HealthInfo Waitaha Canterbury
Starting solids and feeding your baby
Breast milk or a suitable infant formula milk is the only food your newborn needs. But as your baby gets older they will need to have solid foods to help them grow and develop.
You should start giving your baby solid foods (sometimes called weaning or complementary feeding) when they are around 6 months old. It is a gradual process but by the time they are 1 year old, most infants will be eating chopped, mashed family food.
For a short guide to starting your baby on solids, see the following video from KidsHealth. The video soundtrack is in English, but you can also read read the key messages from the video in several other languages on the KidsHealth website
HealthInfo recommends the following pages
- KidsHealth:
- Healthy eating habits
Giving your baby healthy eating habits from the start.
- Starting solids
Detailed information about starting solids
- Healthy eating habits
- Plunket – Introducing solids
Information about starting solids, including the different stages of solid foods
Written by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed October 2021.
SourcesReview key: HIUCB-33560
