Food Before One Is Just For Fun: Myth or Fact?
Starting solids is an exciting milestone in your baby’s life. But if you’re a new parent, you may have been told that "food before one is just for fun".
This saying is often given as a reminder to parents that breast milk or formula should be the main source of nutrition for babies under the age of one.
But is it true? Is eating just a fun activity at this age or does it play a more important role?
The importance of breast milk or formula
Breast milk or infant formula provides the essential nutrients, antibodies, and hydration that babies need for growth and development.
For around the first six months of life, breast milk or formula should be the sole source of nutrition for babies and should remain their main source of nutrition until the age of 12 months. Hence the reason solids are referred to as 'complementary foods'.
So, where does that leave food?
The phrase "food before one is just for fun" suggests that solids are mainly for exploration and exposure to different tastes and textures, rather than for meeting nutritional needs.
But, solids play a very important role in meeting babies’ nutrient needs and optimising their growth and development.
They also play a critical role in reducing the risk of food allergies.
So a more accurate saying would be ‘food before one is fun, but not just for fun’ - even if it doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue!
The role of solids in babies’ nutrition
While it's true that introducing solids during this time is an important developmental milestone, solid foods can also contribute valuable nutrients to a baby’s diet such as protein, iron, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids. These nutrients are all important for babies' growth and brain development.
In fact, the World Health Organization states that 'if complementary foods are not introduced around the age of 6 months, or if they are given inappropriately, an infant’s growth may falter.'
Iron-rich foods are particularly important for babies as the iron stores that were built up during pregnancy generally run out at around 6 months. Iron is crucial for healthy growth and development, and breastmilk and formula don’t provide adequate iron to meet your baby’s needs so they need to get this from solid food.
Iron can be found in red meat, poultry, fish, legumes, nuts and seeds (in age-appropriate forms), tofu, leafy green vegetables, whole grains and fortified bread and cereals.
Introducing allergens
In the past, the advice was to delay the introduction of common food allergens until after the age of one to reduce the risk of an allergy developing.
But we now know that the opposite is true. Introducing common allergens at around 6 months (but not before 4 months) and continuing to give your baby these foods regularly has been found to significantly reduce the risk of food allergies in children.
The most common food allergens are cow’s milk, egg, wheat, peanuts and tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy and sesame.
Have a read of my ‘Ultimate Guide to Introducing Allergens to Babies’ to find out more about introducing these foods to your baby.
Common food allergens
Learning about food and developing taste preferences
Introducing solids isn’t just about nutrients and allergens, it also shapes your baby’s future eating habits and taste preferences.
Despite the reputation of young children being picky eaters, babies start life with very few innate taste preferences and can easily learn to like new foods.
The foods children are exposed to as babies play a crucial role in determining their lifelong eating behaviours and taste preferences. Once children are older, they’re less receptive to new foods and therefore less able to develop positive eating habits and food preferences.
For this reason, it’s important to make the most of the window of opportunity in the first year of life by exposing your baby to a range of nutritious foods so they’re more likely to accept them when they’re older.
Developing skills
Introducing solids also encourages the development of oral motor skills and hand-eye coordination in babies.
Baby-led weaning is often talked about in terms of its encouragement of babies’ oral motor development. But even with traditional introduction of solids (i.e. spoon feeding), babies can develop their oral motor skills through the introduction of different textures and finger foods alongside purees.
Babies typically develop their pincer grasp at around the age of 8 months and picking up individual pieces of food is a great opportunity for them to practice this skill.
Sitting in a high chair also allows for increased core strength in babies.
When to introduce solids
At around six months of age, babies start showing signs of readiness for solid foods, such as being able to sit up with support and hold their head steady and showing an interest in food.
But all babies are different, so it’s important to wait until your baby is showing these ‘signs of readiness’ before introducing solids as this will indicate that they’re developmentally ready to start eating and digesting solid food.
Nutrient-rich first foods
When your baby first starts eating, the amount they eat will most likely be very small, although once again, all babies are different!
Because babies can only manage small quantities of food, the foods you offer should be nutrient-rich. This includes foods such as fruit and vegetables, red meat, poultry and fish or meat alternatives, grains and dairy foods or alternatives.
Iron-rich foods should be prioritised as babies have very high iron requirements, this includes foods such as red meat, poultry, fish, legumes, nuts and seeds (in age-appropriate forms), tofu and iron-fortified cereals.
Aim to offer your baby a wide variety of foods with at least one iron-rich food served at each meal.
Iron-rich foods are particularly important for babies
Balancing milk feeds with solids
While introducing solids, breast milk or infant formula should still be the primary source of nutrition for babies under the age of one.
As babies build their skills and get better at eating solid foods, their intake of solids will gradually increase while continuing to have breast milk or formula to meet their nutritional needs.
Until around 9 months, breastmilk or formula should be given before solids, however, after this time you can try giving solids first, before breastmilk or formula, to encourage your baby to increase the amount of solids they’re eating.
Food before one is just for fun: myth!
So, food before one is much more than just for fun.
It’s important for meeting babies’ nutritional needs, allowing for optimal growth, encouraging the development of oral motor skills and hand-eye coordination and opening the door to new tastes and textures, helping to shape lifelong preferences.
As always, it's best to consult your baby’s doctor or a paediatric dietitian to ensure your baby's nutritional needs are being met as they transition to solid foods.
