A parents’ guide to introducing food to your baby

What age should you be introducing food to your baby?

Remember to consult with your child’s doctor when you think your little one has reached this exciting feeding milestone. The appropriate age for starting solids varies. Most babies are ready to begin with solid foods at around six months. However, all babies are different and some may show signs of readiness as early as four months old. It’s always best to consult your healthcare professional to assess the individual readiness of your baby, and whatever the decision, it’s important to continue providing breast milk along with solids.

Your healthcare professional will look for the following key signs to help your baby make the transition to solid foods: 1

• Your baby is about six months
• Your baby can sit up, unsupported
• Your baby has lost his or her tongue-thrust reflex, a natural rejection of food by thrusting it back out of the mouth with the tongue (they don’t stick their tongue out when feeding)
• Your baby can pick things up between his or her fingers and thumb.

Once your baby has developed the skills needed for eating by themselves – including good head and neck control – you can start introducing solid foods.

Your baby’s first foods

The moment you’ve waited for has finally arrived and your baby is now ready to try solid foods! If you’re wondering how to start your baby on solids, try giving him or her baby cereal. Mix one to two tablespoons of single-grain, iron-fortified baby cereal with breast milk, formula or water. If you’re breastfeeding, only offer food after a nursing session so that your baby fills up on breast milk first until he or she is about one year. 2

Once your baby is comfortable with the first food you give him or her, you can continue introducing new foods, such as puréed fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils and yogurt. A soup-maker is one easy option for making great meals for your baby. Simply steam the fruit, vegetables, fish or meat, add to the soup-maker, select the puréed option, and voila! You’ve just made a healthy, homemade meal for your growing baby. Be sure to wait three to five days before introducing a new food so that you can see signs of allergies.

As well as the fun of trying new foods, it’s important to be aware of different food allergies when introducing solid foods. Experts recommend introducing common food allergens to your baby when he or she is four to six months old. In fact, recent studies suggest that waiting too long could make your baby more likely to develop food allergies, so the sooner the better! The most common food allergens to look out for include: 2,3

• Milk
• Eggs
• Fish
• Shellfish
• Tree nuts
• Peanuts
• Wheat
• Soybeans

If you or your family have a history of food allergies, be sure to speak with your child’s doctor to find the best approach when trying these foods with your little one.

In addition to introducing food to your baby, you’ll also start introducing water after the age of six months. During a baby’s first six months, breast milk contains all the water that he or she needs, even in hotter climates. But once your little one reaches six months, you can start giving him or her a little water from a spouted cup.

You might consider the Avent natural trainer cup, a soft spout sippy cup that helps your baby make the move to drinking by themselves. The cup is easy to drink from as liquid flows when your child bites or sucks the spout. The cup is also designed to allow easy gripping for your baby’s little hands.