Every baby needs to add complementary foods, some babies have already added them at 6 months old, while others start adding them officially after reaching 6 months old. After 6 months of breastfeeding, the mother's milk secretion will gradually decrease and the baby's food intake will begin to increase. At this time, drinking breast milk is no longer enough to meet the baby's daily nutrition, and it is a good time to add complementary foods. So, how many months can babies add complementary foods?
When a baby is 6 months old, gastrointestinal amylase and various digestive enzymes have begun to secrete, indicating that their digestive and absorption functions have gradually matured. At this time, it is time to start practicing eating complementary foods to increase gastrointestinal function. At the same time, the baby needs sufficient nutrition to be more robust. When adding vegetable supplements to babies, start with a single vegetable soup and do not add seasonings when cooking the soup. Many vegetables are suitable for making vegetable juice, such as carrots, spinach, cauliflower, bok choy, amaranth, etc. Mothers can choose vegetables that are in season according to the season.
The World Health Organization, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the UK government's Department of Health all recommend that exclusive breastfeeding should be carried out for at least 6 months, and after 6 months, complementary foods should be added to babies. Because breast milk can meet all nutritional needs, including water, up to 6 months ago. As an imitation and substitute for breast milk, proportionally formulated formula milk can also meet all the nutritional needs of babies up to 6 months old.
6 months is when babies begin to adapt to different foods, and it is also the best time for different food structures and feeding methods. Authoritative experts consider the digestive system of babies and the nutritional issues of breast milk, so it is best for mothers who have the conditions to exclusively breastfeed their babies until 6 months old, and then gradually add complementary foods. If some babies or mothers cannot continue to breastfeed exclusively for certain reasons, whether to add complementary foods as soon as possible should be based on the actual advice of the doctor.
