# How long can you exclusively breastfeed?



## ~Nikki~ (Aug 4, 2004)

This is a question I've been meaning to ask for some time, and wish I had found these boards when my first child was still an infant. I nursed her exclusively for 6 months, and then slowly introduced rice cereal, and homemade purees. It was hard to hold out THAT long. I was being pressured by everyone to start solids practically as she left the womb.







Her pedi was the only person that made me feel good about holding out until 6 months. She didn't start eating purees regularly until about 8 months, and gained weight just fine, so I don't know what my family/friends were babbling about. 

Anyway, with the new baby on the way, I started thinking about holding out on food for longer. Breastfeeding is just so convenient. You don't have the mess and headache of making babyfood, cleaning goop off the baby, taking little tupperwares of puree with you everywhere, etc. Breastfeeding is so tidy.







I'd like to nurse her exclusively for as long as possible. I'm sure my family will not approve, and I haven't had a chance to ask the pedi about it yet, but I wanted to ask here to see if any of you had any advice/links regarding waiting on introducing food. How long can you nurse exclusively for? Is it still a sufficient source of nutrition after 6 months? What's the deal with having to introduce rice cereal? Is all that stuff necessary, or is the "discovering texture" thing a load of crap?  Anyone know?


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## ~Jenna~ (Dec 7, 2003)

I nursed my ds exclusively for 9 months....I've heard that you can go up to a year, but I am no expert.


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## manda99 (Oct 21, 2004)

I started DS on solids at 6 months and we skipped all the rice cereal and pureed foods. He went straight to baby-friendly tablefoods (i.e. banana squished with a fork, avocado, baked sweet potato). You don't have to do the whole rice cereal and little jars of food thing.

As another data point, my MIL exclusively BFed my DH for 9 months. She kept BFing him until he basically took the banana out of his hand and ate it himself.







She says that it was the LLL recommendation at the time.

Manda


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## liawbh (Sep 29, 2004)

DS had no interest in solids at 6 mos and I asked my ped. She said it's OK to wait up to 12 months old. She had a familiy that did peace corp or a mission, and they were concerned about water/parasites, so they held off on solids until returning to the states when their baby was almost 1.

With DS, I just occas tried cereal or pureed veggies, but he just wanted to fingerpaint! Then As he got older, I would give hime soft cubed veggies and fruit. He had no set meals or real demonstrated desire to eat solids until past 9 months.

He stayed above 90% for weight and height too! until he started walking at 14 mos. and slimmed down.


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## Too Busy (Apr 3, 2004)

We exclusively nursed with only occasional solids (to see if she wanted them) until 10 months. She really didn't take many bottles either.

We don't do well-baby visits, so I don't know what her %ile is, BUT she was 20 lbs at 6 months and was 22 lbs when we weighed her at 1 year.


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## ShadowMom (Jun 25, 2004)

I don't think that there is enough data to conclusively say exactly how long you can exclusively breastfeed, exactly. But, using the "what did the cave mamas who didn't have baby food do?" approach, I think it's most likely you could breastfeed for the first year and possibly beyond.

Breastmilk is PACKED with nutrition and calories, so I can't really think of anything that solids provide that breastmilk would not.

Just to relay my own personal experience, DS wasn't interested in solids until around 10 months, when he began eating finger foods. Now, at 1 year old, he eats like a madman.







I was all worried about that "window of opportunity" thing for solids, but then I learned that's just something that scientists "think" and there seems to be no basis for it.

HTH!


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## brookerenee (Jul 27, 2004)

My DD is 12 months, and is still nearly exclusively breastfed. She eats a few bites of solids each day. Some days none at all. She skipped purees and went right to finger foods. A typical day's worth of solids for her is: two or three bites of bread, a few bites of soft fruit or veggies, a few cheerios (5-10), and an occasional taste from what's on my or DH's plate.

She is very healthy. We had her 12-month ped visit today, and our ped was pleased with her growth. She is 19.75 lbs and 27.5 inches.

We started letting her experiment with finger foods sometime around 9-10 months of age.

I don't take much stock in the idea that babies will never learn to eat if they are not started on solids within an established time frame. Humans survival instinct will kick in if we get hungry.









Good luck!


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## sadean (Nov 20, 2001)

With ds#1-I waited 6 months, then began introducing solids and nursed for 14 months.

With ds#2-I waited 8 months and then was pressured into introducing solids by the daycare, so he got a little bit of solids 3 days per week to appease them. Was well over a year before solids were a regular offering. Never fed him baby cereal, went straight to mashed solids. I was affirmed by my doctor that waiting to a year was absoutely fine, and that some people wait even until 18 months and the far stretch is 2 years. But that in order to get enough calories to continue normal growth, the amount of BM must increase significantly, until it is inevitable to need to include solids to the diet.


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## mar4JC (Sep 27, 2004)

Great thread everyone!
I know from my LLL meetings, that babies can be BF'ed exclusively for the first year. BM has all the nutrients and dietary requirements needed for the 1st year.

I introduced solids to my DS (now 8mo) at 7mo. Boy, I got the pressure also. I started with mashed banana and mashed steamed sweet potatos. At 8mo, I started giving him Cheerios so he could have something easy and fun to play with while we ate.

DS got a cold 2 weeks ago and was at a point where he would not keep down solids, so I eliminated all solids until just today. (It's been about a week). He definitely is interested now in eating what we eat and I can see a big difference in his readiness now compared to 6mo.

Use your baby as a guide. They'll tell you if they're ready by whether they swallow the food and express an interest for more. I'm "restarting" solids again and my DS has never had a problem with weight gain. He's 19lbs of breastfed muscle!! Honestly, I'd love to continue just breastfeeding, but baby is ready for other foods. Your baby will let you know and the signs will be obvious.
HTH!


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## moondiapers (Apr 14, 2002)

DS didn't start solids until 2 weeks before his first birthday, just when he started teething. His first tooth came in the day before his first birthday







He was only moderately interested for the first year on solids, he'd eat a meal about every day in a half or so. Shortly after he turned 2 years old he started eating 3 good meals and gradually added in snacks. I weaned him from the breast at 3 1/2 years old.







He was always in the 15th - 25th percentile, but DH and I are both on the short side, his weight always matched his height and he not only hit all of his miles stones, but he was precocious.


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## gardenmom (Apr 9, 2003)

Interesting thread...I was just thinking about this as I just received photos from a friend with a just-turned 5 months old baby, and in the photo, mom is feeding her what looked like apple sauce to me...I was kind of shocked and didn't think anybody pushed fruits and veggies that early--she is formula fed, but even then, why bother with fruits so early?

DD was bf for 19 months. We pretty much skipped the cereals--she wasn't interested and neither was I. I bought about 20 jars of baby food (total-ever), and relied on some mashed table foods, but dd decided to eat tiny pieces of chicken, carrot, fish, banana etc. on her own quite early. She definitely preferred finger foods to mashed anything--whether it be store bought or home made. I held off on the allergenic items until past a year, but othewise she's been a great eater on her own terms from the start, thank goodness!

I've also heard a year before starting solids is fine...


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## francesmct (Jul 8, 2004)

I've read that the optimum time to start solids is somewhere between 6-9 months and that the risk of starting later is that your baby may not accept them as easily...

The thing is, you are not starting solids to make your baby full, or take less milk, but moreso to introduce them to different tastes and textures. I agree with the pp who said let your baby be your guide. It would not be unusual for your baby to get 90% of it's nutrition from the breast and the remaining 10% from solids up to a year of age...

Although it was easier before my son ate solids, he really seems to need them now. At 9 months he eats three meals a day and still nurses at least 6 times on top of that throughout the day and night. I wouldn't mind EBF him but I don't think we'd ever be doing anything but nursing if that were the case!!


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## loving-my-babies (Apr 2, 2004)

Ds is almost 10 months and he is ebf, with the ocassional bowl of organic steamed apples, so basically no solids yet. My pediatrician told me that I can give him more when my ds is ready, he's definetely not ready yet.


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## wednesday (Apr 26, 2004)

We started offering various solids to our son around 7 months but he really wasn't interested for the longest time. At our 9-month appt our ped lectured us that he was going to be "a picky toddler" if we didn't get him eating more solids, and she also basically said I should wean and give him formula and babyfood instead







: . I ignored her and found a new doctor. Around 11 months or so he began to accept a moderate amount of pureed foods and gradually increased the volume and variety of texture he would eat. I'm pleased to report that at 14 1/2 months he eats 99% of what we offer him, no matter the texture or flavor. The only time he spits food back out is when it seems he is not really hungry in the first place. He has happily eaten strong-flavored cheese, garlic-y greens, mildly spicy mexican dishes, fish, etc. Definitely not picky!

I agree tho that it truly is easier to just put the baby on the boob. Now if we are going to be out running errands I have to think ahead to what I will be feeding him and bring it along. Sometimes I just get fast food for myself







: but I want better for him, you know?


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## ShadowMom (Jun 25, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *wakeUpMama*
At our 9-month appt our ped lectured us that he was going to be "a picky toddler" if we didn't get him eating more solids, and she also basically said I should wean and give him formula and babyfood instead

As opposed to NORMAL toddlers, who are famous for not being picky, right? :LOL


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## ShabbyChic (Feb 24, 2003)

DS is 9 months old and weighs almost 27 pounds. On some days he eats a few bites of sweet potato and banana or avocado but most days he just nurses. On the days he eats those bites it is because he seems interested and on the days he eats nothing it is because he clamps his mouth shut. I think he is doing great.


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## Anguschick1 (Jul 25, 2003)

We exclusively breastfed for 13 months. I introduced solids after that. Then I was stuck for ideas as to what to feed him, ds had definite opinions at that point and didn't want anything to do with me putting a spoon in his mouth or being put in a high chair, so we waited. At about 14-15 months he got his molars and since then has really wanted to eat whatever we're eating (no baby food for him - he acts like it's the most disgusting thing in the world!) Right now, for lunch, he's eating pasta and 4 bean soup, corn on the cob, carrots and pretzles. Small amounts of each, but each definetly gets eaten.

Ds actually crawls over to his high chair when I ask him/tell him that it's time for breakfast/lunch/dinner, but to start, I just put a plate on the floor and kept the dogs in another room. Dh and I sat on the floor to eat and so that ds could see our food and us eating without freaking out because he was in his high chair. We would offer a small piece of something to him and if he didn't take it, we would show him how we put it in our mouths and then chew w/our mouth open. Gross yes, but he got the idea that the food went in our mouths. His explosion into eating started w/him putting food in our mouths and later that same meal he put it in his mouth.

As far as pressure for solids - well at 4 weeks my mil was telling me to give him cereal, and it got worse from there. She offered to pay for a therapist so ds could be taught to eat and didn't let up until about a month ago.

Here's a link to an excellent thread a while ago about this very topic.... http://www.mothering.com/discussions...ghlight=solids

Like everything else in mothering, follow your instincts, follow your baby and it'll all work out!


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## mahogny (Oct 16, 2003)

My son is probably an extreme example, but he exclusively breastfed for 15 months. It's no exaggeration when I say that he didn't take his first non-bm calorie until he was that old. He had an oral aversion though, as well as other oral issues, and long story short, he was unable to eat until that time. (It required speech therapy and osteopathic manipulation to correct.)

Anywho, he was big and growing and thriving on breastmilk alone for all that time, so his nutrition was never a concern for me. The only issue was when he had the finger prick hemoglobin test at 12 mos old to determine if he was anemic, and it came back as 8, which is in the severely anemic range. Pushing iron-rich foods wasn't an option at that time given his oral development issues, so we had to do the iron drops mixed with OJ in a dropper.

But he grew well on breastmilk alone: 20 lbs at 4.5 months old! (Oh, my aching back! :LOL )


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## meowee (Jul 8, 2004)

I have exclusively BF two babies for 12-13 months. That was their choice more than mine. they just didn't like any other source of food.

I imagine you could exclusively BF as long as you had enough milk to satisfy DC's appetite.

There are African societies that live on nothing but cow's milk for long parts of the year, so why couldn't a person/ young child live just on human milk?


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## Jaspersmommy (Sep 19, 2004)

I'm so glad you asked this question! My DS is 7 months and everyone is pressuring me to give him "real food"







:
He's growing well for sure...about 23 pounds. The only thing that concerns me is iron consumption. How do you get enough iron into an infant without processed cereal and drops?


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## meowee (Jul 8, 2004)

jaspersmommy

I never gave drops... my kids are fine.

If your babe seems anything but the picture of health, you culd have his blood tested for iron levels.

I did give them vitamins starting around age 2-3 but they were weaned by that point.


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## Anguschick1 (Jul 25, 2003)

Jaspersmommy:

Regarding iron absorbtion, the iron in breastmilk is readily available. Meaning that your son has to take in less to absorb the same amount as in a cereal. The cereals are actually fortified using a formula fed infants dietary needs.

Oh - as soon as your child starts eating anything other than breastmilk, then their gut changes to not absorb the iron in your breastmilk as well. Yet another reason why we waited until ds was 13 months. Here's a great link regarding iron absorbtion and babies. http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/vitamins/iron.html Kellymom is a great website and a wonderful resource to keep in your back pocket to head off all those naysayers. (I've found)

From the link " Healthy, full-term infants who are breastfed exclusively for periods of 6-9 months have been shown to maintain normal hemoglobin values and normal iron stores. In one of these studies, done by Pisacane in 1995, the researchers concluded that babies who were exclusively breastfed for 7 months (and were not give iron supplements or iron-fortified cereals) had significantly higher hemoglobin levels at one year than breastfed babies who received solid foods earlier than seven months. The researchers found no cases of anemia within the first year in babies breastfed exclusively for seven months and concluded that breastfeeding exclusively for seven months reduces the risk of anemia."

Oh - 1 thing I repeated ad nauseaum (and I'm still saying it) is that I only get one chance to give ds the best possible start in life and I'm determined not to screw it up.


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## loving-my-babies (Apr 2, 2004)

My ds is almost 10 months, no solids, *never* had a drop of vitamins (blech) or iron, and he's 26 lbs, and again, he's almost 10 months!


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## sagira (Mar 8, 2003)

Ds didn't get any teeth until he was 10 months. He didn't start to eat solids until he was 13 months old.. he's a fine, healthy little guy. He's 15 months now and 22 1/2 lbs, 32 inches and very strong. His iron levels at the one-year check-up were excellent.


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## MacKinnon (Jun 15, 2004)

DD will be 10 months on the 10th and she just started eating solids last week. I started offering on occaision around 6 months but she really didn't like them so I didn't push it. But all of a sudden she is eating everything she can get her little hands on- little pieces of table food that is- nothing on a spoon. She was 22 lbs. at her 9 mon. check up- no problems! In a normal day she will have a little off of my plate at lunch/dinner- bread, bananna, cheese, chicken. On a nice slow day at home- I'll actually put her in the high chair for a "meal" but when are things slow enought for that? Honestly- I am dreading having to make meals for her- sit her down- clean her up- pack food/bibs/spoons. I love nursing! The ultimate in lazy-but-no-guilt momness


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## Quickening (May 20, 2003)

Quote:

We exclusively breastfed for 13 months. I introduced solids after that. Then I was stuck for ideas as to what to feed him, ds had definite opinions at that point and didn't want anything to do with me putting a spoon in his mouth or being put in a high chair, so we waited. At about 14-15 months he got his molars and since then has really wanted to eat whatever we're eating (no baby food for him - he acts like it's the most disgusting thing in the world!) Right now, for lunch, he's eating pasta and 4 bean soup, corn on the cob, carrots and pretzles. Small amounts of each, but each definetly gets eaten.
Same here as AngusM! My dd exclusively bf for 13 months but it was ME that did not want to put her in a high chair, spoon feed, or feed baby food. I wanted the whole thing to be a gradual, normal 'no fuss' sort of thing.

I offered to share food I was eating with dd and let her feed me or lick the food. I don't think she got anything down til 14 months, and it was not til 15 months that she started little bits here and there of EVERYTHING. Her diet is very varied, and I think that is good for her. She also knew what foods to not eat/to eat (eg she got a rash from first try of banana and would not go near it for a few weeks, when she did, she was fine.) She has no food allergies and will eat anything! How's that for easy?









Got pressure from the evil american MIL too







: She can stuff it, I'm going to do the same with the next child too by following the CHILD not the "recommended schedule based off studies in 3rd world countries for optimal duration of exclusive breastfeeding".


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## EllasMummy (Dec 10, 2003)

My DD is 15mo and still about 95% bf. She has only really started being interested in foods in the last 2 weeks and she still only eats a few bites a day.

We tried solids at 6 months and she had such a strong gag reflex we waited another few months and tried again. She refused everything we offered her and then we discovered she is allergic to dairy. We have offered her lots of different foods 3x a day since her birthday and most of the time it ended up on the floor but recently she has been more interested in trying bits.

Most people are amazed that she is growing so well and is so healthy on 'just breastmilk'.

I would really like her to eat a few more solids now b/c is nurses very frequently day and night. I am committed to child led weaning but I would like her not to need it so much for nutrition b/c we hope to ttc in the spring.

Oh, and she hasnt had any vitamin drops.


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## iluvbnamomma (Sep 3, 2004)

Thanks for asking this question. I have been getting alot of pressure from EVERYONE to start feeding my son and it seems way early to me. He is almost 6 months, weighs 18.5 lbs, and is very happy. so i am not sure what all the fuss is about. Its nice to hear that so many Mommas waited until the child told them they were ready.


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## merpk (Dec 19, 2001)

Part of the problem, as I see it, is everyone else seems to think that breastfeeding is just something you do until the baby eats some other way.










Anyway, when we start with solids, we treat the solids-feeding as just another daily fun thing to do. Like, instead of playing patty-cake now, we'll play with this smushy banana. And maybe some of it will get in your mouth, maybe it won't. And maybe we'll try it again someday. Maybe tomorrow, maybe not. If you like it a lot, sure, we can do it more often than not. But either way, until they're really ready to eat finger foods, it all seems sort of unnecessary, except as an exercise in learning to eat.

Come to think of it, I meant to do the smushy banana thing today, and didn't get to it.









No biggie.


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## Alison (Feb 11, 2004)

If your baby is healthy, let him tell you when he wants to start. I read somewhere, I'm pretty sure it was in Sears, that he once asked an experienced mama when she knew to start her kids on solids, and she told him that she started when the kids began to mooch. My DS mooched solids--ie grabbed them out of our hands and shoved them in his mouth--at 6 months. I couldn't have held off any longer without feeling cruel! There's certainly no way we could have gone a year with exclusive breastfeeding, he would not have let me! I have friends who waited much longer than 6 months though, because their child just wasn't interested. As long as he was gaining weight and healthy, they weren't too worried.

I don't think I would want to hold off on solids if my child were interested and showings signs of wanting food. That doesn't seem right either. But if he or she wasn't, I certainly wouldn't be in any rush! Let your baby tell you when your baby wants to try solids--after all, you're going to know this child better than anyone.

Alison


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## momsince1977 (Dec 13, 2004)

I say "ibid" to everyone's replies - as a new mom I thought that if I didn't introduce the spoon to my baby (at 2 months), that he would never learn to eat with a spoon. Well, guess what?







I was wrong!

My next three children were EB until they were ready and willing to eat soft table foods. #2 was 26 lbs & 9 mo, #3 was 28 lbs & almost 11 mo, and I forget how old # 4 was, cuz by that time it didn't matter.

I had a friend who, when asked when she knew her child was ready for solid foods, replied, "When he picked up the food and ate it." (and she said it before Sears wrote his book)


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *momsince1977*
I had a friend who, when asked when she knew her child was ready for solid foods, replied, "When he picked up the food and ate it." (and she said it before Sears wrote his book)

Yup, my kids did that too. Leah had her first taste of cheerios at about 6mo when the 9mo I was babysitting was eating cheerios and Leah wanted some too. I think she ate about 2 or 3 of them (while the other baby had about 4oz of cheerios plus a whole bottle of ebm.)

My second dd helped herself to a handful of food from my plate at 5.5mo. I was going to wait until she was 6mo but she had other ideas









With my son, I actually bought babyfood and did the spoon-feeding thingie- mostly because *I* wanted to "play" with the baby food! It certainly didn't hurt him in any way, but it WAS a lot more work than what I did with his older sisters (not really offering solids until they could eat what the rest of the family was eating.)

An interesting comment about iron levels: The girls' iron levels were checked a handful of times when they were toddlers and their levels were always fine. Up until very recently, Jack's levels have also been fine. This includes when he was a little over a year old and his diet consisted of about 90% breastmilk.

Now that he's relying less on my milk for nourishment, and getting more from other foods, he had a low iron level for the first time ever. I'm sure a big part of it is the solids he's been eating (way more sweets than I ever offered his sisters at this age- its a lot harder with school aged kids in the house!!) He's also getting snacks and lunch in school and I'm not really sure what he's being offered. Now I'm making an effort to offer iron-rich foods every time he eats solids, and I'm cutting way back on the cow's milk he drinks at home.


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## nikirj (Oct 1, 2002)

My kids were around 9 months when we started giving them solid foods.

When I took Human Health and Nutrition for Medical Professionals (last year of pre-med) the nutritionist who taught the course said that the upper limit is actually TWO YEARS - almost all kids won't be seriously deprived of anything before then, and some thrive - after a year you have to start evaluating how well they're doing with it, though.


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## pageta (Nov 17, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *nikirj*
When I took Human Health and Nutrition for Medical Professionals (last year of pre-med) the nutritionist who taught the course said that the upper limit is actually TWO YEARS - almost all kids won't be seriously deprived of anything before then, and some thrive - after a year you have to start evaluating how well they're doing with it, though.

This just my humble theory, but I sometimes wonder if anyone else thinks the same. We live in a society where #1 most kids eat formula (which is not complete nutrition) and #2 we have NICU where babies that would otherwise die are able to live. So #1 everyone thinks children need to have more than milk to survive, but I think that's completely true for formula fed kids, but not necessarily so for breastfed kids. And #2, they've come up with all these oral issues and speech therapists and pediatric ear nose and throat doctors. I'm sure that many of those premies who did not develop inside the womb and were thrust into the world before they were ready may have issues that those professionals need to address - so I am thankful that we have those professionals. But full term babies with normal births should be allowed to have a range on the development timeline. Yes, premies may have more difficulties starting solids if they don't get them by a certain age, but that isn't necessarily true for children who are normal. I refuse to be worried about such things just because there is a professional out there who thinks it is a problem and thinks that they can treat it. Let mother nature take the lead here. If I didn't have many teeth, I probably wouldn't care much about food either. Professionals (including doctors) are trained to find problems and solve them. Just because a professional can find a "problem" doesn't mean that it is something that requires intervention. Vaccines, for example, could be classified as an unnecessary fix. Tylenol could also be considered an unnecessary fix.

My child is not eating solids, but I get at least one comment from a stranger every week about how he looks like he eats real well. He's been walking for six weeks (didn't start until 15.5 months) and has yet to slim down to where he doesn't have rolls of fat. He's slimmed down a lot, but he's still got plenty of meat on his bones. He has plenty of energy and looks very healthy. I've had friends who are doctors and speech therapists tell me that ds may have this problem or that problem or the other problem. But as long as he's progressing on the development chart and within the normal range (quoted above), I refuse to worry about it. I think far more harm might be done to label him as not developing correctly and in need of therapy, etc. I simply do not want that stigma attached just because there is someone out there who thinks they can help. He has his own schedule, and he's very healthy, so let him be. If I really thought he needed help, I wouldn not hesitate to get it because it can also be bad for them to be labeled by not doing things that others are doing. In this case, I don't think that applies. We're simply not forcing him to do things he is not ready to do.

Forgive me if I'm rambling...but this is just one of my pet peeves.


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## ZanZansMommy (Nov 8, 2003)

12 mos here. DD never wanted the solids I tried to give her at 8 mos old. The day after her 12 mos birthday she pulled some toast off my plate & that was the beginning. She knew when she was ready


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## chickabiddy (Jan 30, 2004)

We introduced solids (mashed banana) at 7 months, but my daughter rarely ate more than one bite at a time until she was about a year old. She's amazingly healthy and round/sturdy, and at 2 years 9 months she's probably somewhat less picky than the average toddler.


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