Introducing Solid Foods: Vital parenting information from Eyewitness News

Babies grow up fast, and you'll definitely want to mark one particular milestone when you get to about 4-months old. That's when you begin to introduce solid foods.

It won't be long before your newborn will need more than just milk. Parents generally start their baby on solid foods at around the age of 4-months. Foods like, fruits and veggies. You can make the baby food yourself, with any of the new processors on the market, or buy it at the store. The difference between stage, 1, 2 and 3 is thickness of the food.

Dr. Joe Matusic, MD, Pediatrician
You can start solids by spoon. Most people use a tablespoon and just give it a little at a time. You can mix it with rice cereal or give it plain.

There's a reflex called the tongue jetting reflex... So at first they may push new food out. But that reflex goes away at about four to five months.

So if that reflex happens with your baby, it doesn't mean they don't like the food. Just keep trying. Also when you begin to add solids to baby's diet, only use rice cereal. And if you're wondering exactly which food to start with, think about this...

Dr. Joe Matusic, MD, Pediatrician
There's a wives tale that says if you start with the sweet stuff they will get the taste for sweets and won't like vegetables. It's just a wives tale. But if you're going to do that, use sweet potatoes because they are sweet but still a veggie.

Most kids on the average will eat two jars of stage 1 food a day by 6 months, and 3 jars of stage 2 by 9 months. Dr. Matusic suggests waiting until one year to introduce shellfish, peanuts, eggs and oranges. Meats are introduced at 6 months. Egg yolks are introduced around 9 months to a year.

The doctor also says that if you have a strong family history of allergies to a food then he will wait longer to introduce the child to that food. And he says feeding certain foods too early, is associated with allergies, asthma and diabetes.

Also make it fun! Plan ahead before you introduce the solid food for the first time. You may want to take a picture or have a video camera on so you can have the moment preserved for a lifetime.