>Is there any concern with offering foods that are not usually
 >recommended as best choices for early solid foods -- I'm thinking of
 >olive oil or molasses, which would probably not find themselves on the
 >list of a child growing according to expectations...

I try to think of what is "normal" for a human baby to begin eating (in a
"normally" eating culture.) If we erase all of the artificial baby milk and
manufactured "baby" foods, which are "usually recommended" we find a baby
eating bits from her mother's plate for a while then getting a plate of her
own as she eats more, feeding herself.  The food that she gets is seasoned
with fats or flavorings that are the same as the rest of the family.  Her
mother's milk still provides the major nutrition for quite a while. And if
you are afraid of the fats that would be used in cooking, remember that the
problem with childhood obesity is rather new and does not come from the
oils and naturally occurring fats  in the healthful family meal.

There is no traumatic transition to "table food" because baby has been at
the table all along and the foods taste like mother's milk anyway. The idea
that baby needs foods different from the rest of the family came along with
the poor nutrition offered by the early formulas or evaporated milk.

Now someone is going to point out the terrible American adult diet and say
that baby should not be eating that.  I, for one, greatly improved my
overall diet when I knew that my baby would be eating what her parents ate.
Many of us came to see that we were giving our babies the perfect food and
were not eager to wean them to nutrient-deficient fare.

Giving baby a different food from the rest of the family is followed by
baby's not liking what the parents eat, followed by everyone in the family
eating a different meal and letting children eat foods with poor nutrition
that they choose.

I work a lot with nutrition with my clients and most seem to be able to
grasp the idea of family eating and life-long nutrition. They can see that
eating is a broader kind of nourishment than just pleasing the mouth and
filling the stomach.

Pat Gima, IBCLC
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
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