It’s somewhat of a rite of passage to move from the phase of solitary breast (or bottle) feeding to introducing your baby to the equally wonderous world of solids. Her little system, that has been growing, developing and blossoming on your fatty protein rich milk has to, slowly but surely, switch to breaking down, absorbing and utilizing a much wider array of foods. Foods that have never ever before directly entered her body. You have always predigested the food for baby, serving it to her via the umbilical cord or your boob. Introducing solids for the first time has to therefore be done gradually and with great consciousness and care. Yet without it ever becoming a fearful or obsessive ordeal. How we relate to food directly affects how we relate to our environment and life itself, and vice versa. Food shows and represents how we nourish, nurture and care for ourselves, and others, on a deep and real level. The best gift you can give your child is not only serving her the best products, starting at day 1. Your ultimate gift is the foundational message that food (instead of something to fear or potentially develop an allergy for) is a friend, an ally on the magical road called life and an incredible source of joy, nourishment and vitality.

I have received many questions about introducing solids to baby naturally and holistically. Hence my decision to write 3 practical posts on this subject. I will talk about which foods to introduce first, at 6-8 months. Which foods to introduce a little later, at 8-10 months. And which foods to introduce last at 10-12+ months. That said every person is different and your little one might not respond well to a food that my little one, or your neighbours bub, thrives on. Observing and blessing her with an unique approach is key when establishing your child’s healthy and joyful relationship with food. Now let’s get started.

WHAT, HOW & WHEN

Which foods to introduce first?

It is best to start with foods that are 1.easy to digest and 2.nutritionally mimic breast milk thus contain a combo of of fat and protein. This makes the transition from liquids to solids a little easier for your babes digestive system. Therefore the first food my baby daughter Lou ever tasted was (organic) avocado. They tick the above-mentioned boxes, can be given raw, are easy to mash up and come in their very own handy wrapper. Next up were the other delicious fruits and vegetables mentioned in the table (1) below. As you can see i did not give Lou any grains during the first 8 months of her life. To digest grains we need the digestive enzyme amylase, which is produced by the pancreas. Babies do not yet make enough amylase to properly digest and absorb the carbohydrates in grains but DO make a huge amount of lactase. Lactase is the enzyme responsible for digesting lactose or sugars in milk. Our bubs system shows us she is perfectly equipped to use the proteins and fats we nourish her with but finds it difficult to digest carbohydrates. A good enough reason to wait a bit. The first grain I served Lou was brown rice at 8 months old. Gluten-free grains are the easiest grains for baby to digest. Brown rice is the most digestible of all gluten-free grains and advised to only give to very mature babies and no earlier than at 8 months old. How did I know Lou was ready? I noticed her need for more substantial foods, she was no longer satisfied with the meals I presented her with. To make sure she was able to digest the rice I made sure to thoroughly soak, ferment and cook it. You can find the recipe for my ‘healthiest rice’ online shortly and in this cooking video I show how to do it from A to Z. This method is ancient and not only benefits your young baby. It is basic food lore, a way to enhance the digestibility and nurturing qualities of the grain so feel free to use this technique yourself! More on introducing grains in part II (introducing solids at 8-10 months) of this article series.

So what DID Lou enjoy exactly? Mostly vegetables and fruits. (see table I below)

During those first two months, on top of her breast feedings, Lou had one vegetable meal (late AM) and one fruity meal (mid PM) per day. When she was introduced to a food, she was served that food (for example sweet potato) by itself, three days in a row. This way she was able to really get to know its flavour and texture. And I was able to check and see her response to the newly introduced vegetable or fruit. I added fat (coconut oil, avocado or ghee) to all of her meals. Fat, on top of being an amazing growth and development aid, is needed to absorb some of the wonderful nutrients these fruits and vegetables have to offer.

Even though I personally choose to eat a plant-based diet we are not raising Lou to eat vegan. One of the reasons for this is the fact that there are certain nutrients a developing child needs that cannot (or only in tiny amounts) be found in plant foods. When it comes to nourishing baby (and child) we must realize that they are in a totally different phase of life than us adults. Living holistically means to respect every situation for its uniqueness and act accordingly. When it comes to baby, growth and nutrition one thing is certain. She needs the most nutrient dense and development enhancing food there is to flourish and prosper. She needs to grow from tiny to tall in a blink. Babies and children can, without a doubt, thrive on a well-balanced vegetarian diet, but fully vegan (without supplementation) is a slightly different story.

To broaden my vista and learn about child nutrition I studied many different approaches, then took what resonated with me and made it my own. Books that have really helped me to find what suits our life and ideals best are Nourishing Traditions (baby & childcare), Healing with Wholefoods and a Dutch Anthroposophic book named Groeiwijzer. After soaking up information and feeling it out, we as Lou’s parents, have decided to serve her, on top of all the plantbased goodness she receives, some raw, organic, full fat, grass-fed and fermented dairy. She loves her daily dose of creamy yoghurt or kefir and her whole being soars with it. We started serving her fermented dairy when she was about 8 months old. The timing was perfect for us as I chose to reduce breastfeeding to two feeds per day (before breakfast and before night sleep) at 9 months old. Kids and quality (!) dairy: a match made in heaven. It provides the perfect growth-enhancing combo of fats and protein. Plus it presents baby with vitamin B12 that otherwise, in a fully vegan diet, has to be supplemented. B12 can be found in fermented dairy like raw yoghurt, kefir and cheese. Yet there’s hardly any B12 in unfermented dairy such as milk.

Of course our decision does not have to be your decision, as I said everyone and every situation is different. And that is exactly my point. Do not copy-paste your diet onto your baby. It is a growing child who’s needs radically differ from yours. On top of that she is a unique persona with her own individual character and blueprint. Be mindful, be flexible, be open.

Now let me share a few practical bits and bobs. Here are some of Lou’s favourite meals at 7 months old (meal inspiration for you!), my general tips when it comes to introducing solids and a handy food table I made for you to hang on your fridge that’ll simplify cooking for your little one.

May we all help our children develop a nourishing and joyful relationship with food.

Much love from my family to yours,

Xoxo kyra.

Some of Lou’s favourites

Raw banana with slow-cooked pear. Blend. Add coconut oil last.

Raw avocado with raw mango. Blend.

Steamed sweet potato and zucchini. Add spinach last minute of steaming. Blend. Add ghee last.

Steamed sunchokes, cauliflower and fennel. Blend. Add coconut oil last.

General tips

-Apples, pears & berries contain pectin that is known to irritate the intestinal lining of little ones. It is therefore best to shortly cook or steam these fruit before serving them, slightly cooled, with ample amounts of fat.

-When you cook apples, pears or berries, cook them in a small amount of water and use that cooking water to make the fruity meal. Some of the nutrients leak into the water so throwing it away would be a shame.

-Steaming is nutritionally the best method to prepare the meals your little one is about to enjoy. Steaming makes the food more digestible and is a perfect way to keep most of its nutrients intact. Steam until the food is soft yet still brightly coloured.

-Introduce one food at a time and serve that food 3 days in a row to familiarize baby with the food. This provides the perfect opportunity to check her reaction to that one product.

-Redness, bumps, eczema like patches and itching are some of the signs your baby might not yet be ready for that specific food. Refrain from serving for a couple of months then try again.

-When baby is accustomed to a single taste, for example sunchokes, start mixing a couple of vegetables or fruits. For example a root vegetable (sunchoke) with a leaf (spinach) and/or a flower (broccoli). These combinations (root-leaf-flower) create well balanced meals.

-Don’t combine fruits with vegetables except for a fruit-type vegetable such as avocado.

-Find a balance between boring and exciting. You want your baby to enjoy a tasty meal but you don’t want her to be blown away by an overwhelming amount of flavours and taste sensations.

-Serve your bub organic and season appropriate vegetables. Pesticides damage your little ones brain. Not good.

-When you choose to serve your baby dairy make sure it is raw, fermented, organic and grass-fed. Dairy from goats is the easiest for babies to digest.

-Serve foods with an * only organic, in season, straight from the land and max 2-3 times per week. They contain oxalic acid that interferes with your babies ability to absorb calcium. Seasonal, organic vegetables that are earth grown have only small amounts of this oxalic acid, as apposed to conventional, sprayed and glasshouse grown produce.

-Begin with well-blended meals but gradually increase lumpiness at the end of this period, around 8 months old.

-You don’t have to serve your baby extra water or tea at this point in time. She receives plenty of nutritional liquids as it is through breastfeeding (or the bottle). When the weather is hot, your breastfed baby will naturally increase her frequency. Lou came up to 10 times a day while we were on holidays in Spain. She was 4 months old back then and the temperature was 30 degrees Celsius and up. This way she ensured she wasn’t getting dehydrated. Make sure you, the mommy, increase your water intake at this point to, at least, 3 liters per day. Bottle-feeding at high temperatures might mean you have to present your baby with an extra bottle, depending on her needs. She’ll tell you if she needs it by drinking, or not, by simply turning her face away.

Table (I) Foods to Introduce at 6-8 months.

Further reading

Nourishing a growing baby.