Season 1, Episode 6: Solid Food
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In this podcast episode titled “6. Baby Myths Busted: Solid Food,” the discussion revolves around the appropriate timing for introducing solids to a baby’s diet. The episode emphasizes waiting until the baby is around six months old due to the permeability of their gut, which affects how substances are absorbed. It warns against early introduction of solids due to potential long-term health issues such as allergies and weakened immune systems. The conversation highlights the importance of continuing breastfeeding even after introducing solids and advises against introducing solids too early, stressing the potential negative effects on the baby’s gut health. Additionally, the episode provides guidance on the types of foods to introduce, favoring savory options over sweet ones, and suggests various methods for gradually transitioning babies to eating solid meals, including baby-led weaning and making homemade purees.
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Baby’s First Bites: Debunking Solid Food Myths
Welcoming a new member into the family brings joy, wonder, and, inevitably, a barrage of well-intentioned advice. When it comes to introducing solids to your little one, the recommendations seem to overflow like pureed carrots from a spoon. But fear not, for we’ve got just the podcast episode to clear the confusion and empower you with the right knowledge for your baby’s nutritional journey.
In episode 6 of our podcast, “Baby Myths Busted: Solid Food,” we delve into the world of baby nutrition, focusing on the right time and approach to introducing solid foods to your little one. The discussion centers around a crucial question: When is the right time to make that transition?
The resounding advice? Wait until your baby is around six months old. Why, you ask? It all comes down to gut health. The delicate nature of a baby’s gut makes it essential to time the introduction of solids just right. The episode emphasizes the potential long-term consequences of premature solid food introduction, including allergies and weakened immune systems. This isn’t just about what to feed your baby; it’s about setting them up for a healthy future.
One key takeaway from the podcast is the importance of continuing breastfeeding even after introducing solids. This advice aligns with the World Health Organization’s recommendation to breastfeed for up to two years and beyond. By shedding light on the significance of breast milk alongside solid foods, the episode provides valuable insights for new parents navigating the weaning process.
Moreover, the podcast offers practical guidance on the types of foods to introduce. Savory options take center stage, and the discussion steers away from the overly sweet, favoring a more balanced approach to your baby’s palate. It also provides various methods for gradually transitioning babies to eating solid meals, including the increasingly popular baby-led weaning approach and the option of preparing homemade purees. The episode’s diverse range of suggestions ensures that there’s a method that suits every family’s unique needs and preferences.
As parents, we’re bombarded with conflicting advice and myths that can leave us feeling overwhelmed and unsure. This episode, however, acts as a guiding light, separating fact from fiction and empowering you with the knowledge to make informed decisions about your baby’s nutrition.
So, whether you’re a soon-to-be parent, a new parent navigating the world of first foods, or someone simply looking to deepen your understanding of baby nutrition, this podcast episode is a must-listen. Join us as we unravel the mysteries surrounding baby nutrition and embark on a journey to nurture your little one with confidence and clarity.
Tune in to our podcast and let’s bust those baby food myths together!
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Title: Baby Myths Busted: Solid Food
Show Notes:
Introduction: The episode “6. Baby Myths Busted: Solid Food” delves into the critical topic of introducing solid foods to a baby’s diet. The hosts explore the myths surrounding this milestone and offer evidence-based insights into the best practices for this crucial stage of a baby’s development.
Timing and Gut Permeability: The central theme revolves around the appropriate timing for introducing solids to a baby’s diet. Emphasizing waiting until the baby is around six months old, the episode discusses the permeability of a baby’s gut and its impact on nutrient absorption. The hosts provide valuable information on how early introduction of solids can potentially lead to long-term health issues such as allergies and weakened immune systems.
Importance of Breastfeeding: A key emphasis is placed on the continued importance of breastfeeding even after the introduction of solids. The episode underscores the role of breastfeeding in maintaining a healthy gut and immune system for the baby, highlighting the potential negative effects of introducing solids too early.
Types of Foods and Transitioning: The conversation offers guidance on the types of foods to introduce, favoring savory options over sweet ones for a balanced diet. Furthermore, the hosts discuss various methods for gradually transitioning babies to eating solid meals, including baby-led weaning and making homemade purees. These practical insights provide parents with actionable steps for this transition phase.
Conclusion: “Baby Myths Busted: Solid Food” offers a comprehensive overview of the best practices for introducing solid foods to a baby’s diet. By dispelling myths and providing evidence-based recommendations, the episode equips listeners with essential knowledge to support their baby’s healthy development during this crucial stage.
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Baby Myths Busted. A practical guide to giving your child the best start in life.
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Hi everybody, welcome back to our podcast Baby Myths Busted. I am Jackie and this is Simon,
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hello. Hello Jackie. Today we are introducing your baby to solids. So we've got a couple of
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areas of interest. Do you want me to start or do you want to start Simon? You just roll on through
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and then I'll fill in the gaps if I can. Okay, so from a nutritional perspective, starting your baby
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on solids they say shouldn't happen until about four to six months of age. I would err more on
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the side of six months because it takes that long for your baby to change the permeability of their
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gut. So that means when they're first born their gut's very permeable, which means everything that
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goes into their mouth goes straight into their blood system. There's not really any work involved
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in getting it to that point. So when it's in that regard, so the permeability, so whatever goes in
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goes into the system. Yeah. But when it becomes less permeable, does that mean that the gut is
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able to determine things that it doesn't need to absorb and turns them into waste products? Yeah,
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so it can be selective. Whereas when your baby's first born for those first four to six months,
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it's not selective, everything goes through. Yeah, so that's why it's vitally important to
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not introduce solids at that point because the gut at that stage should only be absorbing things like
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breast milk, for example. Yes, correct. So on that point, when you do introduce your baby to solids,
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it's not the end of breastfeeding. If you're breastfeeding, you want to keep that going for
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as long as possible. What is, so if you do introduce your baby, say if your GP or whatever
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does say to you, hey, maybe your baby's not putting on weight or it's loss of percentile
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and growth or something like that. Yeah. And it said, hey, maybe you should just introduce them
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to solids earlier because that might help with their weight gain. Okay, yeah, that might help
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with their weight gain. But what's the long-term effects of introducing solids too quickly to the
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health of the gut? It can lead the child to having things like allergies further down the track. But
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what happens is when the baby consumes something, your gut can determine whether it's a toxin or
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not. And if your gut's permeable, the toxin will go straight into the bloodstream and it hangs
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around in the baby's body and your baby will either learn to fight that or fight everything
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and therefore everything that's in its bloodstream, or it won't really be able to adapt that.
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So what do you classify as a toxin? It can be anything. It's not necessarily like a chemical.
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It's like a food that needs to be broken down in the gut before it ends up in your system.
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So a toxin in this sense would be something that is a bit more, requires a little bit more work
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from your gut to be able to digest it properly, so therefore it gets into your system the way
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it's intended. But if your gut's too permeable, then it doesn't break it down and so your body
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responds as if you have ingested a toxin and will have the deleterious effects on the gut from that.
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Yeah, and that's how you can develop things like allergies or just any sort of reaction or it just
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breaks your immune system down. And at this point in the baby's life, we're trying to build it up.
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And the things that build it up are breastfeeding and also delaying solids until closer to six
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months. So if a doctor says to you, oh, your baby's underweight, let's try and give some solids
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earlier, I would suggest not really doing that because your baby's gut is still going to be so
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permeable until closer to that six months point. So if you just have to do it, no matter what,
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you just have to do it, because there's no other way. They're not keeping down their
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breast milk. They're not doing this. You've just got to get something into the system so they can
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absorb something and then put on weight to keep everyone in your little medical group happy.
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What do you introduce them to in that circumstance?
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What's something that's not hard, not too hard to break down, but give some nutritious value
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that's going to be beneficial to the child? Because you can't do it yet?
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Anything that you put in is just going to skip straight through and go straight into your system.
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So no matter what it is, it will just do that?
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Yeah. So you know how they say, don't give the baby cow's milk before, I don't know,
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12 months or something. I don't know what the 12 months is all about, but if you gave a baby cow's
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milk instead of breast milk or formula in the first four to six months, then that's going straight
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into their system and that can be quite dangerous for them.
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And that means the gut doesn't have the ability to break down the proteins
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that are in the cow's milk or whatever it is?
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Yeah. You can't extract anything. You can't do anything. It just slides straight in,
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straight through the system. When your baby reaches four to six months of age,
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the gut will, there's lots of holes through it or drainage holes in a sense, and those holes
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close up. And so it's a harder work for anything that you ingest to go through. And it ends up
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being more like a wall. And it's got to pass through your little gut soldiers to get to the
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other side of the wall.
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Delay introducing cells for as long as possible.
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Yeah. People say that there's issues if you leave it too late. And I don't know from a
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physio perspective if there is, but I would wait six months, not hang around and go,
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yes, it's four months, let's do it. Just wait a bit longer if you can and keep breastfeeding.
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The baby will be getting everything that they need from breast milk up until at least like
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the six months. And then if you're introducing solids, keep breastfeeding because the breast
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milk is still better than anything else you can provide for your baby.
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Yeah. And I suppose from a physio front, the longer you delay trying to introduce your child
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to swallowing solids, the better, because they'll have more capabilities to be able to deal with
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those mechanics involved in actually swallowing something.
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Sure.
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If you do, especially in the positions we tend to get these children in when we are
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introducing them to solids, which they might not be actually be able to hold themselves in,
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which then sends you down a bit of a pathway of a not such a happy time when you're
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trying to introduce solids to your child.
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Yeah. And I think when people are looking at introducing their child to solids, they look
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for any sign because they're desperate to do it because they're still breastfeeding a lot and
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I don't know, it's fun or maybe it'll make it easier or maybe they'll see their baby put on
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weight and that's a good thing.
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So introducing solids also then goes, oh, I don't have to do as much breastfeeding,
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so it takes a bit of the burden off the caregiver, right?
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Yeah. Which I suppose eventually it does, but you need to look at solids as a supplement
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to breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is number one. Solids are that little bit extra that they can
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then take in and your gut doesn't become less permeable for no reason. It's the way that nature
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intended, so we've got to support that. Now, when we do start on solids, it's important the
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order in which you give your children food as well, or different types of food.
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What type of foods?
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Yeah. A lot of doctors will say, give them that iron fortified rice porridge, but I don't like
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it. It's got very limited nutritional value. It's fortified with iron. When something's fortified
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with something, like a vitamin or whatever, they're usually synthetically made, which I don't
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want to put anything that's synthetic or unnatural into my baby, especially when it's the first thing
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that they're going to consume. Also, they should be getting enough iron out of your breast milk
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anyway. Different health professionals will agree or disagree, whatever, but my personal
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recommendation is not to go down the iron fortified food.
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If you are someone who is iron deficient, this is probably a very good reason,
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are you having a child, to maybe get on top of that, so you can then provide this to your child
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instead of having to do it synthetically?
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Especially because what nature does is, if you're pregnant, your baby will get priority,
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and so your baby will draw out any vitamin and nutrient that you've got in your body,
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even if your blood tests and things show that you're deficient in something,
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your baby will draw every ounce of it out of you, because the baby gets priority,
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and anything that you're deficient in will often show up around that point, but your baby takes it
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all. You need to top yourself up with anything you can by eating well and looking after yourself,
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so your baby can get the best platform.
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And knowing potentially what, genetically, you're not so good at absorbing or don't have a high
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level of, and having that information available to you, so you can then pre-plan for these
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circumstances, so you don't have to introduce synthetic vitamins, minerals, whatever, to your
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child, because you, as a mother, will be able to give them to you naturally, if you're breastfeeding.
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And ideally, before you even conceive, you go on a 12-month program to prepare your body
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to bring in another life, and make it as healthy as you possibly can.
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But that's probably a whole day's worth of talking.
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That's a lot of, that's a completely separate chat by itself.
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When you are starting your child on solids, they develop their savoury taste buds first,
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so anything you give them that's savoury tastes sweet to them, so it's nice, that's what they're
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looking for, something savoury, because they'll love the taste of it. So if you give them something
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sweet to start off with, it's going to be too much for them, or they'll skip that whole savoury phase
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and just want to go for that really sweet stuff. And then it's really hard to encourage your child
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later on to have veggies, because they've never had bland and enjoyed it. Like people today might
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have vegetables and think, nah, too bland, I need to put something on top of that. Yep, fine.
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But if you give your baby carrot, pumpkin, broccoli, give them broccoli, the most bland,
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no, cauliflower is your least favourite, isn't it? The most bland vegetable you can find.
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Yeah, it's only good for absorbing any sauce you put on it.
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Whereas I love cauliflower. But give them something super bland, and only give them the bland stuff,
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and they are more likely to want vegetables when they're older. So start off with savoury,
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and then later on introduce things like fruits, lower sugar.
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How much time do you need to be introducing them to savoury first, for them to develop
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that sense or that feel, to then go, all right, now it's time to introduce something a bit more?
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I don't really know the answer to that one. I can look it up for you though, if you like.
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I would assume, based upon every other piece of developmental apparatus that your body has,
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I'd say somewhere between eight and 12 weeks, it'll take your brain to figure out
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what that food tastes like and how to integrate that into the rest of the system.
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Yeah, and there's no hurry either. You can also, you don't have to puree everything.
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It's really good to give your baby, or they call it baby-led weaning, where you give your baby
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finger food, things that they can pick up, things that they can touch. Give them an array of food
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in front of them, and so they can grab whatever they gravitate to. Make it all veggie,
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so they're not going to go and pick up fruit or something. You don't want them to pick up yet,
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but yeah, if they, the more they learn about the look, the colour, the texture of food,
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the better position they're in to make a positive decision when they're older.
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And so food fights initially when you're trying to juice solids are a good idea.
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Yeah, they are definitely a good idea, and give your baby, if you want to do purees and things,
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that's fine, but if you want to, you can just empty your little cup of puree out onto a bowl
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for them, and let them stick their hand in, and just put the hand in their mouth. The more they
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do it themselves, the better for their attitude towards food later, and their education about
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nutrition. And so, obviously, you're pureeing everything, and you want to make it as smooth
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as possible, so it's easier to swallow and digest, etc. The bigger the bundle of the food,
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the harder it is to swallow, but also harder it is to digest.
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Yeah, it's more as well about the choking factor. You've got to be careful about that,
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and they're not very skilful yet, so you have to keep a solid eye on them.
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Don't give your young child mango slithers, just a hot tip.
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Yeah, it's too slippery.
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It's a little bit too slippery. It can easily get caught in the wrong pipe,
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and you might have to know your first aid and CPR courses for babies if you decide you want
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to go down that path, because you might need to try and bash it out of them.
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Yeah, thankfully, Simon was home when I did that. I don't think Ollie's eaten mango since,
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too traumatized for me. But yeah, you want to start them on savory. Later on,
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bring them into some sweet foods. I would opt for lower sugar fruits as well.
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What are your top five low sugar fruits?
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Oh, any berry. There's probably about four berries.
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Rasp, straw.
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Blackberries are the best.
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Black, poison, blue.
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Yeah, there's a lot of them. Okay, top ten. Blackberries have virtually no sugar in them.
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Dragon fruit is a bit random, but that has pretty much no sugar in it.
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I know banana's a popular one. That's fine.
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Easy to mash.
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It is easy to mash, and you can mash it up with things like avocado,
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and that's what you can do as well. Mix them.
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Savory and the sweet.
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Yep, yep. So then there's less sweet, but it's something different.
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It's got an element in it, at least.
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Change it.
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Yep. And then after they've become accustomed to the fruit,
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then the next thing would be like your leaner cuts of meat.
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At this point, though, I would say they're older and they can hold it themselves.
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Yeah, they can have a cutlet or something and hold it in their hand.
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Just suck on it.
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Yeah, pretty much.
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They've got little chompers starting to develop, either top or bottom.
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Yeah.
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That's also helpful too.
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And kids tend to love it.
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So take advantage of them wanting to pick something up and sucking on it and whatever.
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What did we give Ollie his little...
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Like a mesh bag, and you could put berries or something on the inside.
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So we would often put like chunks.
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So if we had mango or something, I would put it in there because it was slippery.
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Or if it was something that's hard to hold on to, put it in a little mesh bag,
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and then you can screw it onto a handle.
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The baby would hold the handle and they could just suck through this little mesh bag.
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That was what I did when I needed to do something, but wanted them to
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eat or let them play with food.
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But yeah, that was enjoyable for all.
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Bit messy, but the whole thing is.
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So you've got to allow it to be messy.
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Because that's part of the whole discovery of the food.
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And even if they're not eating a whole lot of it, you're still breastfeeding.
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So they're getting all the nutrients they need.
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And that's the most important thing.
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And think of the introduction of solids as a subsidiary until they get older.
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And then it becomes their main source of food.
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But they will decrease their breastfeeding as they're increasing their need for solids.
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So it should just happen naturally.
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Once you do the lean meats, the last thing you really introduce them to is some
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grains, preferably gluten-free.
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And I say gluten-free because gluten is an inflammatory for the gut.
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And everyone has a different level of tolerance of gluten.
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So you're best to go for grains that are naturally gluten-free to start off with.
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And then see what happens as they get a bit older.
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So what are your grains here?
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Rice.
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You can get pasta that is made just from rice and water.
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So things like that, really.
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Rice cakes, not those rusks, those biscuit stick things.
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Not those.
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No, I don't know.
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Are they rusks?
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I don't know.
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We never had them.
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But not those.
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They're full of this and the other.
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Yeah.
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So you just essentially want real food.
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You want to prepare your baby some real food.
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And the more you do now, or at this point in time, the easier it is to feed them later.
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Also, the more you do when you're pregnant, the easier it's going to be later.
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And less likely you're going to have a fussy eater.
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So I'm just craving chocolate or ice cream or whatever it is.
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And then because I'm pregnant, I can do that.
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I can do it.
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I can eat what I want.
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That's what your baby's going to get used to.
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And so if you don't want them just to eat ice cream for their entire lives,
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maybe you shouldn't do that either as a pregnant woman.
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Just think every single thing that you're doing with your food when you're pregnant
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is putting a little imprint on the baby's microbiome.
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And that is going to determine their desires and their appetites and their taste buds and things
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as a baby, as a toddler and older.
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So if you want to make life easier for yourself,
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then think about what you're doing when you're pregnant.
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And then be careful what you're doing when you're introducing your baby to solids.
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But yeah, it'll be easier for your child to want to like the savory options that
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you're giving them initially because you've done the hard work early.
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Yeah.
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And you want to make solids and everything around eating,
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you want to make it a positive experience for them.
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So make sure you're eating your veggies and you eat them in front of your child
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and you say how delicious they are and educate them a little bit.
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So give them options, but allow them to make the choice themselves
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and educate them along the way.
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Don't get upset if they pick something that you don't want them to pick.
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Just one, don't give them terrible options.
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Give them all decent options.
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But if they don't pick the broccoli, don't think it's the worst thing in the world.
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Just give it time and keep on offering and educate them about why this is good for you.
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And they might feel like an idiot talking to a four-year-old about
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how eating fresh fish is good for your brain or whatever.
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But eventually they might want-
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Or 11-month-old.
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Yeah.
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Yeah.
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Just speak to them about how food is important for their development.
18:20 - 18:21
Yeah.
18:21 - 18:23
But eventually they might learn.
18:24 - 18:27
So yeah, from a physio perspective.
18:27 - 18:27
Yes.
18:28 - 18:30
What are your thoughts when you're introducing a baby to solids?
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People think, all right, six months or however young you're introducing your child to solids,
18:36 - 18:38
I'll sit him up in a high chair and feed him.
18:38 - 18:38
Yeah.
18:38 - 18:44
It's like one of my pet hates when it comes to impacting your child's development.
18:44 - 18:49
Because if my golden rule is, do not put your baby into a position
18:49 - 18:52
that they cannot get into or transfer into themselves.
18:52 - 18:52
Yep.
18:52 - 18:55
And sitting at six months of age is one of those positions.
18:55 - 19:02
Actually, I read just before when I was researching for things that people say about sitting,
19:02 - 19:07
about your baby should be sitting with help at six months.
19:07 - 19:09
There's no such thing with help.
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We don't stand with help.
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No.
19:12 - 19:13
We don't crawl with help.
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We don't roll with help.
19:15 - 19:15
Yeah.
19:15 - 19:17
Sitting with help is not a thing.
19:17 - 19:17
Yeah.
19:17 - 19:19
Or it shouldn't be a thing.
19:19 - 19:19
It is a thing.
19:19 - 19:20
It shouldn't be.
19:20 - 19:24
So when we're feeding them, so we briefly touched on bombos and
19:25 - 19:27
whatever else there is to support your baby.
19:27 - 19:32
So sticky baby in that thing that holds them up in a weird sitting position.
19:32 - 19:34
So you can feed them solids on the kitchen table.
19:34 - 19:35
So we don't like those.
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One, they're dangerous.
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They're horrible for postural development.
19:39 - 19:39
Yeah.
19:39 - 19:40
Yeah.
19:40 - 19:41
So we don't like those.
19:41 - 19:45
You don't want to strap them into a high chair because a high chair is in an upright sitting
19:45 - 19:46
position and they're not sitting.
19:46 - 19:49
Unless your high chair can recline 45 degrees.
19:49 - 19:51
Yeah, which they do make them.
19:51 - 19:54
We never got them, but if I had a baby now, I probably would.
19:54 - 19:55
Capsule.
19:55 - 19:56
Yep.
19:56 - 19:58
You can use the capsule that you use in the car.
19:58 - 19:59
Yeah.
19:59 - 20:00
Put it on the table, put them in it.
20:00 - 20:00
Yeah.
20:00 - 20:01
Might get messy.
20:01 - 20:04
And the capsule gets really messy, but that's also a 45 degree angle.
20:04 - 20:05
So that's okay.
20:05 - 20:05
Yeah.
20:05 - 20:08
And you can also take the cover off usually and put it in the washing machine.
20:08 - 20:10
Just might have to get used to that.
20:10 - 20:14
And then you've got the mesh bouncers that they're slightly inclined.
20:14 - 20:16
That's nowhere near 45 degrees.
20:16 - 20:17
Yeah.
20:17 - 20:23
But if your baby can lay on its back or on its side or whatever and swallow breast milk
20:23 - 20:29
or swallow formula, it can swallow a supremely pureed food in that same position.
20:29 - 20:30
Yeah.
20:30 - 20:36
So don't be too worried about, oh, they're going to choke on this or whatever else.
20:36 - 20:36
Yeah.
20:36 - 20:38
I guarantee you they will not.
20:38 - 20:39
I just looked up.
20:39 - 20:44
If you've got the food pureed well enough or they're just sucking on some food and just
20:44 - 20:49
trying to discover it through that mesh bag that we had for our eldest, it's really safe,
20:49 - 20:54
but they're still getting the experience of the food and still also ingesting the food too.
20:55 - 20:55
Yeah.
20:55 - 20:57
I've got multiple photos of our kids in those actually.
20:57 - 21:03
They were so happy in them and they were so free to move around in them, but it
21:03 - 21:07
was one good way to keep them amused while I was cooking in the kitchen and
21:07 - 21:09
whatever, and it wasn't harmful to them.
21:09 - 21:12
And they could sit there and hold on to their little frozen raspberries in their
21:12 - 21:13
shower.
21:13 - 21:15
Yeah, lay there, sorry, not sit.
21:15 - 21:17
I've just looked up what those things are called.
21:17 - 21:20
Baby Bouncinette, 60 bucks.
21:20 - 21:23
It's just old school crochet, looks flat.
21:23 - 21:29
And then it's got like a T-bar strap that doesn't really do much, but it just stops them
21:29 - 21:31
from falling down completely onto the ground.
21:31 - 21:37
Because when you put them in there, the bum kind of, yeah, but yeah, they, we use that a
21:37 - 21:38
lot and that was great.
21:38 - 21:38
Yeah.
21:38 - 21:42
Now, what about a tongue reflex thing?
21:42 - 21:46
Like they say, you put the spoon in the mouth and the baby can push it out with the
21:46 - 21:47
tongue. What does that mean?
21:47 - 21:51
If you make contact with the lower lip, the baby will push its tongue out to resist
21:51 - 21:52
whatever's coming.
21:52 - 21:53
OK, as a natural reflex.
21:53 - 21:54
Natural reflex.
21:54 - 21:58
So if you're trying to feed your child and you're doing the old aeroplane thing that's
21:58 - 22:03
coming in for landing and then you touch the bottom lip to try and get them to open their
22:03 - 22:07
mouth, the tongue will just push out immediately and it'll block you.
22:08 - 22:12
But what's instead, you've got to touch their chin with the spoon and that'll open their
22:12 - 22:14
mouth and you'll be able to get it in.
22:14 - 22:14
Yeah.
22:14 - 22:19
So you'll just have to practice your coordination of going chin tap, chin tap, and then in
22:19 - 22:21
mouth, chin tap in mouth, chin tap in mouth.
22:21 - 22:26
With your pureed pumpkin or carrot or broccoli, cauliflower combo.
22:26 - 22:31
Or your mashed banana and avo as your dessert appetizer or whatever.
22:31 - 22:34
Yeah. And then when they're a little bit older, they're mashed fruit.
22:34 - 22:35
But yeah, OK.
22:35 - 22:39
But yeah, don't sit them to eat solids, especially if they can't sit already, which
22:39 - 22:44
they shouldn't be trying to be or shouldn't be able to by themselves at six months
22:44 - 22:46
anyway. So out of the question.
22:46 - 22:52
Yeah. Anything else when it comes to introducing your baby to solids from your angle?
22:52 - 22:53
I think I'm done.
22:54 - 22:56
You'll know because they'll be interested in watching you eat.
22:57 - 22:57
Yeah, that's true.
22:57 - 23:01
They'll see you eating and reach for whatever is on your plate.
23:01 - 23:04
If you say that, they're probably ready to start being introduced to solids.
23:05 - 23:05
Yeah.
23:05 - 23:07
Because they're showing an interest in it.
23:07 - 23:10
So that introduction to solids might not be you making them try and eat something
23:10 - 23:14
straight away. It's literally putting something on their own plate in front of them or with
23:14 - 23:18
a little mesh basket with a handle or just sucking on some stuff.
23:18 - 23:19
That's the introduction.
23:19 - 23:21
Yeah. And it may seem.
23:21 - 23:24
And then over time, you can then develop them into actually eating the food.
23:24 - 23:26
Yeah. Because no, no hurry.
23:26 - 23:31
They don't have to go from nothing to smashing three solid meals a day at six months
23:31 - 23:35
old. It is called the introduction to solids.
23:35 - 23:40
So if they're not showing down heaps and heaps of food for a couple of months, don't
23:40 - 23:45
stress. It is about getting them interested and getting them, helping them gain the
23:45 - 23:50
ability, natural ability to pick something up and put it in their mouth and chew and
23:50 - 23:51
all those sorts of things.
23:51 - 23:57
And also develop good habits around knowing or tasting food and feeling like all foods
23:57 - 23:58
are delicious, having variety.
23:58 - 24:02
So it's really about setting up for the future.
24:02 - 24:05
Everything we've been talking about in every single episode, setting up for the future
24:05 - 24:10
so that you don't have all these issues to try and get on top of around trying to get
24:10 - 24:12
your child to eat more healthily.
24:12 - 24:14
Yeah. So anything, just aim for whole foods.
24:15 - 24:20
Do not give them anything with numbers in or flavors or just keep it as bland as
24:20 - 24:24
possible. And just quickly, what if you're just making your own purees at home, what are
24:24 - 24:28
you, what type of machinery or utilities are you using to make that happen?
24:28 - 24:29
Oh, it doesn't.
24:29 - 24:31
If you've got a thermomix, is that easy?
24:31 - 24:34
I did. Yeah, thermomixes make it easy.
24:34 - 24:38
And there's a lot of books, recipe books and recipes online and whatever.
24:39 - 24:41
I don't have one anymore.
24:41 - 24:42
I did use it for a while.
24:42 - 24:48
I, even if you boil up or roast up like a sweet potato or something and then you just mash
24:48 - 24:50
it up with a fork, it doesn't, whatever works.
24:50 - 24:53
You can use a blender, anything, really.
24:53 - 24:54
So it's not.
24:54 - 24:57
So as long as it's nice and soft, then you can blend it up into whatever you want to use.
24:57 - 25:04
Yeah, and as the baby gets more used to consuming the purees, you can make it, make soft
25:04 - 25:08
lumps. So that's when you mash potato, but leave it a little bit chunky, helps.
25:08 - 25:14
And then give them some really soft carrot sticks or that's when they're up to the fruits,
25:14 - 25:19
cut like a banana into lengths so they can hold on to it and nip the end off.
25:19 - 25:22
And then you'll know as parents intuitively that, okay, they're ready for a little bit
25:22 - 25:28
more, I suppose, lumpy bits in their food because they'll be easily digesting the puree.
25:28 - 25:29
Yeah, just watch them.
25:29 - 25:31
And they won't be spitting it back up or anything like that, they'll be able to just get it
25:31 - 25:35
down, hold it down. And then you can also then try the next stage.
25:35 - 25:39
Does that tongue reflex go away with time?
25:39 - 25:41
No, it happens, still exists.
25:41 - 25:41
Oh, really?
25:42 - 25:45
You do it now, you can press on the, if you try to open your mouth, if you try and open
25:45 - 25:51
your mouth with pressing on the bottom lip, you'll feel like your tongue goes forward
25:51 - 25:54
between the bottom and top teeth.
25:54 - 25:59
And then if you, but if you open your mouth by pulling your jaw down, the tongue doesn't
25:59 - 26:00
go forward at all.
26:00 - 26:02
True. Everyone will be doing that now.
26:03 - 26:04
All right. I think that might be it.
26:04 - 26:05
That's enough, I think.
26:05 - 26:07
Yay, introduction to solids, there you go.
26:08 - 26:10
All right. Thank you, everyone, for tuning in.
26:10 - 26:14
We will be back next time, all about sitting.
26:14 - 26:15
Bye.
26:15 - 26:15
Bye.
