At my sons 4 month well baby check up his pediatrician suggested I start giving my son baby cereal. He said that once my son showed signs of being able 'eat' meals instead of just drinking them, then we should start giving him stage 1 jar food. A lot of pediatricians have this same attitude towards introducing solids into an infants system, but research suggests there are two things wrong here. Not only is the recommended age for introducing foods to an infant now 6 months of age (or older), but infant cereals have been proven to be horrid for a child.
Baby cereals are processed and ground grains that you can add formula, breast milk or water to. They are used as a way of introducing an infant to foods. The problem with feeding these to an infant lies in the processing of the grains, an infants inability to digest it and what happens when it is ingested. Infants bodies do not possess the enzymes to break down the starch in grains until they reach at least a year old. This enzyme, while found in small amounts around 6 months of age is not fully present and produced until the molars are fully developed, which can arrive anywhere from 13 to 19 months. Rice cereal is the most highly recommended of the infant cereals to start with due to the least likelihood of there being an allergic reaction. Rice cereal is highly processed and what is left is a starch missing any nutrients or vitamins that when digested essentially equates to eating pure sugar.
The World Health Organization recommends waiting until 6 months of age to introduce foods into your infants system. Not only will waiting decrease the chances of your child developing food allergies but they will have a lower chance of diabetes, obesity and other digestive problems. Introducing solids too early is associated with childhood obesity, higher chances of anemia and an increased risk of respiratory illnesses, ear infections and the like.
Really, what is the rush? Why do so many parents rush into giving their infant foods when the evidence suggesting it can be detrimental to their health is so great?
Admittedly, I gave my son 3 tastes of baby cereal. I mixed a teaspoon of cereal in with about 2 tablespoons of breast milk and fed him this with a spoon at 5 1/2 months. He tried this two more times before I decided it was rather pointless. When my son turned 6 months old he had his first taste of food- sweet potato. I bought a few jars of organic baby foods for him to try, but decided the cost and the mess were too much of a hassle. We gradually transitioned from him eating solids AND spoonfuls of pureed foods I cooked at home to actual baby led weaning, wherein he was feeding himself bite sized pieces of whatever was on my plate.
My son loves being able to feed himself. He took to it right away. Since I have introduced him to such a vast variety of foods already he has so many healthy foods he enjoys. At 11 months he has his routine down on how he eats the foods on his tray- first the veggies, then the meats, the starch or carbohydrate (a slice of bread, some potatoes, some brown rice), then any fruits or whatever is left. He has an amazingly well rounded diet, for which I am proud to have instilled in him.
Why not give your baby the chance to choose which foods to try? I make sure to give Nathan a variety of foods at every meal. It is a great way to help your baby develop motor skills, independence and the ability to decide when they are finished.
One of the highlights of my day is sitting down at the dinner table with my son and enjoying a meal together: he feeding himself his meal, and I mine.
If only I could get him to stop sneaking food to the dogs...
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