Feeding Your Baby – Birth To Three

Knowing when to start feeding your baby solid foods and when to start potty training can leave new parents confused. Many questions pop up in the process, such as when to start solids. Should you make homemade baby food? How much is enough? To help you weave your way, let’s look at some food guidelines for infants and toddlers. We will cover the when, what and how much questions you may have about feeding your child up to the age of 3.

In nearly all healthy children, the recommended age to start solid foods is 4 to 6 months. Age is just one criterion for readiness, though. Your baby’s motor skills and stage of development will also help determine when he or she is ready. Are there any issues with his sleep? Hunger may be the culprit. He should be capable of holding his head up and should no longer have the reflex, which causes them to push anything but liquid out of their mouths.

What is on the menu for baby’s first meal? Rice cereal is a customary and safe first food, but most babies can tolerate a variety of foods like rice cereal, vegetables, fruits and meat. While meat is often reserved for older infants, some experts feel there is no reason to wait.

How do you know how much is enough? The first few weeks of eating solid foods is more about becoming accustomed to spoon-feeding than meeting nutritional needs. Your baby is learning to negotiate food. Don’t expect your child to eat more than one or two teaspoons at a time during the first week or so.

Older infants may try to feed themselves. It means messy meals, but letting your child feed himself encourages the development of his fine motor skills. Around the 1-year mark, give your baby water, breast milk or formula from a cup they can sip from.

Children are born knowing how much food they need. It is their parent’s job to understand and respect their child’s instincts. Feeding your baby too much encourages your child to override their inborn ability to eat when hungry and stop when full. This may eventually create a pattern of overeating that leads to an unhealthy weight, sleep issues, potty learning issues and poor toddler behavior. How will you know he’s had enough? There are some telltale signs, such as swatting at the spoon, pursing his lips tight when the spoon comes his way and spitting out every spoonful you manage to get into his mouth.

Older toddlers may stubbornly resist new foods, including meats, fruits and vegetables, so you may fall into a rut of feeding your child the same meals over and over. Allow children to become familiar with new foods by feeding your baby a spoonful or two alongside their favorite foods. If at first you don’t succeed, then keep trying. It can take many exposures to a new food before your child wants it.

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