Hi everyone,
My son has completed 4 months and is in his 5th month now. We started giving him one meal of ragi during the mid morning and 1 tablespoon of Heinz rice cereal (Suitable for 4 mths up) added to his formula milk during the evenings. We are based in Singapore and during our doctor's visit today, we were told by our doctor that studies have shown that Singaporean children who start solids before the age of 6 months tend to be obese when they grow up. He therefore recommends that we give only milk until six months old.
We are now confused as to whether we should discontinue ragi and the cereal as well. PLEASE ADVISE
Thanx
Hetal replied. hi,
the reason your dr is very much valid and its true for all race and people of all country.that why its commonly understood that its advisable to start solids after 6months, to give your baby smooth transitioning to solids.and often when babies have been started solids later at 6months, their digestive system have been healthier and much mature than the ones who were on solids at early as 4months..also you wont have to worry much about things like gripe water, and prevents baby from being colicky or gassy,,which has been a major concern for most of the mothers who started solids at 4months,,
the issue of obesity is going on past 3-4 years eversince the start healthy plans started in force after surveys that suggested that babies ended up exceeding 90% percentile growth in weight by the time they were 8months old,,when started solids before 6months.however, its differnt for premies.

its actually based on baby birth weight and growth percentile that each dr advices each baby differntly about when to start solids. if your baby is growing good with bm or formula, it means clearly that he is getting everything that his body needs as of now and so your dr isnt worried about starting solids at this age or is rather asking you to start after 6months.
i have known cases for whom the same dr had adviced to start solids at 4month onwards. they were underweight and needed extra lift of nutrients and were not getting enough from mother diet or formula.
in your case, your baby must be good in weight to say, above 60-65% percentile growth in weight,so your dr wasnt worried about you to start solids and considering that, he doesnt see any need that your baby needs anything extra than bm or formula !
so he adviced you accordingly.

in my daughters case, i started her with solids after she completed 7.5months, my dr wasnt worried until then, she was getting enough from me..it was when she got her 1st teeth popping out & had a mild diarea,,my dr told me to start solids...i didnt give her anything before that..not even raagi.
and yes raagi is heavier than any cereal and so considering that you want to make the decision.
and 2 times solids is abit more than required before 6months.2 times meal of 1 tblspn of what you all are givng should be after 6-7th month, not before that.
also, to my knwledge,raagi doesnt make you fat, its an excellent source of iron and in itself is lowfat diet, but yes it is heavy in digestion, & very heavy when cooked with ghee which means that 1tbsp of raagi with ghee is of double meal....so you might want to consider that.
also, your dr might be happy with baby growth in case that you might not have shared that you are giving him raagi,if so, i dont see ne concerns of him getting obese, and continue giving raagi,,unless otherwise, your dr has mentioned to you that check on his weight ! or that his weight is above 90% percentile.
ask your dr about your baby weight is ok or not,if he is fine with his weight,then judge yourself whether or not you want to continue or discontinue with solids.
also, consider that baby weight has alot to do with bone density, fat levels, and all that he has derived from his family tree.so you be the best judge :)

good luck
aarti replied. I don't have a definite answer for you on this. Only comments to add to your discussion. Thanks for sharing what your doctor said about the research on obesity. That is very good to know. For my son I started solids at month 4 based on my mother's recommendations. He was born a bit preterm and needed to gain weight. Also, he was constantly hungry so the solids helped.

The obesity reason seems valid considering the recent research on obesity, diabetes and heart disease with South Asians esp Indians. The generation below us is expected to most severely affected by the above disorders, moreso among people migrating outside India.

For baby 2 I am considering if I should delay solids until month 6. But I never thought about the obesity angle. Here in the US, doctors want to delay solids for allergy reasons. Since there is allergy/asthma in both sides of the family, I'm wondering if I should postpone.

I hope you are able to make a good decision. You have only one month to go. If you decide to choose between ragi or cereal, maybe you can give up the storebought cereal. Ragi is excellent for babies. It might be more wholesome compared to readymade baby cereals.

Good luck for your decision!

Aarti mpm replied. no..my son is same age as that of yours..but we find no problem in india