Starting on solid foods
When to start
Try giving solid foods when your baby:
Can sit up
Shows interest in solid food
Picks up food and puts it in his or her mouth
Wants to chew and may have teeth
Appears to still be hungry even though you have tried increasing milk feeds for a few days.
BUT, Not before 17 weeks.
Here are some suggestions to make this process easier and safer:
Go at your baby's pace. Allow plenty of time for feeding, particularly at first.
Spoon out the amount you think your baby will eat and heat this, rather than heating a large amount that then goes to waste.
Always stay nearby when your baby is eating to make sure that he or she doesn't choke.
Don't rush or 'force feed'. Most babies know when they've had enough to eat.
- Encourage your baby to help with feeding. When your baby shows an interest in feeding him or herself, this is a good sign.
- Offer a wide variety of foods that you and your family usually eat, as this might help avoid choosiness later on.
- Use mashed-up family food when you can. This way, you'll know what the ingredients are and you'll be getting your baby used to eating what you eat. Commercial baby foods can be useful but don't let them replace family foods altogether.
- Remember, cows' milk isn't suitable as a drink for babies under a year old.
How to start
WEEK 1
| | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 |
| Early Morning | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Breakfast | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Lunch | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Dinner | Milk and Baby Rice | Milk and Baby Rice | Milk and Baby Rice | Milk and Baby Rice | Milk and Carrot Puree | Milk and Carrot Puree | Milk and Pear Puree |
| Bedtime | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
WEEK 2
| | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 |
| Early Morning | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Breakfast | Milk and Pear Puree | Milk and Pear Puree | Milk and Apple Puree | Milk and Apple Puree | Milk and Mashed Banana | Milk and Mashed Banana | Milk and Baby Rice |
| Lunch | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Dinner | Milk and Butternut squash puree | Milk and Butternut squash puree | Milk and carrot and parsnip puree | Milk and potato puree | Milk and carrot and parsnip puree | Milk and sweet potato puree | Milk and potato puree |
| Bedtime | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
WEEK 3
| | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 |
| Early Morning | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Breakfast | Milk and Pear Puree | Milk and mashed banana | Milk and Apple Puree | Milk and Baby Rice | Milk and Peach Puree | Milk and Mashed Banana | Milk and Baby Rice |
| Lunch | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
| Dinner | Water and Butternut squash puree | Water and carrot and swede puree | Water and carrot and parsnip puree | Water and potato puree | Water and Broccoli and cauliflower puree | Water and sweet potato puree | Water and potato puree |
| Bedtime | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk | Milk |
What foods to avoid
Salt
Babies up to 6 months old should have less than 1g salt a day. From 7 months to a year old they should have a maximum of 1g salt a day.
If you're breastfeeding, your baby will be getting the right amount of salt. And infant formula contains a similar amount of salt to breast milk.
Sugar
Avoid adding sugar to the food or drinks you give your baby. Sugar could encourage a sweet tooth and lead to tooth decay when your baby's first teeth start to come through. If you give your baby stewed sour fruit, such as rhubarb, you could sweeten it with mashed banana, breast or formula milk.
Honey
Don't give honey to your baby until he or she is a year old. Very occasionally, honey can contain a type of bacteria that can produce toxins in a baby's intestines. This can cause serious illness (infant botulism). After a baby is a year old, the intestine matures and the bacteria can't grow.
But remember that honey is also a sugar, which means it can cause the same problems as sugar.
Other foods to avoid up to six months
There are also certain foods that can cause an allergic reaction in some babies. So it's a good idea not to give your baby any of these foods before he or she is six months old:
Wheat-based foods and other foods containing gluten - including bread, wheat flour, breakfast cereals and rusks. If someone in your family can't eat foods containing gluten (because they have Coeliac disease), talk to your GP before giving any wheat, rye or barley-based foods to your baby.
Nuts and seeds - including peanuts, peanut butter and other nut spreads. Peanuts can be given from six months old, if you always crush or flake them. Don't give whole peanuts or any type of whole nuts to children under five years old because they could cause choking.
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