Starting bub on solids at 6 months - help!?

Question

My daughter's just turned 6 months and we've given her pureed baby food a couple of times and she loves it - but I'm finding it hard to integrate solids into her bottle routine. She currently has 4 formula bottles of 240ml (8oz) a day - when and how often do I now include her baby food? And how much baby food each time? Do I cut her bottle feeds or not?

I've read heaps on the subject but it's all conflicting info so I'd like to hear from some other mum's (or dad's). Thanks :-)

Answer 1

My daughter is 6 months and just started fruits and veggies. I give her the following
7 am - 6oz bottle when she wakes up
10am - 4 oz bottle and a bowl of barley cereal, about tbsp
1 pm - 4 1/2 oz bottle and veggies and fruit
5pm - 5oz bottle
9pm - 4oz bottle and a bowl of rice cereal, about tbsp
BEDTIME!!

Answer 2

When I first started my son on solids, it was cereal before a 4oz. breakfast bottle, then a regular bottle, 2 to 3 hours later, then a little bit or half jar of food ( whatever starter food is good), then another 4oz. bottle, then 2 to 3 hours later another *oz. bottle. Sometimes I would switch it up depending on how he fed. Sometimes he just wanted more food than nottle, but usually he would alway take the bottle after. I feed him two of the solids during the day, then the rest is bottles. I'm sure you two will figure it out. We all have different styles and are children all have different ways about them. That must be why the information is conflicting. You'll do fine honey, best of luck, peace.

Answer 3

When they first start solids, babies won't eat a whole lot. Formula is still their main source of calories and nutrition.

What I did when my baby started solids was to give her the solids first, unless she was just REALLY hungry, in which case she got her bottle first. Stage 1 portions were a little too much for my little girl at 4 months, so she got about 1/2 a jar until she got used to eating. She got solids 3 times a day, and her normal formula routine (cereal for breakfast, fruit for lunch, veggie for dinner).

Your baby may not want to drink as much formula as she starts eating more and more solids, so don't worry. A good guideline is about 24-32 ounces of formula per day at this age.

And remember to wait 3-5 days before introducing a new food.

Good luck!

Answer 4

I started my son even earlier then that and I would substitute one of the bottles for the food but he didn't eat much at first and also wanted the bottle. I started once a day when he was 4 months then 2 times a day and by 6 months he was on solids 3 times a day and milk.

Answer 5

I started Farex rice cereal when my daughter was about five months. To begin with I would give her the rice cereal after her morning feed (I followed the instructions on the back of the packet for quantity). Then I started giving her some after her afternoon feed as well. When I was happy with that I switched to introducing veges for the late afternoon feed (still bottle before). Then eventually I started adding in yoghurt/custard for lunch (still bottle first). I was told it was important to give the bottle first to begin with because the baby knows it will fill them. When they get the understanding that food does the same thing then it is okay to switch. My baby now has three bottles a day - morning, before lunch and before bed. She has breakfast, a snack for morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner. She is eleven months and eating lots of different things now. The clinic nurse said she should be eating mostly similar foods to us now and definitely by twelve months. Although the time has flown between when I first started solids to now.

Good luck! Remember at this stage foods need to pureed and gentle on their tummies.

Answer 6

Your baby still needs lots of liquids, so do not cut them entirely give three four ounces of formula and a half jar to a jar of baby food. Introduce one food at a time, start with veggie, then fruit and then meat and take it slow because they get bad gas if you don't. I would just do one meal a day right now, and so that she can have it digested by bed time I would do lunch or breakfast. Most people start with cereal for breakfast and do that for a while, but I have seen some do more and be just fine.

Answer 7

I gave my kids solids twice a day at that age, once in the morning and once in the early evening. I started cutting the formula down and subtracting the number of bottles a day down, by the time they were 1 they only got 1 bottle a day and it was real easy to wean them off of it. My son would eat a whole jar of baby food off the bat, so by 6 months he was eating two jars at dinner, I kept feeding him baby cereal at breakfast. My daughter (who never ate more than 6 oz of formula at any given feeding) would eat half a jar of food, so I would pick two different types to give her (I did this for my son too, only bigger quantities) and spoon out a little and of she finished that and seemed still hungry I would spoon out more for her. Good luck!

Answer 8

Ussually when you are first starting at 6 mos feeding her 1-2 a day is fine and you don't have two substitute the feeding for a bottle you will determine whether some water or a bottle is good afterwards too.

Answer 9

my youngest is 9 months now. when we started solids we game him some solids (just a little) before 2 of his bottles during the day, then the first and last bottle i left as is. gradually these small amounts got bigger so he wanted less and less milk after each. then we dropped down to 2 meals (brunch ans dinner) with 3 bottles. for his brunch he has mashed fruit or yogurt then a snack like a rusk, and dinner he has 5 icecubes of precooked veggies.
theres no right or wrong way to d it and evry baby is different.dont worry to much if she doesnt eat much the first few months as she is learning and its more about getting used to food than about her filling up on it.
hope this helps

Answer 10

I fed my daughter 3 square meals a day just like me with a smaller bottle in between. And sometimes a water bottle with meals to help wash the food down without feeling her up to much.