What are the best solid foods to begin baby on?

Question

My son is four months old and his pediatrician said I could begin to introduce solid foods to his diet if I'd like...I started him on rice cereal, bananas, and apples, all at different times but they all seem to aggitate him..They either make him gassy or constipated. I am wondering if maybe it's too early to start solids or if there are other foods that I should try. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

The recommendation for babies to start solids is six months, which gives baby's tummy a good amount of time to develop enough to process food properly.

Here is a great site about baby foods:
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

Click on What Fruits for Baby? and Variety of Veggies to get information about several different kinds of fruit and vegetables for baby.

On the subject of rice cereal, you can give it a miss altogether if you like, according to this excerpt from the site:
"You CAN skip cereals altogether if you want to! Many sources now recommend beginning a baby with fruits or an orange veggie like sweet potato as first food(s). Studies are now revealing that grains may not be good starter foods for baby to digest."

Bananas are great, but they can cause reflux, so if it's a problem then it would be best to wait another couple of months and try introducing them again.

Apples are also wonderful, but there is a lot of mixed information regarding them. The site I linked to says that they're a good source of firbre, and a natural stool softener; however, I have read in other places, and have had other women tell me, that they actually caused constipation. So it would seem that apples cause varied reactions in different people; in your son's case, it seems like it might cause constipation. Again, probably give them a miss for now, and try again later.

Sweet Potatoes are a great first food; they are not as bland as some other vegetables, but not as sweet as fruit, so baby won't get too used to sweet food that he won't take blander kinds. Different varieties of squash are also great.

Pear is great as a first fruit, but don't overfeed as it is a natural laxative.

Avocado is supposed to be a great first food; however, someone told me that they contain high kevels of cyanide. I'm not sure if this is true or not, but I though that it was worth mentioning. If someone else could confirm or deny this, that would be great.

Good luck.

Answer 2

AT 4 months old...if the fruits or veggies are causing tummy problems...just do the cereal or go ahead and stop solids for a few more weeks and try again.

My kids were on single ingredient veggies at 4 months...and each of the kids like different things. Sweet Potatoes OR squash (depending on the kids) was the favorite closely followed by carrots and green beans.

Several moms swear by going through the single ingredient veggies first because if you do only fruits then the baby begins to prefer the sweeter taste and may refuse veggies.

Answer 3

Stick with the rice cereal for a couple of weeks, then add some bananas if you want.

You should try adding a new food at the rate of only 1 per week as you increase his diet. Too much all at once can give him gas, plus if you've given him 2 or 3 things and he has a reaction, you don't know which food is causing it.

Answer 4

4 months is a good age to start solids. I think most babies go thru this difficult stage as their tummies are getting used to digesting something other than liquids. Try using all different kinds of fruits and veggies. If the constipation gets really bad then you can put a little kayro syrup in his bottle. Or you can give him some prunes or prune juice. Some people also use pear juice. You can also get infant gas drops at the pharmacy. To bo honest, they never really worked for my son but you can try them and see.

Answer 5

You should stick with the Rice Cereal. Just add small amounts to his bottle at certain times of the day or night for at least a week. Try not to introduce to many foods all at once. He is only accustomed to formula at this time. When you mix the cereal with his formula it should be sufficient to fill him up and allow you to see if he is having any kind of a reaction. After you know he is not having any reactions you can try spoon feeding him. Later you can add a touch of his favorite juice for flavor.

Answer 6

Hi,
I started both my boys on avacado's for one of thier first foods. You would obviously mash it and add a about one tablespoon or more of formula to make a waterery consistency, the formula added is a familiar taste to them so they usually like the taste. Also they are full of nutrition. If the baby seems to reject the food he may not be ready. Thier is no rush offering solids, you can start anytime 4-6 months. I found 5 1/2 months to work for my children.

Answer 7

We started with plain rice cereal, then later moved to the ones with fruit. This allowed us to know if it was the rice itself that bothered her, or the fruit.

With other foods, we started with yellow's(squash, etc.), and then every two weeks added a new color. Next was orange(sweet potatoes, etc.), then greens(peas, greenbeans,etc).

We still have not been given the greenlight for anything with meat in it.

New foods will do this to a baby. They are used to only formula/ breastmilk, and their stomachs have to adjust. And, get ready for the fun diapers. They can get pretty interesting when babies are trying new foods.

Answer 8

cheerios!