Another angle to the solids question:  a mother who is returning to employment when baby is around four months old (extremely common here where mothers get three months paid maternity leave and often add to that accrued vacation); if the mother is unable to provide expressed breastmilk for her baby for all of the hours she is out, wouldn't introducing solids be preferable to feeding the baby formula while she is at work?  This question had come up often, especially in cases where the baby will not take a bottle.  Common first foods recommended here are pureed fruits, vegetables and a soup  of cooked vegetables and pureed meats.    If the mother is practicing unrestricted breastfeeding while at home (which often means many times during the night and plenty on the weekends),  I would think that  nutritious solid food is preferable to formula while she is at work, even if the baby is four months old and the mother initiates or even encourages it.

Yael Wyshogrod IBCLC
Rechovot, Israel  

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