Need some actual proof - solids question

[angel95annie]

I have friends and family the same way! DD is 1 year old on Thursday, 32 inches tall and almost 26 pounds. She will play with snacky things, and eat a bit of banana or cracker here and there. But as far as MEALS - nope, BM seems to satisfy her.

I borrowed a book from my La Leche League group called "My Baby Won't Eat." In it, a Pediatrician from Spain gives medical proof for why BM has all the nutrition your baby needs.

this is a pet peeve of mine. Babies are made to breastfeed. They have thier whole lives to eat solids. Plus, in the book I described, I remember him saying that breastmilk has the most vitamins in the easiest to digest form, its no wonder they prefer it to solids. They want what is better for them!

that is why I wonder if formula fed babies go for solids better - is this true? It makes sense to me: They would want solids cause they crave nutrition formula isn't giving them....does this sound right?

[MamaF]

don't rush it...i don't have facts but i can tell you my experience with my 2 DC

DD...we tried solids about 6months and she screamed bloody murder from the time she swallowed the food on and off for at least 24 hrs. Dr. said her digestive system wasn't ready for solids to just try once a week until she can handle it and not to worry or rush it. She took about a month before she could eat w/o screaming. Once she was eating she turned into the biggest pig and at almost 3 is 30lbs. tall and skinny...and still eats like a pig

DS...we held off longer on solids b/c of what happened with DD. We started him about 8 1/2 months (BF only until then). He seemed to do okay except her started waking up more at night to eat. I thought it was teething until a few months later we realized it was the food hurting his stomach...then we realized he wasn't gaining weight or growing in height....We have been seeing a GI specialist (who thinks he has food allergies/intolerances). From about 11months till now (14months) he is BFing as his main source...we did start raw milk (which he can handle) about 1 1/2months ago. And we try a food once a week (but he either wakes up every 2hrs. at night crying or doesn't digest it at all and it comes right out the same way it went in). Since being on BM only and raw milk (8-16oz a day for only 2wks of this month) he has gained 1lb in one month. GI and our Dr. know that he is basically on BM only now and are fine with that since he is now gaining weight again. (we go back in 2wks for our 2month check so we'll see how he did with a whole 2months on raw milk and BM)

If you're fine with BFing and baby isn't interested in solids don't push it. You could always just put food in front of her while you eat and let her play and maybe some will make it in her mouth. both my DC loved rice puffs. basically the rice puffed cereal. it's tiny and dissolves in their mouth quicker than cheerios and is fun to play with.

If they give you grief tell them my baby (that really can't eat solids) is 14months and on BM only and doing better than when he was eating solids, and the Dr.'s are aware and fine with it.

[La Mere D'Anna]

angel95annie... WOW! My DD is 18 months old and the same size almost to the T. But we're small, my hubby and me... I'm 5 feet 1 inch, hubby is 5 feet 9. So she's actually pretty big for her age in that respect.

My DD is 18 months and still only snacks here and there and prefers BM for meals most of the time.

[NaturalUrbanMama]

This is so reassuring to me. I was starting to convince myself that my mom was right, but now I know that I am!!

[kezoo]

Originally Posted by ajane This following paragraph was taken from this LINK on developmental signs that baby is ready for solids: This is also taken from the same link, just further down: "At what point does baby need nutrition from solids that cannot be provided by breastmilk alone? Medical research tells us that exclusive breastfeeding allows babies to thrive for the first 6 months and often beyond. In the words of the World Health Organization, “Breastfeeding is an unequalled way of providing ideal food for the healthy growth and development of infants… A recent review of evidence has shown that, on a population basis, exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months is the optimal way of feeding infants.” Breastmilk should make up the majority of baby’s nutrition through the end of the first year. At some point toward the end of the first year, most babies will gradually begin to need more iron and zinc than that provided by breastmilk alone - at that point, additional nutrients can be obtained from small amounts of solids. Some babies thrive on breastmilk alone until 12 months or later - as long as your baby is continuing to gain weight and grow as he should, your milk is meeting his needs well. "

I just wanted to highlight the sentences above & comment. While bm is the primary source of nutrition through the first year it is not the only source. Don't fall into the trap of thinking that bm can be all every baby needs. Every child is different and no statement applies to 100% of babies. The reason I am saying this is that my 2nd refused solids (starting at 6 mos); we didn't push it, offering her homemade organic pureed foods once or twice a week -nothing doing. Well, she was small (no surprise my first was too), but as it turns out, her iron was low, which can interfere with the body's ability to absorb nutrients from food. So my milk wasn't providing her w/ enough iron by 9 months (she was still almost 100% bf at that age), and it was hindering her ability to grow. So while "some" babies may do fine on 100% breastmilk until 1 year of age, mine wasn't one of them. We also discovered that she hated pureed food, and wanted to chew (her first successful meal was her feeding her self black beans). So we got her iron back up w/ foods, a herbal tincture and cooking her food in a cast iron pan. Then she started packing on the pounds. She continued to breastfeed until she was 2 1/2. So my point is, as pp have said, look at the baby, not the food. Don't stick dogmatically to something someone says you "should do" whether it is start solids at 4 months or "you don't need to start until 12 months". Follow your baby's cues and watch their development and you'll be fine.