hello, I'm breastfeeding my son and trying to do so exclusively for the first 6months,?

Question

have many of you managed this? I know most babies won't wait til 6months to be weaned, and goverment guidelines suggest by 6 mnths babies should be taking lumpy foods rather than puree, which is, of course, what I shall be starting him on. It's all very contradictory.

Answer 1

just a couple of things to bear in mind (that havent already been mentioned)

one of the reasons you are not supposed to wean later than 6 months is because that's when the baby starts to need more Iron than is available from milk

weaning too late can cause speech problems, if babies arent allowed to develop chewing motions then they won't be able to form certain sounds either


the idea that babies shouldnt be started on solids until 6 months has come about because governments are worried about childhood obesity, but for many people it's just not practical to wait that long, many babies start to wake up again through the night and want extra feeds, if that starts to happen at about 4 or 5 months, don't worry about starting on solids, just do it gradually and make sure you introduce only suitable foods

good luck

Answer 2

First of all, congratulations on breastfeeding, I know it can be hard going at times.

I have found the same, and have come to the conclusion that is second hand and slightly dated books that start at 4 months that have lo on lumpy food at 6 months!

My daughter will be 6 months on New Years Day, and was exclusively breastfed until last week, when we started to gently introduce solids. This was not because of any guidelines, but because she was ready for it. Not before, as any slightly older mums will tell you (in fact nag you, thanks mum!), but when she didn't seem satisfied, but not really bothered with me anymore! My advice would be to see what the guidelines are, bear them in mind, and then follow your babies cues. You know your son best, don't be pressurised into doing anything he isn't ready for, and there is no need to make him wait if he is ready - just introduce things slowly and see how he copes.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Hello there. You don't really need any more answers as the ones that you have received have been wonderful. I just wanted to say how gratifying it is to see so many intelligent women posting helpful, supportive answers to another woman on here. It is about time that breast feeding mothers started supporting each other. The La Leche League is a wonderful example of a place where this subject is dealt with very well. As a mother who exclusively breast fed all 5 of her babies until between 6 months and 1 year (they are all diffenent) I know the benefits. There is nothing more gratifying than to see your precious baby thriving and to know that you did it with your own nutritious milk! By the same token, nothing upsets me more than to listen to young mothers brag about how early they had their baby on solid food, the pros and cons of adding cereal to the bottle so that the baby will sleep more, and how early they can get their baby to hold his own bottle (or safely prop it up) so that they can do other things while he feeds himself! These are the things that touch me and only another breast feeding mother can really "get it".
Just wanted to say "three cheers for you" and I hope you set a positive example that every prospective mother will learn from. You are a wonderful mother and you are doing a fabulous job! Keep up the good work and please, seriously, talk to other mothers', offer to give them advice if they need it and in general share what you are doing so that other mothers will learn from your example! Women like you make me feel proud of the choices I have made.
The world needs good mothers!
Lady Trinity~

Answer 4

I take my hat off 2 u if u can breast feed 4 6 months. That was my plan but my son was so hungry all the time it was making him unsettled. I stopped breast fedding at 10 weeks as my doctor advised it and he has been so much better. Like the other women say I really think u have 2 listen 2 what ur child wants as each child is different and what u plan 2 do now may not be possible. I doubt my son will wait 6 months 4 solids as he is a hungry boy!

Answer 5

Babies develop differently, so some do need supplementation before reaching 6 months mark. You should check what your pediatrician recommends in your particular case. I have 4.5 months old son and our pediatrician recommended to start cereal not because of development issues, but because it really takes time for the baby to get used to eating something other than milk. Each food should be introduced slowly (starting with 1 spoon), separately and be watched for at least 4 days to see if baby does not react to this food. If all goes well, the baby will be able to eat only 6 dif things after 1 month of introduction. I'm saying "if all goes well" because I tried that for 2 days and my son still doesn't accept rice cereal. I also wanted to breastfeed exclusively for 6 months, but now I realized that introduction to food can be a long process, so I decided not to wait with it.

Answer 6

Not sure where you live, but if you read anything by any of the advocates of breast feeding (La Leche League) or attachment parenting (Dr. Wm Sears, for example) you will find people who suggest that it is fine for parents who breastfeed to make the choice to give their child breast milk exclusively for the first year.... generally the child will start eating something like banana or mushed up carrots with the rest of the family at the dinner table somewhere along the way between six months and a year, but it's not necessary. My granddaughter is breastfed... she is 14 months and her mom works now so she is eating quite a diversity of food during the day (scraped apple, bananas, Mum Mum cookies, rice and cooked veggies in a light broth, today-- Christmas Day-- she ate a good hunk of a chicken drumstick at a buffet we attended). She still nurses at night and in the morning and a couple of other times on the weekends. She is the brightest, most beautiful child I have ever seen...'course, I'm the grandma lol.

Hang in there!

Healthia Cynthia
Certified Comprehensive Coach

Answer 7

I think that the main problem now a days is that there are so many "experts" and not enough listening to your child. While I did manage to exclusively breastfeed my third child for six months it was not for lack of "expert" opinion. My mil even made the comment formula was good enough for my kids why isn't it good enough for her. When I went into the extended nursing phase (child led weaning) it was like I had grown three heads. With my two oldest I caved, but the third time I had great support and had learned to tune people out and listen to my baby.
I say go for it honey. Find yourself a good supportive pediatrician,I good supportive lactation consultant and take a deep breath. From experience, it is not something you will regret. Of all three of my breastfeeding experiences the last one was the best because I was true to my child...

Answer 8

Good decision to breastfeed. I have a 9 month old and I still mainly breastfeed, at about 6mo. I introduced her to rice cereal, a few weeks later fruits and veggies. Now at 9mo she not only breastfeeds (and I plan to continue breastfeeding until 12 months) but eats fruits,veggies, crackers, and things she will not choke on. I haven't given her meats and I am personally going to hold off on that for a while. There are going to be alot of women that say "you should do or not do this or that" but as long as your baby is growing at a healthy rate and the dr's visits are all ok, don't worry about how other people think you should feed YOUR BABY!! Just do research and see what other mom's do, but ultimately the decision is yours.

Answer 9

From someone who has been breastfeeding 1 year+ 1 week:
Breastfeeding exclusively refers to giving breast milk, rather than formula. This should be done for the first year.
In addition to whichever of the above you choose, you should start adding food (pureed) between the 4th and the 6th month. Research shows that this is a 'peak' learning time for the baby when it comes to flavors and textures, thus one would think that this would be a good time to introduce other foods. It really depends on your baby and how fast he/she is ready.

Answer 10

Just let your baby lead you in this department. I am still exclusively breastfeeding my son who is almost 11 months old. He hasn't shown much of an interest in solids yet. He'll eat a little bit of pureed food, teething cookies or bread... but the majority of the time (95%) he's still only living on breast milk... and he's thriving. He weighs 37 lbs. and is off the growth charts in both length and weight. He weighs more than my niece who's almost 3 and he's not even 11 months old yet. He hasn't shown any interest in weaning off of the breast yet. In fact, studies show that most babies will nurse well past their first, even second, birthdays if allowed. The longer you can breastfeed the better... and solids during the first year are really only for fun and practice. Babies don't need anything other than breast milk until they're a year old.

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