The following plan gives an example of how to introduce solids during the first week of weaning at six months. Please remember this is only an example; all babies are different so be guided by your baby’s needs: First week of weaning Foods to choose during the first week of weaning are pure organic baby rice fortified with iron, pear, apple, carrot, sweet potato, swede, courgette. Note: A ‘cube’ is a level tablespoon (15ml) or three teaspoonfuls. Days 1-2 7/7.30am Breast-feed or 180-240ml (6-8oz) of formula milk 11am Breast-feed or 120-150ml (4-5oz) of formula milk 1-2 tsp of baby rice mixed with breast milk, formula milk or cool boiled water…

Within a couple of days of introducing baby rice at 11am, you should progress to introducing solids in the evening as well. For the first week I would advise that you give him the solids after he has taken most of his 6pm feed. This will encourage him to cut back on his 10pm feed, which will have a knock-on effect of him being hungrier for his first milk feed of the day. You should increase the amounts you give him, but do so on alternate days to the days on which you are increasing the lunchtime solids. Remember that the baby rice is far more filling than fruit, so…

Follow the suggested times for feeds, but instead of giving all of the milk first at the 11am feed it is important that you only give half of the milk, so that your baby is hungry enough to accept the solids. Continue to reduce the time he is on the breast before he has his solids by 2 to 3 minutes every couple of days. If your baby is formula-fed, then reduce his feed by 30g (1oz) every couple of days. Within 7–10 days you should have reached a stage where he is taking a very short breast-feed, or around 90ml (3oz) of formula, before his solids. You should still…

Many babies continue to need a feed at 10pm to get them through the night until solids are well established. If your baby is following the Contented Little Baby (CLB) routines during the day and sleeping through from 11pm to 7am, with only a small feed at 10/10.30pm, then introducing solids and weaning him off this feed should be fairly simple. As the amount of solids he takes at teatime increases, then the amount he wants at the late feed should decrease. If he does not cut back automatically, as long as he is sleeping through to 7am I would suggest that you gradually reduce the amount he is taking.…

Weaning at six to seven months The previous DoH advice was to wean between four and six months. It advised that new foods were introduced every 3–4 days. This was to reduce the risk of allergies, and avoid solids being increased too quickly, resulting in too rapid a decrease in the milk intake. Starting weaning at six months coincides with the age that a baby’s natural store of iron, with which he is born, is getting very low. Therefore it is important that you progress through the first stage weaning foods (here and here) much more quickly than previously recommended to ensure that your baby it introduced to iron-containing foods.…

If your baby was introduced to solids before six months, by the time he reaches six months he should have tasted a wide variety of vegetables and fruit, and be used to digesting reasonable amounts of carbohydrate in the form of potato and baby rice. He will be ready for the introduction of protein between six and seven months. When your baby reaches six months you can introduce chicken, fish, meat, pulses and dairy products. I would advise that you introduce these foods slowly during the early stages, introducing a new food every three days to ensure that your baby does not have a bad response to a particular food.…

Five to six months Babies who started weaning at the age of four months on medical advice, should have tasted baby rice, plus a variety of different vegetables and fruit. Most will by now be happy to take a combination of two or three different vegetables at lunchtime. Somewhere between the ages of five and six months your baby will probably show signs of hunger long before his 11am feed is due. This is a sign that he is ready to start having breakfast, and a small amount of fruit purée can be introduced after his 7am milk feed. If you start weaning at five months, work through the plan…

This plan should be used as a guide to introduce your baby to solids. However, all babies differ and have their own likes and dislikes, so don’t feel anxious if your child doesn’t fit in exactly with the plan. Food to introduce Pure organic baby rice, pear, apple, carrot, sweet potato, potatoes, green beans, courgettes and swede. Note: A ‘cube’ is equivalent to approximately one level tablespoon. Days 1-3 7/7.30am Breast-feed or 180-240ml (6-8oz) of formula milk 11am Breast-feed or 180-240ml (6-8oz) of formula milk 1tsp of pure organic baby rice mixed with breast milk, formula or cool boiled water 2/2.30pm Breast-feed or 150-210ml (6-7oz) of formula milk 6pm Breast-feed…

If you have been advised that your baby is ready for weaning before the recommended age of six months it is important to remember that milk is still the most important food for him. It provides him with the right balance of vitamins and minerals. Solids given before six months are classed as first tastes and fillers which should be increased very slowly over several weeks, gradually preparing your baby for three solid meals a day. By offering the milk first you will ensure that his daily milk intake does not decrease too rapidly before he reaches six months. Depending how old your baby is when you first introduce solids,…