Introducing food into your baby’s life (and yours) is a big step! As we approach this important transition, many parents feel ill-equipped and have their heads full of questions: When should I start? What should I give first? What are my child’s needs and what approach should I opt for?

Mother Hen has been there! That’s why we’ve prepared a complete and accessible file that will answer your questions. A great way to take your first steps and get familiar with the subject without feeling overwhelmed!

When can I start introducing food?

As with everything else in early childhood, you are the person who knows your child best, and the best judge of when to start introducing food. However, here’s what we do know: it is imperative that foods other than milk are not introduced before 4 months of age. Before that age, children don’t have enough saliva or enzymes to digest them properly, their kidneys can’t tolerate large amounts of protein and their immune system is immature, which could increase their risk of developing food allergies.

It is generally suggested to introduce complementary foods when the child is around 6 months old. There are clues that can help you determine if your child is ready to eat – you will find them in our summary chart How do I know if my baby is ready to be introduced to food? Keep in mind, however, that even if your baby is happy to eat new foods, breast milk (or formula) is still his main source of nutrients until 1 year of age, so he should continue to drink it!

How do I proceed?

To begin this pivotal stage, choose a time when family life includes no upheaval: avoid introducing food to a child during a move, an inconvenient cold or when the child is in crisis. At first, start by offering small amounts gradually, then adapt to your child’s pace. For example, if he accepted a teaspoon or two on the first day, that’s a great start! Don’t give up: tomorrow he may dare to eat more. Let him dictate his hunger and peacefully familiarize himself with this new experience.

After a few days or weeks, your child may enjoy two to three meals a day. Your 7- or 8-month-old will be eating regular meals combining a greater variety of foods. You can feed and offer milk at your child’s request during the first year, before setting up a fixed meal and snack schedule.

Keep in mind that a baby may need several tries before he enjoys a specific type of food! Even if he refuses to eat it more than 15 times, don’t lose hope and continue to offer it without forcing him to eat it. If necessary, take a “break” from the food and offer it again a few days later to try a new approach. If your baby is willing to touch it or put it in his mouth, show him that it’s positive! This is a great start to getting your baby familiar with an unloved food.

What should I feed my child?

Because 6-month-olds have high iron needs, you should prioritize meat, poultry, fish, eggs, vegetables, tofu and iron-fortified cereals. They do not need to be introduced in a specific order, but to maximize iron intake, it is important to offer these foods at least twice a day. The rest of the time, follow your instincts! It is entirely advisable to offer a vegetable or fruit in combination with an iron-rich food, since the vitamin C contained in vegetables and fruits improves the absorption of this mineral.

Can I stop breastfeeding or cut off milk all of a sudden?

Breastfeeding mothers, be aware that abrupt weaning may be painful for you and upsetting for your baby (so, again, for you too). It’s important to make the transition smoothly and gradually so that your baby adapts and your body keeps up. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends breastfeeding until the age of 2 years and even longer, if both mom and baby want to. It is therefore not at all mandatory to wean your baby from the breast when introducing solid foods. Until the age of one, breastmilk can be used to supplement your baby’s diet so that nothing is missing.

If your baby drinks formula instead, you can gradually replace the bottle with cow’s milk (around 9 to 12 months old) in open glasses, spouts or straws. Your baby has to adapt to this new reality, and will probably choose the container he prefers. When your baby’s 1 year old, you can remove the infant formula and choose only cow’s milk.

Remember, however, that the breast and bottle are more than just instruments to feed your baby: they are also a source of comfort for him. That’s why your baby may cling to breastfeeding or bottle feeding. You can concede times when you continue to breastfeed or bottle-feed according to your family reality and your parental limits. Of course, like for any learning process, try to start this transition in a calm period.

BLW is short for Baby-Led Weaning

This is a relatively new approach here in North America, but it has been around for a long time in other cultures. It involves letting your baby explore food at his or her own pace and developing autonomy. It has been shown to serve many benefits, such as the development of fine motor skills and coordination, the ease of meal preparation for parents (since the baby eats the same foods as the family, sometimes served differently) and the pleasure of eating at the same time as the child, as the baby feeds himself.

Obviously, this approach also has some drawbacks: it is messier, creates longer mealtimes, can increase food waste and is not necessarily adapted to babies with particular health conditions (developmental delays, coordination problems, prematurity, etc.). Some parents also have fears due to choking, but you should know that babies are no more likely to choke during BLW than with more traditional feeding methods, as long as you follow the recommendations for food size and safety instructions. In the end, the benefits often outweigh the drawbacks, as your baby learns to feed independently and to listen to his body and satiety signals. That’s why many parents tend to adopt this method.

Want to know if this approach is right for you? Check out our chart titled “Making BLW easy and simple”

BLW and Mother Hen

With the growing popularity of the BLW approach, some parents tend to separate the ways of feeding their baby into two narrowly defined camps: BLW or purees. But real life works differently! That’s why Mother Hen purees are perfectly compatible with the BLW approach, since they can be served by spoon, with your baby handling the spoon (some adapted utensils even make it easier to be picked up, these days), or on edible carriers (for example, turkey puree on a rice cake).

Our purees are also a good meal option when the rest of the family eats a menu that is not adapted for babies, such as an evening out at a restaurant where salty, sweet or fried dishes are the go-to.

Ah, satiety! That feeling with which we sometimes feel like we’ve “lost touch” in the whirlwind of our adult life! Yet it is the key to a healthy relationship with food. Practicing how to recognize the feeling of satiety as an adult is quite a task, which is why we give you the tools to make sure your baby learns to listen to his hunger signals. Sometimes this will mean ignoring the advice of friends and other generations, so be warned! Even if this may seem a little premature when it comes to familiarizing your baby with food, it is on the contrary an excellent attitude to adopt in order to start off on the right foot… or the right bite 😉

It will be important to establish a routine, making sure your baby can recognize the signals of hunger and satiety. You don’t want him eating more just because he’s insecure, not knowing when the next meal or snack will come. When your baby eats, make sure to forget about the pressure of an empty plate and avoid the classic phrases like “If you don’t finish your plate, you won’t get any dessert”. While this approach was understandable in the past, at a time when food was scarce in large families, it is no longer appropriate today. Yes, waste should not be encouraged, but if your child learns to discover his true appetite, “it’s a priceless gift he’ll use to manage his portions himself.

Your role as a parent is to offer healthy and varied foods, and your child will be the one who controls the amount consumed. This approach is an invaluable gift for your child, since it eliminates food-induced stress and focuses the meal around the notion of pleasure. It is a vision of nutrition that must absolutely be taken into account from the very beginning, in order to change your primary parental reflexes (anxiety when your baby eats too little, excessive congratulations because he has finished his plate or comments on his appetite, etc.). Once your baby is able to taste less nutritious, saltier or sweeter foods, keep in mind never to “demonize” them, which could make them more desirable in the long run. It has been proven that the key to healthy weight and food management is to eat the foods we love by listening to our appetite.

Like all stages of your child’s life, starting solid food can be emotionally charged. Mother Hen has been through this, and our adventure began thanks to a mother’s concern over what quality products she should offer her child.

Rest assured: just because your baby eats more or less variety doesn’t mean he’ll sleep more or develop faster. Your child usually knows instinctively what he or she needs, and your doctor will be able to monitor his or her development with an expert eye.

Worried about food allergies? You should know that from now on, it’s recommended that allergens be introduced as early as possible in your baby’s life. This would even help prevent your baby from developing an allergy later on! And if your little darling has an allergic reaction, rest assured: he won’t go into anaphylactic shock the first time. You’ll get clues: redness on the skin, swelling around the mouth… When you introduce allergens, you have to go step by step, that is, one allergen at a time. The good news with Mother Hen is that you don’t have to stress about the presence of allergens in our purees, because they contain none!

Sharing meals as a family creates a routine that benefits everyone. Meal preparation is simplified, you can enjoy a nice family break and strengthen your bonds by putting stress aside. Of course, you are encouraged to let your cell phones and tablets rest to make your family meal a sacred moment to exchange, share and enjoy the pleasure of eating and discovering food with your little ones.