My baby will complete 6 months in february & now i plan to start solids for her. I am so confused as different people have different ideas about starting solids. One aunty told me start with diluted grape juice/ other said diluted dal water/ some say diluted honey water is best/ & doc said rice cereal. I know i shud listen to doc but i can not ignore the old ladies who have so much of experience raising intellegent people like us. Just want some openions!!!!!........ Sulochana replied. Hi Niki,

Though we get suggestions from all Senior ladies for starting solid food for our dear ones, we, mother, are still confused on how to being. Similar problem I was facing. But, We (myself and my MIL) tried following things for our daughter Akshada, who is currently 8 months, which really worked!!!!!.

First thing to be kept in mind is Babies body system are very delicate. Whatever you start (solid with more liquid, Juice, Veg. Soups), start with little (may be 2-3 spoon), wait for a day, see next day, how is their motion and then conclude. If you think that food given has not digested, stop for 4 days. Again try on 5th day with 2-3 spoon, and so on till Baby is adjusted to food. And then as per Baby's demand and requirement, you can increase they food quantity.

Ingredients tried :

1) Moong + Rice (1:1)
2) Chappati + Moong
3) Nachani Kheer
4) Rawa Kheer
5) Rice Kheer
6) Vegetable Soup (Cabbage, Cauliflower, Pharasbi, Tendli, Carrot, Beet, Palak, White Doodhi)
7) Chickoo, Pappaya, Grape, Dalimb, Carrot+Beet Juice, Mousambi, Orange, Coconut water, any Seasonal fruit.

First 1-5 items, can be given alternately whatever suits. Initially, it should be prepared with more liquid and less quantity but then later on see to it that it is pasty with more quantity. It should be boiled and then grind. 6 item - Same goes for Veg.Soup. Vegetables should be boiled properly and grind it in a mixer and filter it. Slowly increase the quantity. See to it that daily 2-3 vegetables are included in Veg.Soup. As baby grows, you can also directly give paste. 7 item - Daily one fruit juice can be given. See to it that Juice is given at afternoon to avoid cough. You can keep fruit in a clean cotton cloth and squeeze it and give it to baby.

In all above ingredients, you can add litte salt, sugar, jaggery or jeera powder for taste. But its optional.

Your baby will really love to eat different food which has different taste. Then when all the things are OK, you can start giving Solid foods directly.

So, Best of Luck, set a time-table for your Baby which should also include Milk.
Meera replied. Hi Niki,
I hope u r not more confused 'coz of all these suggestions. I have only one comment, whatever food u choose should be homemade with no extra preservatives, artificial flavour etc. Kuljit Bhogal replied. Hi. I live in Canada and maybe nutritional advice here is different but the dr's here recommend starting with rice cereal and then barlay cereal and then oatmeal cereal. Leave at least 3-5 days in between starting a new cereal or food to watch for allergies. Then move on to the veggies which are steamed and mashed. Then start fruits and lastly add any chicken to the diet if you are non-veg. Fruit juices should be limited to only 1/2 a cup a day as they contain too much sugar. Never add sugar or honey to food. Honey can cause botulism in infants. Wait until they are at least 1 year old before giving honey. That is the standard here. I hope that helps.My daughter is 6 1/2 months and started solids at 4 1/2 months. She is very healthy.
good luck. suhagi replied. Dear mom,
myself has also passed the same confusion but now my baby eats everything. when he turned 6 months, i haves stared with yellow moong dal and rice khichdi (baked mix with ghess and sugar in mixer and pureed).one sppon on first day and slowly increase then mashed banana with little mother's milk . dal water doesn't have any nutri. value. then slowly slowly u increase the quantity. first time your child will refuse but slowly slowly it will adjust to it.u can even give ti narial pani.there are two pediatricains in my family and my baby is really healthy. if u want u can really on me as my baby is only 11 mts. old.u r right that old ladies have reared many peoples in familied but hte time has changed and we should change accordingly.they r not always right. keep their suggestion in mind.
bye
take care of yourself and baby
suhagi Niloufer Ebrahim replied. A single-grain cereal made of rice, [commercial or home-made] is a good first food. Start with a teaspoonful and increase gradually. Add on soft-cooked veggies like carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, peas, cauliflower; and stewed fruit like apple, peach, pear. You can give baby some ripe banana and mango [in season]. Try not to fall into the trap of pureeing all the food in the mixer, its better to cook it well and mash it with the back of a spoon. Avoid ghee, butter, oil and spices. A teeny pinch of salt is okay, but no sugar in the stewed fruit, let baby get used to natural sugars instead. Mung dal soup and khichree are good. Soups made of mixed veggies with a few palak leaves thrown in will give baby lots of nutrition. Fresh fruit juice [1/4 cup a day] with a spoon [intead of a bottle] and later with a feeder cup is a good bet, byt try to feed him/her the fruit rather than the juice alone. It's important to introduce only one new item at a time. Nachni [ragi] is an excellent source of prtien and iron for a baby at this age. If you are a non-vegetarian, you can introduce egg yolks later, but no whites till 1 year. Avoid honey, it can cause infant botulism, which affects baby's intestines.
Niloufer Ebrahim
Perinatal & Parenting Counsellor & Educator, Pune Swati replied. Hey Cereals is dead food! Give your li'l angel regular khana like boil veggies and rice or dal and puree it and cool it and give it to your baby. A li'l bit of extra work but isn't your li'l one worth that much. It is always better to give babies freshly cooked foods! It is healthier and most nutritious. Juices and dal water and fruits pureed again is also a good idea but try and give your baby everything as fresh as possible! Mebbe you'll need to stand a few minutes longer in the kitchenb but in the long run you will be proud you gave your baby the best and the results will show too! Moli replied. I would say listen to Doc..Begin with rice cereal which is easier for the baby to digest and also which doesnt cause any allergies. I have heard that it is dangerous to give honey to infants before 1 yr..not sure about dal water..but juices can be introduced when they are ready to drink from cup. Start with rice cereals, then with fruits, vegetables in that order. Give 3 to 5 days between introducing new foods..Good luck