Everyone has their own opinions on when to start introducing new products to their child. Therefore, before purchasing jars with the first baby food, it is worth finding out the basic points of view about the timeliness of the start of complementary foods.
Baby food manufacturers' opinions
This point of view can be confidently called the earliest, since many cans and boxes with baby food have a mark that these products are intended for children from three months. Manufacturers can understand: the sooner parents start feeding the child with food adapted for his age, the more profit the companies that sell it will receive. It's just that the child really needs vegetable purees, cereals and juices after three months, there are certain doubts, no matter how many useful properties they are attributed to.
Many manufacturers have found an excellent way out of this situation, reflecting on the packaging also the fact that complementary foods should be introduced into the diet after consulting a pediatrician watching the child.
When to start breastfeeding complementary foods
According to WHO, the mother's milk fully meets all the needs of the child during the first six months of life, therefore, the child does not need additional feeding or supplementation during this period. If you still want to treat your baby to something new before reaching this age, first of all, you should consult a pediatrician, although a number of doctors still have recommendations on the introduction of juice drops after three months and the simultaneous beginning of complementary feeding. So all the responsibility for making the decision to start complementary foods still falls on the shoulders of the parents.
When to introduce complementary foods with artificial feeding
Modern formulas are more than adapted to the composition of breast milk, which meets all the needs of the child up to six months, until he switches to a more active lifestyle. Therefore, conditionally, children who are bottle-fed can be fed complementary foods in the same six months as babies who eat mother's milk. But this does not mean that it is necessary to wait for this particular period, since, first of all, one should focus on the child's behavior, by which one can understand whether he really needs complementary foods so much or whether he is more interested in the parents.
But even in this case, you should not rush too much and you should not start from three months, because premature feeding can lead to digestive problems and allergic reactions.
Signs of a child's readiness to introduce complementary foods
- An interest in food consumed by the rest of the family.
- The appearance of teeth.
- Skills of independent sitting.
- More frequent breastfeeding or the use of a larger volume of the mixture, clearly demonstrating the fact that the child needs to expand the diet, since he is no longer full of the old ones.
