How To Start Weaning A Baby

The milk your baby has been drinking for the first six months of his life is the only nutrition he will have needed. Weaning will progress the baby from a milk based diet to a more substantial range of solid foods.

At about six months, your baby's digestive system should have developed enough so that it can handle foods without developing an allergic reaction. At six months your baby needs more iron and nutrients than they get from breast or formula milk. Watch out for the following signs to suggest that they may be ready for weaning --




They hold their head up and control their head movements
They sit well when supported
They make chewing motions
They have doubled their birth weight
They are still hungry after a milk feed
They wake in the night to be fed, after sleeping through for a period of time
They demand more feeds more often
They show curiosity about what you're eating
Weaning begins with the introduction of various solid foods, such as baby rice, fruit and vegetable purees, using a soft rubber tipped spoon. The Department of Health recommends iron enriched infant rice cereal as a starter food. You can make the baby's food yourself, or there is a large range of pre-prepared foods at the local supermarket and chemist. To begin with solids are given in addition to breast milk or formula, but they will gradually replace the milk as the baby eats more food.

If the food is hot, make sure you test it before giving it to your baby, and stir it well. The general rule is not to force feed your baby. If he doesn't want the food, then try another day.

Finish with a milk feed rather than the other way round, so that the baby will not be too full to be interested in the solids.

There are six useful tips to remember when weaning

Don't rush your baby. They will eat very little at first.
Make sure that you are both relaxed when you start to feed
Feed your baby on your lap or in a high chair
Try to mix any new foods with familiar ones
Go at the baby's pace
Weaning can be a messy business, so put a plastic sheet on the floor, and be prepared to get both your baby's and your own clothes dirty.
At the six month stage, your baby should still be having about 600 mills of breastmilk or formula milk per day. If you are concerned or unsure about when your baby is ready to start weaning, consult your health visitor.

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• Food
• Baby
• nutrition
• Weaning
• milk
• formula
• breastmilk

[mykidszgr8]

@Hunnie028

I'm glad she's doing well, but please don't argue the fact that breast milk is ideal for infants and cow's milk has to be modified in order for a child to tolerate it and even then some don't. That's a fact, not opinion. We all do the best we can do. One mom might breastfeed, the other not. But the one who doesn't, I'm sure has her own strengths that benefit her baby that others don't. We all do the best that we can, with the situations we're in. We all have choices to make.

[rozezale]

formula is not bad for babies is bad,for your pocket is expensive!all my babies were formula fed,and they never had a health or mental issue,so stop making parents feel bad!

[Hunnie028]

@Poisondesiles You could be a little more condesending, couldn't you. I happen to first of all be an excellent mother.I am very well read & intelligent, & know what is best for my child. Also I will write the comments I wish to write.

[cazzamail]

@Poisondesiles Some choices are made for us and it is you whom is ignorant. I breast feed my eldest baby and she slept through 10 hours as well and this was wonderful and normal. My 2nd baby had no choice but to go on formula for numerous reasons and has been a great baby as well. I think it is you who should start reading books and stop being condescending and judgmental.

[Poisondesiles]

Formula is more difficult to digest as it causes micro hemorrhages in her digestive system. It isn’t normal to sleep that long at this age.

Giving formula to your baby doesn’t mean that you are a bad mother. We all make choices in life but please don’t write such comments. It seems obvious to me that you don’t know what you are speaking about. I strongly advise you to read books instead of listening to TV commercials and other mothers who are as ignorant.

[Hunnie028]

really? My 3 yr old was on formula. She has never had the flu. She has had only 2 minor colds. And no ear infections. She has slept 10-12 hours a night since she was 5 wks old. So how was me feeding her formula bad for her??

[herbaljunky]

formula is bad for infants