Introducing Solids

[Guest cassidy]

My son is 5 1/2 months now. I practice attachment parenting and wasn't planning on starting solids until he showed me he was ready. Well, I think he is ready. He opens up for a spoon and stares at me when I eat. I wanted to wait until he was at least 7 months so his intestines would be more mature. He has only been breastfed and I'm gluten-free so he has never had gluten.

There are at least 10 people in my family who have celiac so I'm very concerned about him having it. I'm not going to introduce gluten until he is at least 2 and I plan on feeding him gluten-free because I don't like to touch gluten for fear of getting myself sick and not being able to take care of him. I'm a bit worried about giving him rice cereal since rice is the only grain I really eat. Do many people end up having a problem with rice also if they keep eating a lot of it? Is there any reason I should worry about feeding him solids as long as I'm staying away from gluten?

I am doing very well on my diet and I don't usually think about being gluten-free but the idea of giving him food is making me nervous. He is so healthy and doing so well and I just don't want him to ever get sick. I think I associate trying new foods with getting sick since gluten gets me so sick.

Any good brands of natural rice cereal for babies that is produced in a gluten-free facility? Anyone else have similar concerns or am I just being paranoid?

[Guest Doll]

Actually, introducing gluten too early OR too late may increase the risk of Celiac and/or autoimmune disorders in those genetically prone. 5.5 months is considered the "perfect" time for high risk babies. Earlier than 5 months and later than 7 greatly increases the risk they may develop Celiac. You can find these studies on Pub Med. Note that you should always breastfeed while introducing solids to help prime the immune system.

Of course, you could also just keep him gluten free for the rest of his life as well, if you think you have reason to (do you have a strong family history of autoimmune diseases?). Have you had him tested to see if he at least has the genes that predispose to Celiac? I would only suggest this if there was a high risk he could develop other autoimmune diseases like Type 1 diabetes, etc. which sometimes run in families. If you do not have a strong family history of autoimmunity (i.e. you are the only diagnosed with Celiac), then he should be fine on a "normal" diet. But get him genetically tested. If he tests positive for genes related to Celiac/Type 1 diabetes, then continue with the gluten-free diet. If not, I would not worry.

Here is a PP that explains it well. Here they say earlier than 4 months increases risk (greatly), and after 6 months increases the risk as well.

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[Michi8]

The timing of introducing foods is up to you. Waiting until 6 months is the current guideline, especially for breastfed babies, but there is nothing wrong with waiting until later either. You may want to choose fruit or veggies for first foods, as grains are very hard on the digestive system...with a risk of celiac I'd be especially mindful, and hold off on all grains until later on. Foods at this age are really for introduction and exploration...breastmilk should still be a primary source of nutrition for the full first year.

Michelle

[missquarejane]

good for you for being such a conciencious mama! and an attatchment mom too... wow, awesome!

i know that la leche league and kellymom often recommend avocado as an excellent first food as it is high in healthy fatty acids and easily digested. a really ripe avocado cut into very small bits or mashed is more nutritious than a banana or rice cereal. you can even mix breastmilk into it. good luck and trust your mama instincts.

[sjust]

The GI told us to absolutely wait until 6 months to start my dd on solids. It was really hard because she really wanted food. She would yell at us while we ate and it got to the point that my husband and I ate in shifts so that she didn't see us eat. I agree with others that you probably do not want to start with rice cereal. We started with avacado, but applesauce, butternut squash, sweet potato are all good first foods and low on the allergy list. I think you have every right to be worried about starting foods. As a reminder, make sure you only introduce one new food a week and start the food in the morning so if your son has a reaction it occurs during the day.

Good luck

Sarah

[Michi8]

We started with avacado, but applesauce, butternut squash, sweet potato are all good first foods and low on the allergy list.

Apples actually are quite high on the allergy list, as are carrots and peas (the allergenicity does change somewhat with cooking...carrots drop in allergenicity dramatically when cooked.) I usually post a link to the Jojena Food Allergy Scale for reference, but it appears the link is not working right now. This is the link, in case it starts working again:

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Michelle