Weaning guidelines

• Introduce solids after the 11am feed. Prepare everything you need for giving the solids in advance: baby chair, two bibs, two spoons and a clean, fresh damp cloth.
• Start by offering your baby one teaspoonful of pure organic rice mixed to a very smooth consistency using either expressed milk, formula or cool, filtered freshly boiled water.
• Make sure the baby rice is cooled enough before feeding it to your baby. Use a shallow plastic spoon – never a metal one, which can be too sharp or get too hot.
• Some babies need help in learning how to feed from the spoon. By placing the spoon just far enough into his mouth, and bringing the spoon up and out against the roof of his mouth, his upper gums will take the food off, encouraging him to feed.
• Once your baby is established on baby rice at 11am and is tolerating it, give the rice after the 6pm feed instead. When giving solids at 6pm, give the baby most of his milk first, then offer the solids. With babies who are being weaned early you can offer them a teaspoon at first, and then increase the amount after he has taken it for three consecutive days. With babies who are being weaned from six months you can follow the lead of your baby and increase the amount sooner.
• Once he is taking two teaspoonfuls of baby rice mixed with milk or water after the 6pm feed, a small amount of pear purée (see here) can be introduced after the 11am feed.
• If the baby tolerates the pear purée, transfer it to the 6pm feed. Mixing the purée with baby rice in the evening will make it more palatable and prevent the baby from getting constipated.
• Small amounts of various organic vegetables and fruit can now be introduced after the 11am feed. To prevent your baby from developing a sweet tooth, try to give more vegetables than fruit. At this stage, avoid strong-tasting ones like broccoli or spinach, but, rather, concentrate on the root vegetables listed in the feeding plan at 4–5 months (see here). These contain natural sugars: they will taste sweeter and blander and may prove more palatable to your baby.
• Introduce a new food every three or four days if your baby is on the early weaning plan. If your baby is being weaned at six months you can introduce foods from the first stage weaning foods much more quickly. Keep a diary so you can see how your baby reacts to each new food.
• Always be very positive and smile when offering new foods. If your baby spits a food out, it may not mean that he dislikes it. Remember, this is all very new to him and different foods will get different reactions. If he positively refuses a food, however, leave it and try again in a week.
• If you are weaning early always offer milk first at the 11am and 6pm feed, as this is still the most important food at this stage in nutritional terms. While appetites do vary, in my experience the majority of babies will be drinking 840–900ml (28–30oz) of formula a day, or 4–5 full breast-feeds.
• If you are weaning at six months you should go straight into the tier method of feeding at the 11am feed. This is when you offer the baby half the milk first. Then give him most of his solids. For the remainder of the meal alternate between the remaining milk and solids until it is all gone. Continue to offer most of his milk first at the 6pm feed.

 

Introducing solid food

• When to wean
• Early weaning
• Which foods?
• Preparing and cooking food for your baby
• First stage weaning
• Weaning guidelines
• Early weaning at 4-5 months
• Introducing protein at 6 months
• Introducing solids at 6 months
• The 10pm feed
• Introducing solids at 11am
• Introducing solids in the evening
• Weaning plan at 4-5 months (Download PDF)
• Weaning plan at 5-6 months (Download PDF)
• Weaning plan at 6-7 months (Download PDF)

Quick links to important information