I recognise this. HCPs in well baby clinics seem to think and send the message that babies will die of iron defiency at exactly 6 months and 1 day if not at least one full meal a day is provided from the day baby is 6 months. And many start getting a bit pushy around 4-5 months: baby should be learning to ''eat properly'' to be able to have those fullsize solid feeds from the day they turn 6 months.

On the other hand, there is a kind of grassroots movement going on for an alternative way of introducing solids. This was mainly the result of a seminar where UK nutritionist Gill Rapley had a session on the introduction of solids in a way that resembles at demand breastfeeding. It is about keeping baby in command and about not giving purees, but fingerfoods. For some reason moms picked this message up quite easily and -much to Rapley's own surprise- promoted this view to be ''the Rapley method of introducing solids''. There is a forum (  <http://www.network54.com/Forum/382080/> ; please visit and read the English introduction: <http://www.borstvoeding.com/voedselintroductie/vast_voedsel/rapley_guidelines.html> ) for moms feeding in this way and moms are educating well baby clinic staff about it while visiting. One key point in this ''method'' is that moms understand that the second half year of life is a learning stage for eating through chewing rather than suckling and
 that amounts taken in are not the primary concern. Breastfeeding or breastmilk provides the major source of nutrients up till or beyond the first birthday.

Warmly,

Gonneke, IBCLC, LLLL in southern Netherlands



heather <[log in to unmask]> wrote:<...>
This is our experience in the UK, as well - as if the baby wakes up 
****PING!!!!**** on the exact day,  desperate for solid food. It's 
really an artefact of the research - researchers have to ask 
questions like 'was the baby given solids before 6 mths?' or 'before 
4 mths' or whatever, and because they pose questions in a precise way 
they present the answers in this artificially precise way,  and that 
gets translated into policy.

It's not only very literally-minded mothers who think like this, 
though. Many healthcare professionals promote this message, and even 
the ones that have stopped saying '4 mths' for exclusive 
breastfeeding may still start to twitch nervously when the baby gets 
towards 6 mths and they put pressure on mothers once that date is 
reached (in the UK a mother may visit a baby clinic with her well 
baby very often throughout the first year and beyond, and have 
routine contact with a health visitor on many occasions for weighing 
and for advice on general care, including feeding).<...>


  Met vriendelijke groet, 

Gonneke van Veldhuizen, IBCLC 
lactatiekundige
  

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