for your baby to avoid developing an allergy.

5. Probiotics

   Probiotics help to build a strong environment for good bacteria. Recent studies have found a strong link between our gut and our brain. Yoghurt (live, probiotic) is a great source for good bacteria. Fermented food such as sauerkraut, miso, tempeh, and kombucha also contain probiotics.

   As babies are born with a sterile, bacteria-less GI, feeding them specific probiotic supplements for their first three months may help prevent colic and reduce their crying time, but only under the recommendation of a doctor.

6. Antioxidants

   Antioxidants boost immune defenses and are important for your new-born baby. They can stimulate genes and protect them from viruses. Most fruit and vegetables contain antioxidants, however, some of the higher carriers are berries, grapes, green leafy vegetables, red cabbage, garlic, and olives.

   These should be introduced at six months, with other solid foods.

7. Fiber

   Fiber helps regulate the release of glucose into your baby’s body. Their brain needs a constant supply of glucose. Fiber-rich foods such as whole grains, berries, vegetables like carrots and broccoli, and nuts and seeds, will do their job! A recent study examining children’s dietary intake concluded that it children with a higher fiber intake performed far better in cognitive tasks.

   However, the NHS says to only introduce much more wholegrain foods after the age of two.

8. High Mineral Foods

   Minerals such as iron, calcium, and zinc are critical for a strong nervous system. A strong nervous system will help your baby’s body to send messages from the brain to the rest of their body. Calcium can be found in dairy and leafy greens and will help bone growth and strength. Iron is necessary to carry oxygen around your baby’s body and can be found in red meat, cacao or dark chocolate, and leafy greens. Zinc is important for enhancing memory. Nuts, legumes, eggs, and dairy are all rich in zinc.

   Nuts specifically should be ground up before serving, and eggs fully cooked, but beyond that this beneficial food group has few dangers. In fact, iron is imperative, because a baby’s natural store of iron gets used up by six months.

9. Lean Protein

   Protein is an important part of your baby’s growth process because it forms part of all the cells in the body. It also strengthens and makes new cells. Netrin, a lean protein, can help create a healthy nervous system in a baby’s developing brain, by directing the cells to make the right connections. Healthy protein can be found in dairy, nuts, seeds and lean white meat like turkey.

10. Vitamin E

    Studies have shown that the area of the baby’s brain connected with memory and language development, are richer in natural vitamin e. Most nuts are high in this vitamin along with oats, seeds, green vegetables, and avocado.

    Premature babies may lack vitamin E, in fact.

You can feed your baby’s brain to nurture their mind. A diet comprising the foods above is necessary for the best growth possible, which will enhance your child’s intellectual growth. With a diverse and nutritious diet, you will encourage healthy growth and brain development in your baby.

Author Bio: Beatrice, a professional copywriter for Origin Writings and Academic Brits, is focused on lifestyle and child-rearing articles. She enjoys sharing her personal experiences as a mother and helping other parents raise their young kids. Beatrice also works for PhD Kingdom as a writer.

The post 10 Superfoods for your Baby’s Brain Development appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

Some opinions are based in solid, researched evidence (for example, there’s plenty of evidence to indicate that breastfeeding is a healthier option for babies than formula-feeding.) Other opinions, however, will be based less on facts and more on past experience. You may hear a number of people say, “My mom did this with me!” or “My grandmother had 8 children, and she always did this…”

Putting Cereal In Your Baby’s Bottle

For example, you may have friends or family members suggest that you feed your baby cereal in a bottle. People often suggest this to parents whose babies don’t sleep, or whose babies don’t seem to be gaining much weight.

So, is this a good recommendation? Will putting cereal in your baby’s bottle help her sleep well, or eat more, or gain weight?

Is Putting Cereal In Your Baby’s Bottle A Good Idea?

Probably not. There are many risks associated with feeding your young baby (under 6 months) cereal from a bottle. Some of those risks include…

• Choking. Adding cereal to a bottle thickens the milk. This makes it harder for young babies to swallow, increasing the chances that they’ll “aspirate” (or inhale) the thickened milk and choke on it.
• Increased food allergies. There’s lots of evidence to suggest that introducing solids to a baby before 4 months of age significantly increases the risk that the baby will develop food allergies. This is because a young baby’s digestive system isn’t mature enough to handle solid foods until 4-6 months of age. We discuss food allergies in more detail in this post; check it out for more information.
• Habitual overeating.Babies who take cereal from a bottle tend to drink more than babies who drink straight breastmilk or formula. This is the idea behind putting cereal into the bottle in the first place — that baby will take in more food. The problem is that when a baby routinely and consistently takes in large quantities of thickened milk, it can lead to a habit of overeating. And since childhood obesity rates are already problematic (and are on the rise), we definitely don’t want to teach our little ones to overeat from birth!
• Lower nutrient intake. When parents add cereal to a bottle, they often reduce the amount of breastmilk or formula they put into the bottle (to make room for the added cereal). This is dangerous. For the first 6 months of life, breastmilk and formula provide all the nutrition a baby needs, while cereal provides little nutritional value until after 6 months. So if your baby is taking in less breastmilk and formula, he’s getting less of the vital nutrients he needs.

Will Putting Cereal In Your Baby’s Bottle Help Her Sleep Better?

This is usually the number one reason that parents even consider putting cereal in their baby’s bottle — friends and family members assure them that a little cereal in the bottle will help baby sleep longer and better. And for exhausted, sleep-deprived parents, even a little extra sleep sounds too tempting to pass up!

However, before you go racing to fill your infant’s bottle with rice cereal, you should know something — there’s no evidence that feeding your baby solids (whether by spoon or by bottle) will help her sleep better. That’s because when babies wake at night, they’re not just waking from hunger — they’re waking for a variety of other reasons (like sleep associations.) So adding cereal to your baby’s bottle likely won’t make a difference in her sleep, but it will put her at risk for a variety of complications.

Will Putting Cereal In Your Baby’s Bottle Help With His Reflux?

If your baby struggles with reflux, you may have heard friends and family members suggest adding cereal to his bottle as a way to thicken the milk and help it say down. Is this a good idea? Does it work?

The reviews on this are mixed. Some pediatricians actually recommend this to parents, and many parents claim that mixing cereal into their babies’ bottles reduces spitting up. However, other pediatricians caution that while adding cereal might reduce episodes of spitting up, it doesn’t actually cure the reflux. Others advocate for using a special reflux formula.

The bottom line: if your baby suffers from reflux, check with your pediatrician before making any changes to his diet.

Our Recommendation

Here’s our advice, for all parents: don’t add cereal to your baby’s bottle unless your doctor has advised you to. There are far too many risks associated with feeding your baby cereal from a bottle, and there are no actual benefits. Instead, stick with feeding your infant breastmilk and/or formula, and hold off on offering solids until close to 6 months of age.

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

What are your thoughts on feeding a baby cereal from a bottle? Share them below!

The post Should You Feed Your Baby Cereal From A Bottle? appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

There’s no way to predict how your baby will react to new foods. But there are steps you can take to help your baby enjoy her new food as much as possible.

• Offer the breast or a bottle before offering a new food.

  This is good advice to follow anyway (especially when you’re first starting solid foods.) The idea here is that your baby will be calmer and more receptive to solid food if he’s not totally hungry. It’s especially important to do this when you’re about to offer him something new.

• Offer new foods when your baby is well-rested.

  You know by now that when your baby’s exhausted, nothing goes well. And feeding is no different! So pick a time during the day when you know your baby will be rested and happy — maybe after her morning nap — and offer the brand-new food then. This’ll help ensure she has the positive attitude and patience she’ll need to try something new.

• Offer a small amount of the new food.

  Feeding your little guy spinach for the first time? This is not the moment to make a big ol’ serving! Instead, prepare a half-sized portion of the new food. If your baby loves it, you can always make more; if he isn’t so receptive, you won’t be wasting a bunch of leftover food. And as you feed the new food to your baby, offer half-sized spoonfuls — just enough to give him a taste.

• Alternate a new food with a familiar one.

  If you’ve got a stubborn baby on your hands who simply doesn’t embrace new foods, you may have to resort to a few tricks to get a new food into her belly! This trick is simple: you prepare two dishes of food, one being a food that she’s familiar with, and the other being a food that’s new. As you begin to feed, offer a few spoonfuls of the familiar food first. Then, offer a spoonful of the new food. Follow it up with another spoonful of the familiar food.

  This can help “soften the blow” of a new food. You might find that your baby is willing to take a few spoonfuls of the new food if she also gets spoonfuls of something that’s familiar, and that she likes. This is also a good technique to use when you’re feeding baby something she’s tried before and hates. I use this trick a lot with my youngest, who’s a major vegetable-hater!

• Be calm and stay patient.

  It can be so frustrating trying to feed a baby a food he clearly doesn’t like. You know he needs to eat his broccoli, but he has other ideas! But it’s important that you remain patient and calm throughout a feeding that isn’t going well. Our babies are smart, and they tend to pick up on our own anxiety. If your baby senses your frustration, it’ll likely only make things worse.

• Don’t give up — keep trying!

  Your baby may reject avocado the first time you offer it, but that doesn’t mean she’ll refuse the third or fourth (or fifth) time you try. If a feeding isn’t going well, it’s okay to put away the new food for the day and take a break. But you should bring it out a day or two later, and try again. Experts agree that it often takes a baby a few tries to develop a taste for something new.

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

What steps do you take to offer a new food to your baby? Any tips for moms who are new to this? Share your advice below!

The post The Best Ways to Introduce New Foods To Your Baby appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

Since reflux is a digestive issue, introducing solid foods to your baby will definitely have an impact on her reflux symptoms. Some parents find their babies’ reflux symptoms actually improve with the introduction of solid foods; others find that starting solids increases reflux symptoms like gas and vomiting.

5 Tips For Feeding Babies With Reflux

Does your baby struggle with reflux? Below, we’ve included 5 tips to help you feed solid foods to your baby with reflux.

Offer good “first foods”.

Rice cereal is usually considered a good first food for babies without reflux, and it may be fine for a baby with reflux, too. However, rice cereal has been known to cause constipation and gas in some babies, so you may want to avoid offering it right away, if your baby has reflux.

Instead, consider starting with these foods:

• Avocado — Foods that are high in fat, like avocados, can be good for babies with reflux. Babies with reflux may eat less than babies without, so it’s considered good practice to offer them high fat, high calorie foods.)
• Pears — Pears are one of the least acidic fruits, and since acid can trigger reflux, pears make a great first food for your baby.
• Bananas — Bananas have been shown to actually help with digestion.

Avoid foods that are known to trigger reflux.

Foods that are known to cause gas can cause lots of pain and discomfort for a baby who already struggles with reflux. Those foods include:

• Onions
• Garlic
• Broccoli
• Cucumber
• Brussel sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Corn

Other foods that have been known to increase reflux symptoms include:

• Dairy products (particularly milk)
• Acidic foods, like tomatoes and oranges
• High-fat meats
• Carbonated drinks (not that you should be offering those to your baby anyway! 😉 )

Stick to the 4 Day Rule.

Remember the 4 Day Rule? Essentially, the 4 Day Rule advises you to wait 4 days between introducing new foods to your baby. This allows you to figure out which (if any) foods your baby might be allergic to.

This rule works for babies with reflux, too. After you’ve offered your baby a new food, wait a few days to see if it triggers any reflux symptoms. This’ll make it much easier for you to uncover your baby’s “trigger foods” and keep those out of her diet as much as possible.

Offer frequent, small meals (but not too close to bedtime!)

Your baby will have an easier time digesting small quantities of food than larger ones. And for some babies, eating large meals triggers reflux symptoms. So consider creating your own daily feeding schedule that’ll include 4 or 5 (or even 6) small meals.

What’s more, avoid offering your baby any solids in the hour before bedtime. This’ll help ensure that if he does have any reflux symptoms after eating, they won’t interfere with his nighttime sleep.

Keep your baby upright.

If your baby’s struggled with reflux since birth, you probably know this one already. The fact is that keeping your baby in an upright position after feeding can actually help him digest food, and can help prevent vomiting. This is true for babies when they’re breastfeeding or bottle feeding; it’s also true for babies when they’re eating solid foods!

Sit babies upright when it’s time for a solids meal, and avoid laying them down flat on their backs (or their stomachs) after eating. It’s also recommended that you avoid placing your baby in a walker or exersaucer (or anything else that’ll put pressure on his stomach) after he’s eaten.

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

Does your baby have reflux? Do you have any tips to offer on feeding solids to a baby with reflux? Share your story and advice!

*Some of this information was taken from homemade-baby-food-recipes.com.

The post Feeding Solid Foods To A Baby With Reflux: 5 Tips appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

At this point in our article series, we’ve laid a good foundation for starting your baby on solids.  We’ve learned when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, and how your baby may react after starting to eat solid foods.  But, wait, how do you physically feed your baby solids and at what time of day?

How to Feed Your Baby:  When Should Meals Happen?

Some parents find themselves wondering when solid feedings should happen — first thing in the morning?  Before bed?  Three times a day?  In the first week or so of starting solids, it’s probably best to start off with one or two “meals” of solid foods each day.  And keep in mind that it’s best to feed your baby when she’s well-rested — that’ll ensure she has the energy to tackle this challenge!  Finally, avoid trying to feed your baby solids when she’s very hungry; as the video mentioned, she probably won’t have the patience!  Instead, nurse your baby first (or offer her a bottle); then, when she’s had her fill of milk, offer her a few spoonfuls of solid food.

How to Feed Your Baby:  Getting Situated

The first step to feeding your baby is to get her comfortably seated.  You may opt to place your baby in a highchair for feeding time, but as you probably noticed while watching the video, that’s not your only option. You may want to place your baby in her Bouncy Seat or another type of infant seat (just be sure not to set your baby on a table or counter while in their seat), or you may find it easiest to have someone else hold her on their lap while you feed her.  Ultimately, do whatever makes you and your baby most comfortable.

How to Feed Your Baby:  The Right Equipment

Having the right tools for feeding is essential.  It’s best to use a small, flat, plastic (or rubber-tipped) spoon so that your baby can easily suck food from it.  And plastic bowls are best to start with; there’s always a chance your munchkin will get his hands on it!  Remember, if you choose plastic utensils and dishes, make sure they’re BPA-free.)  Finally, it’s necessary to have plenty of bibs (and consider water-proof ones) on hand, as they’re going to get dirty fast!

How to Feed Your Baby:  Quantities and Kinds of Food

In these early days of starting solids, you’ll probably feel like your baby is hardly eating anything.  Don’t worry — that’s normal!  Start off small — offer 1 tablespoon of food at each meal, and then gradually increase the quantities as your baby becomes used to solids.

As for the types of foods to offer your baby in the beginning, you can refer to our “How To Introduce Solid Foods To Your Baby” article, or our Solid Foods Charts for tips on what kinds of foods are best to begin.

“Sweet” foods (like carrots, sweet potatoes, fruits, etc.) are good first foods since they mimic the sweet taste of breastmilk.  And infant cereal mixed with breastmilk or formula can be good to start with as well.

Whatever foods you introduce first, remember that their texture should be thin and perfectly smooth, so that baby is able to easily swallow them.  Down the road, you’ll be able to introduce lumpy, mashed foods, and eventually, small pieces of finger good!  But for now, stick to runny purees.

Remember to introduce foods one at a time and to allow at least a few days to pass before introducing a new food.  This will help you monitor for food allergies; it’ll also help your baby get accustomed to the taste of each food before you start mixing them together in the later months.  Finally, make it a priority to introduce a variety of foods to your baby.  This may help produce a less-picky eater in the months to come!  And remember — just because you don’t like something doesn’t mean your baby won’t like it!  Personally, I’m not a fan of pureed prunes, but my daughter loved them when she was 7 and 8 months old.

How to Feed Your Baby:  Have Fun!!

It’s appropriate to end with that reminder, don’t you think?  It can be easy to get lost in the details and questions about starting your baby on solids, but remember to stop and enjoy this process.  This is one of the first of many milestones you and your baby will share, so snap a few pictures!  These first few meals of solid foods will be precious memories in the years to come.

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

Have any tried-and true tips for how to feed a baby solid foods?  Share them here!

The post How To Feed Your Baby Solids appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

We know that when it comes to baby schedules, moms like to have the basics presented to them in a clear, easy-to-understand way.  We’ve attempted to do just that in this article.  Below, you’ll find two simple charts:   one outlines the types of solid foods you can feed your baby, by age; the other highlights amounts and serving sizes, by age.  Use both as a guide as you shop for and prepare your baby’s foods.

Remember, these charts are a general guide — they’re not set in stone!  If your baby eats more servings of vegetables in a day than we’ve recommended here, good for him!  We’ve simply grouped the foods based on their digestability, texture, and allergy risk.  What’s more, the serving sizes we recommend are general ranges, but all babies are unique.

You’ll also notice that this chart shows solid food beginning between 4-6 months. You can start small amounts of solid food as early as 4 months; however, based on the most recent health information, we recommend waiting until closer to 6 months to start solids.

As you look over the recommended amounts of solid food, keep one thing in mind: you should always prioritize your baby’s breastmilk or formula intake over your baby’s solid food intake. In other words, if your baby isn’t drinking the recommended amounts of breastmilk or formula, but is eating plenty of solid food, be sure to decrease their solid food intake and really focus on making sure they’re drinking the recommended amounts of breastmilk or formula.

Finally, keep in mind that the information offered here should never replace the advice or guidance of your baby’s doctor.

TYPES OF SOLID FOODS BY AGE

AMOUNTS OF SOLID FOODS BY AGE

*1 serving of “other grains” = 1/2 slice of bread, 2 crackers, 1/2 cup Cheerios, or 1/2 cup whole wheat pasta

**You can offer small amounts of juice at this age, too, but based on pediatric dental recommendations, we don’t advise offering much juice at all (if any).  We also advise that parents offer breastmilk or formula first.  Only offer juice or water if your baby is getting the breastmilk and/or formula he needs each day.

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

Have anything you’d like to add to our chart? Share your input below!

The post A Solid Foods Feeding Schedule: Types and Amounts of Solid Foods By Age appeared first on The Baby Sleep Site - Baby / Toddler Sleep Consultants.

So you now know when to start your baby on solid foods, and you may have decided that the time is now — your baby’s ready!  Now, it’s time to feed your little one solids for the first time.  But that can be easier said than done.  How should you introduce solids?  What foods should you begin with? Cereal? Fruits and Veggies? Help!

Introducing Solids:  What Should Be Your Baby’s First Foods?

When it comes to introducing solids, infant cereals (particularly rice cereal) are traditionally recommended as the best first foods for baby.  These make great starting foods because their texture is soft and smooth, and their taste is fairly bland.  They can also be mixed with formula or breastmilk, making their flavor familiar to baby and making the transition to solids even easier.  Finally, infant cereals are unlikely to cause an allergic reaction, and they’re fortified with iron (something babies start needing more of around 6 months of age).

However, research has shown that cereal is not always the best starting food for babies.  Today, some health experts recommend starting with fruits and vegetables (pureed, of course), or substituting whole grain oatmeal for powdered infant cereal. They suggest that bananas, avocado, or sweet potatoes are excellent first foods since they’re sweet (like breastmilk) and easy to mash.

In general, it’s best to delay the introduction of allergy-causing foods (see below) and start with foods that are considered safe for your 4-6 month old baby (like the ones listed above). Of course, all babies are different and we’ve heard of babies being allergic to even banana. This is rare, but you will want to take it slow with any new foods (see “4-day rule” below)!

Introducing Solids:  What About Food Allergies and Eczema?

Food allergies can make any mom worry, but you may be particularly concerned if you have a family history of food allergies or of eczema (a skin condition that can be an indicator of food allergies.)  If that’s the case, you will want to be even more careful about watching for allergic reactions in your baby or how you introduce new foods to your baby.

Regardless of whether or not your family has a history of food allergies, it’s recommended that you introduce individual foods one at a time.  In other words, don’t mix peas and carrots together if both are brand new foods for your baby.  Offer them separately.  What’s more, you should follow the “4 Day Rule”:  wait about 4 days in between introducing a new food to your baby. That will give you time to see if an allergic reaction develops, and it’ll help you better determine which food is responsible for the reaction.  And if food allergies run in your family, be especially careful to introduce foods this way. You don’t have to delay introducing any foods – the old “rule” to introduce typically allergenic foods like peanuts and shellfish after 12 months of age no longer applies. However, if you are introducing an allergenic food – especially if a history of such allergies runs in your family – observe your baby closely after offering that particular food.

Food Sensitivities/Intolerances vs. Food Allergies

Keep in mind, too, that while your baby may not develop a true food allergy, he may have some food sensitivities or food intolerances.  Food sensitivities and intolerances are more common than true food allergies.  For instance, true milk allergies aren’t that common, but milk sensitivities and intolerances are.

In addition, The symptoms of food sensitivities and intolerances are usually less severe than true food allergies.  For example, after eating a new food, you might notice that your baby has a night of poor or restless sleep.  Or you might notice that he seems gassy after eating something new.  These can be signs of a food intolerance.

For more information about food intolerances/sensitivities, and how they’re different from true food allergies, check out this article on mayoclinic.com.

Introducing Solids: Should I Still Breastfeed/Bottle Feed?

Oh, yes!  The fact that your baby is eating solids now doesn’t mean you should cut out (or even cut back on) breastmilk or formula.  The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that breastmilk or formula be your baby’s primary source of nutrition for the first year.  Therefore, your goal in introducing your baby to solids isn’t to provide her with nutrition that she’s not getting from breastmilk or formula.  Breastmilk and formula still give her all the nutrition she needs.  Rather, you’re introducing solids in order to give her some practice at eating (and eventually feeding herself) solid foods.  To be sure that your baby’s getting enough breastmilk or formula, check out our Amounts of Solid Foods by Age chart; it includes recommended daily amounts.

Keep this in mind as you start feeding your baby solids; if you notice that he’s eating more and drinking less than his required daily amount, reduce the amount of solid food you offer and try to increase his nursing or bottle feeding to ensure that he’s getting enough breastmilk or formula.  Solid food will fill him up (and those extra calories will be necessary as he gets bigger), but it won’t offer the same nutrition as breastmilk or formula.

Introducing Solids:  Slow and Steady is the Way to Go!

A final word about how to introduce solids:  make “slow and steady” your mantra as you introduce your baby to this new way of eating.  Remember, this is a big change for your baby — her eating now involves new tastes, new textures, and new skills on her part (like chewing!)  As with anything new, your baby’s going to need some practice with eating solid food before she gets “good” at it.

So be prepared to be patient.  In the beginning, meals will likely be long and messy.  You may wonder if your baby’s gotten any food in his belly after you see how much he’s managed to smear in his hair and on his face! That’s the fun part! 🙂 Or, you may find that it takes 45 minutes to get finish a few tablespoons of cereal.  But that’s okay!  It’s all part of the learning process.  Slowly, steadily, your baby will figure it out, and eating will be more fun and less work!

Everything You Need To Know About Starting Solids – All In One e-Book!

What if you could find everything you needed to know about starting your baby on solid foods – when it’s best to start solids, how to introduce solids, complications, food allergies, etc. – in one easy-reference guide? Now you can! Your Baby’s Start To Solid Foods: A Comprehensive Guide will walk you through every step of starting solids. Plus, your e-Book package includes several bonus materials, designed to maximize your success in starting solids. You’ll get a thorough guide to treating constipation, a dietitian’s advice on how to avoid 5 common solid-foods mistakes, and a weekly meal plan for your baby’s first year. Grab your e-Book today, and ensure your baby has the healthiest possible start to solid foods!

How did you introduce your baby to solids? Share your tips!

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