Why are people so quick to feed baby solids?

We had it recommended just before 6 months to help build up experience with it . We started maybe a week before 6 months, so not far off where you were. There's also a desire to introduce allergens early so that's some of it for some families. I know there can also be excitement around switching from formula (which is expensive) or exhaustion from breast feeding. But yeah. Before 6 months is dabbling. 6 months is experimentation. 10 months, let's focus on this. 1 yr, please eat this. 2 yrs, why won't you eat anything?

Consumerism

Hunter gather times we didn’t wean baby off boob until past 2 years old and food was only second nutrition source for them! My baby wouldn’t bf but I would have loved if he had.

I'm sure some is overexcitement or the burden of breastfeeding & cost of formula. It could also be in hopes of getting baby used to textures and tastes early on so they aren't as picky down the line. In most cases, it's not worth the risk and should wait til 6 months or so

I don’t think a lot of parents are “rushing it”. All babies are different so their needs are different and parents adjust per their child’s needs accordingly. Ex some kids have severe acid reflux so something thicker is recommended by the Dr to help them get the nutrients they need. The guidelines are also different per country. So something you might think is normal here in the United States, might not be the case in Canada or Switzerland etc. and even here in the US doctors give different answers for solids. Some say 6 months others say 4 and others will say 1year.

To second what Yami said, my baby had a lot of feeding and digestive issues with milk. Reflux, bottle aversion, dairy intolerance, to name a couple. I was dairy free and exclusively pumping just to have my 2nd percentile baby reject the milk I tried to give him. I was exhausted, worried, and desperate for him to eat anything. That being said, we didn’t start experimenting with purées until 5 months and I don’t know that it helped much with the underlying problems, but that was our reasoning.

We waited for teeth to pop for the most part. We let her try “bits” of fruit and veggies but her first tooth just popped at 10.5m. There was zero rush on food. She’s still ebf

I think because it's a milestone, parents want to accomplish it sooner rather than later. I don't understand it the same way I don't understand rushing to make kids forward face in the car.

In my experience with friends and family, It helps get baby used to normal foods so become less fussy later on. I introduced veg pouches at 4 months but still breastfed and I don’t regret it one bit

A lot of the posts about it I see feel like it’s just people trying to brag about how “advanced” their baby is. Obviously there are plenty of medical reasons to do it or if you’re advised by a doctor but I feel like most of what I see here is people just trying to show off because it’s hard not to see your own baby as being advanced and ahead of all other babies - I’m certainly guilty of it from time to time! But it kind of comes off as just bragging to me.

There isn't really a strong reason *not* to. Ultimately it comes down to personal preference in most cases. Its also a bit of a novelty after 16+ weeks of bf or bottles.

I started my first baby on solids around 4.5 months because his doctor recommended it, said that he was showing signs of readiness and he seemed to always still be hungry after a feed. I started my second baby at 5 months because she was sooo interested in food, always grabbing for whatever I was eating so I figured she was ready. For both I started off really slow, and only introduced a new food one at a time.

I think because of things like vitamin D, iron, and allergen exposure. At least that was the motivation for me. I offered at 4 months but she just played with it. It wasn’t until 6 months she actually started swallowing purses.

@Emilie good point about the allergies…waiting too long to introduce solids is linked to allergies developing

We waited until 6mo and did BLW but I think there are lots of theories around solids helping babies sleep better too. Also, when your baby seems “ready” because they’re interested I can sort of understand the appeal to start early. It also involves them in the family life a bit more too. I don’t really get it either but if I search for the reasons those I can empathise with.

I don't get it either! I'm definitely waiting until she's 6 months as formula is so easy, plus she has CMPA so weaning will be more challenging anyway, so I'm happy to delay it for as long as possible!

They will eat for their entire lives but only have milk for a very short time. Don’t rush it 💕

Same reason some mums use pacifiers and some don’t, same reason some breastfeed and some don’t - personal preference! If you follow guidelines there’ll be people who have something to say, if you decide to wing it, people will still have something to say. Just do what works for you and your baby like everyone does what works for them.

I have a theory after observing a mother feeding a baby that looked under 6 months a pouch. Pouches don't have all the strict rules that formula or bottled breast milk does so I guess it can be more convenient on the go. I never understood the rush either. My daughter was probably ready at 5 months old but I did not start 1 day before 6 months. If she develops health issues later in life it won't be because I gave her solids too early.

@J out of curiosity why did you wait for teeth to pop through?

So being a single parent and my sons formula cost $76 a case and that's now ever 2 weeks if that. So starting him on solids will cut down on formula so for me it's better. Wasn't rushing it. Just there was alot of issues with his milk the he couldn't handle.

Our pediatrician said we could start at 4 months since my boy was 99%+ percentile in every category. He did just fine. He still received plenty of breastmilk and European Goat milk.

There is some new evidence that introduction of a variety of solids around 4 months contributes to fewer food aversions, fewer allergies and can decrease the risk of feeding problems later in life. The NIH has some great articles about it. Solids at 4-6 months are really just for exploring taste and texture, not for the nutritional value, they still get most of their nutrients from milk. Solid foods are just broadening their palate essentially.

I made my sons food so no consumerism here. The way you stated this just makes you sound lazy. My son had a major tounge tie so bottles were so hard for him. He absolutely thrived with food over bottles plus his teeth are perfect now. Less mouth issues when food is introduced to them and the need for the bottle is gone.

I waited 6 months to give my baby purée and she ate it like I was starving her. I don’t think formula and breast milk was enough or keeping her full. I saw signs that she was interested in solids around 5 months but because she had bad reflux I didn’t want to upset her tummy. Her reflux actually got so much better after giving her pureed foods.

@Chloe the research we did on digestive and overall long term health swayed up to wait til teeth popped. We’re also not doing grains and starch until molars come in. Also no processed sugar.

@J interesting, esp because some.kids don't get their first teeth until one

@Chloe yup. I believe all babies are different and have different timelines for development. Not all babies are ready for solids at 6months, let alone 4months…. Baby food Industry is really corrupted and greedy the way it started is just icky.

Honestly I felt the same way until my child didn’t eat. Luckily we realized early that he had gag reflex issue and acid reflux so we could get it all sort with a specialist before he turned one and switched to full solids. It took months of different foods and textures to figure out what he liked and what was going on. My oldest was never like this and just started eating also right away easily. It’s a skill they need to learn and develop and it may take time for some babies.

I was thinking the same, there were some comments on another post that said baby was in 2% tile and not gaining weight, also yes for anemia low iron All in all I say trust your motherly intuition my son is 7 months and not eating solids We tried around 5 months 2 weeks some cereal because his iron has been low but it tore his stomach up gas pain and alot of discomfort I tried again every 2 weeks and just stopped again because his little system just isn't ready He's ebf