If your baby is getting close to the 6-month mark, you may be wondering how to tell if your baby is ready for solid foods. The World Health Organization, Canadian Pediatric Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics all recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life. After 6 months of age, you can begin to start offering solid foods as long as your baby is showing signs of readiness.

What are the most common signs that my baby is ready for solid foods?

It isn’t as if your baby will magically be ready for solid foods after they turn a certain age. The most important thing to do is to watch your baby for signs of readiness. So, what are some signs that your baby is ready for solid foods?

When ready, your baby will:

• Sit up alone or with some support
• Be able to control his/her head and neck
• Open up his/her mouth when food is offered
• Swallow food rather than push it all back out with their tongue
• Grasp and bring objects to their mouth with their hands
• Bring food placed on the front of their tongue to the back in order to swallow food

Help! My baby doesn’t seem interested in solid foods whatsoever

Okay, so six months come and go and your baby doesn’t seem interested at all in solid foods, seems to be gagging all of the time, or is refusing to open his/her mouth. What gives? There are a few things to troubleshoot:

• Is the texture of the food you are providing age-appropriate? By 6 months of age, some babies want to skip the puree texture altogether and move towards more of a mashed texture. Baby led weaning is a great option at this age!
• Are you giving your baby freedom to explore foods without pressure? Our babies are very smart – if you are worried about them making a mess or how much they are getting in their mouth, they are going to put the brakes on. Babies at this age love to be independent. That means that starting solids will be a messy ordeal for the most part. The more that they practice, the better they will get!
• Does your baby have an overactive gag reflex or sensory processing issue? If your baby is coming on to 7, 8, or 9 months of age and is still not taking much in you should check in with an infant feeding specialist in your area. This may be a lactation consultant (IBCLC), speech language pathologist, occupational therapist or myofunctional therapist.
• Does your baby have a tongue tie that hasn’t been released? Some babies with oral restrictions do have difficulties eating solid foods as their tongue is not able to function appropriately. Babies with tongue ties also can have high, narrow palates that can be sensitive to touch and easily illicit the gag reflex.
• Do you eat family meals together? Babies who refuse to eat their food will often eat much better when they have access to the same foods their family members are eating. If you baby is refusing to be fed, try sitting down with him/her and offering them some of your food.

What’s the big deal? Isn’t food before one just for fun?

This sentence has been thrown around lots and it has some truth, I suppose. Yes, the primary nutrition for babies from 0-12 months of age continues to be milk, whether that is breast milk and/or formula. However, it is very important that babies begin solid foods around the middle of the first year of life for a couple of reasons:

• Babies need practice working on feeding skills for their motor development. It is important that they learn to feed themselves, use utensils and drink from a cup.
• Your baby’s iron stores carry them through until about six months of age. While breast milk does contain small amounts of highly-absorbable iron, it is thought that breastfed babies should be offered high-iron foods at around 6 months of age.

Starting solid foods is a huge milestone for both you and your baby! This is a special time for your baby to learn new skills and grow in their independence.

Do you need some help with feeding your baby solid foods, breastfeeding support, or some baby-led sleep support? Book a free 15-minute discovery call to see if I can help, or email me at [email protected]