>Why can breastfeeding give these micronutrients enough before 6 months and not enough after 6 months? My understanding is that babies are born with iron stores to last 6 months. Don't know about zinc. So it isn't the breastmilk that changes, but the baby. On a personal note, I have one of those babies who had a huge growth spurt after starting zinc supplements - between 18 months and 2. Dr. Jay, what do you think about following the baby's cues in starting solids? Many moms I know offer solids after 6 months, but baby isn't interested in truly eating until around 12 months. However, the moms usually continue to offer solids and baby plays with the food and teethes on it while the parents eat. I've seen some of these moms fret about it and attempt to force baby to eat, while others don't mind waiting until baby is ready. My instinct tells me that following baby's cue is best, but I don't have any research to back this up.... Darien in Austin LLLL and CBE *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html