Pediatrician advice on solids incorrect?

[@llli*karrieperry]

My pediatrician recommended my baby get water at 6 months for the fluoride. Is this common advice, it seems wrong to me? Do all pediatricians push cereals at 6 months (mine does)? I'm thinking of trying to find a new Dr. with different views...

Baby is EBF (breast only) and gaining/growing very, very well.

[@llli*mommal]

The advice you got is very common, but that doesn't mean it's correct.

A 6 month old baby generally has only 0-4 teeth and isn't getting exposed to lots of sticky sweet foods (e.g. candy, juice, fruits), so it's not like the teeth she has are at great risk for decay. When she's closer to a year, fluoridated water might be an asset in her diet, but it's just not necessary at this point, particularly if you start taking the precaution of wiping baby's teeth down with a clean wet washcloth once per day. Wiping down baby's teeth is also a great way to get her ready for actual toothbrushing, which you probably want to start doing around a year.

Cereals are often recommended as a first food because they are cheap and are fortified with vitamins and minerals. Aside from that, there's nothing to recommend them. They're just pure starch. No protein, no fat. There are lots of foods that are a lot healthier for babies- you can start with veggies, fruits, whole grains, meats... And remember that when a baby starts solids, the quantities will be very small at first! Maybe a teaspoon or two per day, just for fun.

[@llli*isabellesmama]

I would suggest that you look into the safety of flouride, depending on how natural you want to go. I don't use flouride for myself or DD bc it competes with iodine for the thyroid and can cause thyroid problems down the road.

Maybe look into baby-led feeding as well...I agree with mommal that there's no nutritional value (other than synthetic vitamins that they might add). They don't really need solids at this point, it's more for experimentation and fun.

[@llli*amysmom]

A site I used a lot with my 3 girls was this one: http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.c...m#.UXV3Xq79WMU

Although I did use cereal, you don't have to. And to be honest, I only used it when I was in a rush / needed a quick fix. I'm a much bigger fan of simple, single foods.

I didn't offer my girls anything drink wise other than breast milk until maybe 2 weeks before their first birthday (getting them to adjust to sippys in order to get ready for daycare). Water was never offered before a year. Before a year, I didn't want anything filling them and limiting them from getting their full nutrition from breast milk.

[@llli*m11612]

When I'm in a rush I BF instead of solids or cut open an avocado and dig out pieces with a spoon (like a yogurt cup).

[@llli*debbers]

My pediatrician recommended my baby get water at 6 months for the fluoride. Is this common advice, it seems wrong to me? Do all pediatricians push cereals at 6 months (mine does)? I'm thinking of trying to find a new Dr. with different views...

Baby is EBF (breast only) and gaining/growing very, very well.

My Ped also pushes cereal and my baby is EBF. She's getting a little interested in food just recently (she's 9 mos) but she's an eager nurser so that's where the focus is. If she tries other food it's whole food like banana, butternut squash, sweet potato, avocado. No cereal. With regard to the Ped I just ignore anything that doesn't relate to an actual medical assessment, but it's likely I will at some point look for a new Ped with whom I feel a better connection.

[@llli*amysmom]

As with all areas of parenting, you choose your battles. You can take the Ped to task and explain why you will/won't do something. Or you can just smile and nod - then go home and do your own thing.

[@llli*andie613]

At 4 months, my Ped said DS was ready for rice cereal, but I waited until 6 months. I agree that the cereal itself is pretty worthless in terms of nutrition, but I like it because I mix BM in with it, along with pureed fruits or veggies for breakfast/dinner, because I personally feel it is a way to get more BM into a baby who is way too busy during the day to want to nurse, unless it is down for a nap. He just seems to be one of those babies who doesn't want to be attached to the boob all day. He still nurses well to sleep and at night, so I'm not that concerned. It's just a personal choice whether you want to do cereal or not. As for the water, I began to give him sips of mine, maybe around 7 months?, because he seemed so interested in it. Now at 10 months, he gets a sippy cup with water in the afternoon, but mostly just to play with it and experiment how to get the liquid out. He doesn't really drink any measurable quantity; it's just something new to him. An on the plus side, he now knows how to use the sippy.

[@llli*maddieb]

I cannot say enough how much I love the book 'my child won't eat' (by Carlos Gonzalez) which covers many infant/child feeding topics including the subject of what to feed baby when (and how the ‘instructions’ change era to era, country to country, even year to year, how much of it is simply made up by the doctor saying it (not based on official recommendations of child health organizations) and in large part, simply does not matter.

Fluoride-many localities already have it in their water. So supplementation on top of that could mean too much. I had to call the water co. in my area to find this info out. As I recall, I got info at Dr. Sears re fluoride for my oldest. With the next two, I simply have not thought about it nor has my doctor said anything. brushing or wiping babies teeth with some regularity after starting solids can be important for cavity prevention as I understand it.

My 9 month old never drinks water although we offer it in a sippy with her 'meals.' at this point, little food and even less water goes down the gullet. She usually wants to nurse after 'eating.'