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4 Month Old Baby Feeding Schedule And Solid Food

4 month old baby feeding schedule

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Beginning a 4 month old baby feeding schedule and solid food may seem impossible right now, but it is important to at least try.

At 4 months your baby will be getting all the nutrition they need from breast milk or formula. From 3-4 months your baby should be starting to recognise day and night time. They should be sleeping a bit longer at night, but still waking up 2-3 times for night feeds.

So now is a good time to try and start a 4 month old baby feeding schedule. If you can establish a 4 month old baby feeding schedule, it will help make life easier when you want to start a 5 month old baby routine or even a 6 month old routine for a health, happy baby.

However you may be wondering what is a normal 4 month old baby feeding schedule with solid food? Can you even start solids at 4 months? The answer is yes you can, but it will depend very much on your baby.

Starting Solids At 4 Months?

Experts agree that babies get all the nutrition they need from being exclusively fed breast milk or formula up until they are 6 months old. However, every baby develops differently and some may be showing signs that they are ready for solids earlier than others.

Signs that a baby is ready to start solids include:

  • He or she can sit upright unattended, and has good head and neck control.
  • They are showing an interest in your food or what is on your plate.
  • Your little one is reaching out for your food.
  • He or she is voluntarily opening his or her mouth to accept food.

If your baby is showing these signs after 4 months of age you may want to try them with small amounts of purees and solid foods. These foods should never replace a milk feed at this early stage. And you should never start your baby on solids before they reach 4 months.

If your baby is not yet ready to start with solid foods, they will not show interest and will just push the puree back out of their little mouth. This can be frustrating. But remember, don’t force the issue. Ditch the puree and try again in a few days, or even in a weeks time.

baby feeding solids 4 months old

4 Month Old Baby Feeding Schedule

At 4 months most mums find a schedule of 5 day feeds and 2-3 day-time naps works well with this age group. Your baby may still wake up 1 or 2 times during the night for night feeds.

4 Month Old Baby Feeding Schedule and Solid Food

If your baby is showing signs that they are ready to start solid foods, you may want to start a 4 month old solid food feeding schedule.

You can begin by introducing small amounts 2-3 times a day, after your baby has been breast or formula fed. Don’t try and give your baby new foods when they are hungry. When a young baby is hungry they will just want food they are familiar with and will refuse to take something new.

Tips to start your 4 month old baby feeding schedule include:

  • Trying to keep to regular feeding times for both milk feeds and when you include solids.
  • Start by breast or formula feeding and then introduce a small amount of solid food.
  • Introduce solid food safely using a baby food feeder
  • Remember to take things slowly and do not push your baby into eating solids.
  • Let them eat as much or as little as they want.
  • Offer new foods one at a time to make it easier to detect any food allergies your baby may have.
  • Do not add sugar or salt which may cause health problems later on.

fresh food feeder for starting solid food

Solid Foods For A 4 Month Old

While experts agree that your 4 month old will be getting everything they need from breastmilk or formula, if your baby is showing signs that they are ready for solids consider introducing iron rich foods. Healthy babies are born with enough iron reserves to last them the first 4-6 months. After this they will need to be supplemented with iron rich foods.

Good iron rich foods to feed your 4 month old include:

  • iron-fortified baby cereals,
  • pureed meats and chicken,
  • pureed fish,
  • cooked tofu,
  • cooked legumes (such as lentils, beans and chickpeas)

Other foods to start your 4 month old include:

  • smooth pureed cooked vegetables such as squash, sweet potato, carrot and zucchini,
  • smooth pureed cooked fruits like apple and pear,
  • finely mashed fruit like banana or avocado,
  • unsweetened, full-fat yogurt.

A great way to introduce puree's to your 4 month old and control the amount they are eating is to squeeze a small amount of puree onto a shallow spoon and gently let baby taste. Reusable food pouches and spoons are the perfect no mess solution that both serve and store the puree and also store tidily in your fridge using a pouch organiser.

 

Always remember that solid foods are just a supplement at this stage and your 4 month old will still get their main source of food from your breastmilk or formula. It is recommended to carry on breast or formula feeding until they are at least 12 months.

Final Thoughts

Remember that all babies are different, and so a baby feeding routine that works for one mum and baby may be different from yours. If something is not working don’t be afraid to make adjustments to suit you and your baby. If your baby is healthy, happy and meeting his or her developmental goals then you are doing things just right!

 

References:

Introducing Solids: why, when, what and how – Raising Children

Introducing solid food – PregnancyBirthBaby

3-6 month baby routines – Tresillian.org.au

 

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