Anyone start solids early?

My twins have been exclusively breast fed for four months now! So proud of that At their 4 month well baby our pedi said that we could (and in his opinion should) start solids for our 16 and 17 lb babies. They have done so well EBF gaining tons of weight and being very happy, so I'm hesitant to mess with that and I know that the AAP and WHO recommend EBF for six months. At the same time our kids are already very interested in food and putting everything in their mouths. I am considering starting only cereal and then introducing the rest once they are six months. Almost more as just a fun once daily thing to do (if they like it) until they are a bit older and ready for more. If they don't like it or don't do well (ie. can't learn to push back and swallow yet, or have digestive trouble) then I'll just stop and wait til 6 months to try again. Just wondering what others have done, and how it worked out. I am so nervous that giving them cereal "early" might be the wrong thing to do?

Also what cereal did you use or like best? I bought Earth's Best and Happy Bellies cuz that one had DHA and was planning to try both.

 

I started solids at 3 months 3 weeks and was BFing. It went very well. I used happy bellies cereal because I liked the consistancy better and I liked that it had probiotics and DHA. I still use it today. My pedi and I decided that K and C could start solids at that time because they were very interested in food and were ready developmentally. Solids have never been a battle for us and I believe that has to do because we didn't put off starting. That's just my opinion though... I'm sure some families benefit from waiting, but this is what worked best for us. Good luck!

 

My pedi also recommended that we start solids at the 4 month WBV...our pedi recommended to start cereal for the first seven days (mixing it with either formula or breast milk) and if they tolerated that well to then add veggies, cycle through the veggies (I changed up a veggie a week) and then add on fruits. At this point, trying solids is more for getting them used to different textures and tastes and a good majority of nutrition and calories is going to come from breast milk or formula. There is nothing wrong with trying it out now and if it does not go well, trying again at another time.
I started off with Gerber.
Good luck with solids, strip them down to the diaper and take lots of pictures of the mess!!!

 

I started cereal at four months with all three of my kids. I started with rice cereal-but that led to backup issues, so I switched to oatmeal. I used Gerber or BeechNut cereals.

When I first started, I just did cereal until six months old. It took ME about that long to get into a groove with just cereal! :laughing: And I was never consistent on feeding them regularly. And once they were six months old, I started veggies and tried a new one every few days. After the veggies, I started the fruits.

 

I waited to start my oldest ds at 6-7 months, my oldest dd started at 3 months because she was so big she was eating too much formula, I started the twins around 4.5-5 months. I started with cereal with all my kids, but none of them really liked it so I quickly moved onto veggies and fruits!

 

My girls were born at 33 weeks and to be honest I don't talk in adjusted age terms at all. So when my Pedi said at their 4 month check up go ahead and try cereal, we did. Started with rice, then oatmeal and now at 6 months I am introducing all the veggies. They were showing all the signs at 4 months for ability to eat and are doing well. My one gobbles everything up and my other hates all veggies So we keep trying :headbang: My pedi explained it as not really nutritional at this point, but more for taste/texture/fun.

 

I couldn't be bothered with the extra work... so I waited until almost 8 months! I might not wait quite so long if we had another kid...

anyway, as for what cereals to start with... I relied on the Super Baby Food book by Ruth Yaron. She explains how to grind and cook your grains. Its really easy (just cook in water on stovetop for 20 min and refrigerate for the next few days, or freeze for later). I started with millet and its really nutritious.

another great resource is www.wholesomebabyfood.com you can do searches on individual grains to see the nutritional content etc. I never did boxed cereals that were fortified with extra vitamins or iron... and ours passed their blood tests at 12 mo. and were breastfed.

good luck figuring out what works for you and your babies!

 

We started our breastfed boys on solids at about 4 months with no issues whatsoever. They really took to them right away. I kept them on cereal only for a little over a week and they looked so eager that I started veggies and fruits at that point. I make my own baby food (except for cereal - for that I use Gerber). Because I could control what I fed them, they got used to real flavors and textures pretty much right away. I started meats at around 8mo and now at almost 11mo they handle "real" table foods cut up small with no problem. They are the most enthusiastic little eaters I've ever seen. I don't believe it's had a negative impact on their breastfeeding...I just make sure I offer nursing before every meal.

Every baby is different in how they tolerate the transition, but if your pedi says go for it, I'd definitely start experimenting.

 

My breastfed babies started cereal at 5.5 months and fruits and veggies about a month later. DD was not ready at that time, but DS seemed to be. With baby #3 I will be in no hurry to start solids. The stuff in breast milk is more important than solids, not to mention quicker and easier.