{"id":1793,"date":"2024-01-15T09:24:07","date_gmt":"2024-01-14T22:24:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/littlebellies.com\/au\/?p=1793"},"modified":"2024-01-15T10:18:47","modified_gmt":"2024-01-14T23:18:47","slug":"working-together-breastfeeding-and-solid-foods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/littlebellies.com\/au\/learn-play\/working-together-breastfeeding-and-solid-foods\/","title":{"rendered":"Working Together: Breastfeeding and Solid Foods"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cFood before one is just for fun!<\/em>\u201d \u2026or is it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ve likely heard this phrase used before (or you will soon enough!). The premise is that solid food introduction and intake is solely for fun because breast milk provides everything a baby needs. While this isn\u2019t entirely untrue, it\u2019s also not very accurate and is oversimplified. Let\u2019s dive in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Role of Complementary Foods<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We know that breast milk is the primary nutrition before age one. However, the introduction of complementary foods is very<\/em> important. From a nutrition standpoint, babies have increasing needs for calories, protein, fat, zinc, and iron after 6 months of age. Breastmilk supplies some of these nutrients in high amounts but is low in iron and has decreasing levels of zinc after about 6 months. The introduction of solids<\/strong><\/a> around 6 months of age helps to fill in these gaps. From a development perspective, babies are developing feeding-specific skills. Solid food introduction helps them to develop the skills of moving food around in the mouth, decreasing the gag reflex, chewing, bringing food to the mouth, and more. Six months of age is the prime time to begin offering these foods from a developmental standpoint. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Stages<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Getting started with solids while breastfeeding can feel tricky at times. In the early weeks of offering food, begin by breastfeeding as usual before<\/em> offering a meal. Consider breastfeeding about 30 to 60 minutes before offering food. Breastfeeding before a meal may seem counterintuitive. This ensures the baby has a satisfied tummy before offering food and prevents a \u201changry\u201d meltdown at mealtime. If the baby is too hungry at mealtime, they can become frustrated as they are learning the new skill of eating solid foods and may not fill their tummies as quickly as they\u2019d like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With time and learning what works best for your baby, breastfeeding timing is flexible. Some families feel the above approach works well throughout offering solids. Other families may try offering half of a usual feeding (ex. one breast or cutting time in half) and then offer solids to increase solid food intake. They may end the feeding by offering a \u201ctop off\u201d breastfeed. On the other hand, some families find their little one does best with eating solid food first and then breastfeeding after the meal. Know there is flexibility in how you plan breastfeeding vs solid foods \u2013 try out different approaches and see which works best for you. This may vary day by day, during growth spurts, and schedule \u2013 and that\u2019s perfectly okay!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Should I schedule breastfeeding?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Nope! When it comes to breastfeeding, encourage feeding based on cues. Some days your baby will need to breastfeed more, and other days less. Solid food introduction shouldn\u2019t change the response to their cues. What you can (and arguably \u2013 should) schedule is solid food meals. The introduction of meals is gradual and based on age. Suggested meals per age may look like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n