Weaning your baby
When your baby is around 6 months old, they’ll be ready to start trying food alongside their milk feeds. The process of introducing new foods is often called weaning or complimentary feeding.
There are different stages of weaning and different approaches you can try. You can prepare by thinking about how you might like to feed your baby and knowing the signs that show they’re ready.
When to start weaning
You may spot signs your baby is ready to try solid food when they’re around 6 months old. All babies develop at their own pace and you might see these signs a little earlier or later. NHS Start for Life has a quiz to see if your baby is ready for weaning.
If your baby is younger than 6 months and is already showing signs that they are ready to start weaning, speak to your GP or health visitor before you start. If your baby is wanting extra milk feeds, waking more than usual or chewing their fists, these are normal behaviours and not signs they are ready for weaning.
There are 3 main signs that your baby is ready to start weaning. Your baby will need to be able to do all of them before you start introducing solid foods.
Your baby is likely to be ready to start weaning when they can:
- stay sitting in position and hold their head steady
- coordinate their eyes, hands and mouth to look at food, pick it up, and put it in their mouth by themselves
- swallow food and not push it out of their mouth with their tongue
If you’re worried that your baby isn’t showing these signs yet, you can ask your GP or health visitor for advice. If your baby was born prematurely, they might show these signs later. You can read Bliss’ advice for weaning premature babies.
Babies don’t need teeth to start weaning. Once they’re able to chew, their gums will be hard enough to mash soft or ripe foods. At first, they may be more interested in squeezing, licking and sucking food to find out how it works.
Before your baby is ready to start weaning, you can prepare by getting some equipment.
To start weaning, you will need:
- a highchair where your baby can sit upright and strapped in
- soft weaning spoons made of rubber or plastic
- a ‘first cup’ for water (there are different styles you can try)
- bibs that are easy to clean
Depending on how you choose to feed your baby, you might also need a blender, steamer and storage containers for freezing.
Weaning styles
Weaning helps your baby develop chewing and swallowing reflexes. There are two main styles: baby-led weaning, and puree (spoon) feeding. Lots of parents try both, sometimes at the same meal.
Whichever you use, the early stages are about letting your baby have fun with new flavours and sensations.
With baby-led weaning, you give your baby small, soft foods they can pick up with their hands and eat at their own pace. This food is sometimes called finger food. As well as learning to feed themselves, they learn how to stop eating when they’re full.
It can help to:
- start with soft vegetables like avocado or well-cooked carrots or broccoli
- cut foods into strips about the length of your index finger
- once your baby is used to the taste of vegetables, you can start to introduce soft fruits like banana, then bits of toast, pitta bread and meat
- avoid small, hard foods and sugary or salty foods
NHS start for life has a list of foods to avoid when weaning.
With spoon feeding, you offer your baby smooth or pureed food on a spoon. This can make mealtimes less messy. Your baby may also be less likely to gag or struggle to chew.
You can take small steps to introduce the spoon to your baby. You might want to put food on the spoon but let them pick it up or hand it to them. Then you can try bringing the spoon in front of your baby’s face and encourage them to open their mouth before gently guiding the spoon into their mouth. Start with small amounts of food and give them time to swallow before offering more. Watch out for signs they’ve had enough, like spitting the food out or turning their head away.
You might want to:
- make your own purees if you can, so you can choose the flavours and amounts with no added sugar or salt
- buy readymade baby food, there are lots of choices of food in jars and pouches
- start by giving very soft (mashed or blended) foods on a spoon
- gradually introduce more textured and lumpy foods
Make sure your baby is happy and comfortable when you are feeding them. Don’t push the spoon into their mouth too hard or when they’re not expecting it. This could cause them discomfort and make them not want to take the spoon.
Keep up your regular breast milk or formula feeds when you start weaning. They’ll provide most of the nutrition your baby needs.
If you’re breastfeeding or feeding your baby expressed milk, keep feeding on demand. Reducing feeds slowly this way can also help your body adapt to producing less milk. If you’re using formula, a 6 to 12-month-old baby needs 500-600ml per day while weaning. This can be part of their meals, like in breakfast cereal or sauces. The NHS has advice on what your baby will need at different ages.
Gradually reduce the number of milk feeds as your baby starts to eat more solid foods. Milk feeds are a source of comfort and security, not just nutrition. When you drop a feed, try to offer other forms of reassurance (like hugs) instead.
Cow’s milk isn’t suitable for babies to drink until your baby is 1 year old.
The NHS advice is to continue milk or formula feeds until your baby is at least 1 year old.
Weaning stages
Every baby goes through weaning at their own pace. At first, weaning is more about getting your baby used to eating and enjoying solid food.
There are stages that most babies go through at a certain time, but don’t worry if your child is still struggling with solid foods after 6 months.
Read more about introducing your baby to solid food in the NHS guidelines.
Babies can get all their energy and nutrients from breast milk or formula.
When your baby shows they are ready, you can start introducing them to new tastes and textures. At the beginning, getting used to eating is more important than how much food your baby takes.
Whether you are baby-led weaning or spoon feeding, you can:
- start by introducing single flavours of vegetables
- introduce fruits once they are used to savoury flavours
- add different types of food, like proteins, dairy and carbohydrates
- introduce them to mealtime routines
Build up to offering your baby 3 meals a day. If they are eating pureed food you can start to offer more texture with mashed or lumpy food. At this stage, they will still need breast milk or formula.
Your baby can have meals chopped into bigger, soft lumps. They’ll also be able to put small pieces of food into their mouth themselves.
Babies may be starting to eat a wider range of foods and use a cup instead of a bottle for drinks. By now, they’ll get most of their nutrients from solid foods. Some babies will still be breastfeeding or bottle feeding at this age.
Weaning cooking and mealtime tips
Whether you are making food from scratch, using premade food or a mix of both, you can make sure your baby tries a variety of healthy foods. Mealtimes can be a fun experience for both of you and a chance for your baby to learn a new skill.
When you’re making food for your baby, it’s a good idea to:
- cook purees in bulk if you can and freeze small portions in containers or ice cube trays to avoid waste (your baby will only eat a small amount to begin with)
- offer lots of fruit and vegetables and give them a good wash first
- give vegetables then fruit in two courses to help your baby get used to savoury and sweet flavours
- avoid adding salt or sugar to your cooking, although you can use a small amount of honey once your child is 1 year old
- use full-fat if your child is eating dairy foods like milk, cheese and yoghurt, until they’re at least 2 years old
- offer your child a cup of water to drink with their meal
You can find baby food recipes at:
When it’s time to feed your baby, it can help to:
- find the right time for your baby, as they might not be interested in food when they’re tired or soon after a milk feed
- prepare for mess with bibs, cloths and wipeable mats
- always supervise your child when they’re eating
- know that it’s normal for your baby to gag, but it can help to learn the difference between gagging and choking
- share mealtimes where possible, you can talk to them and let them try some of your food if it’s suitable for their age
- make food fun by encouraging your baby to mash, squash, squeeze and lick their food
- encourage your child to lick food from around their mouth to help develop the muscles in their mouth
- give lots of praise and smiles so your baby can feel good about trying new things
- introduce new foods one at a time, so you can spot if your baby reacts badly to any foods
- try not to get discouraged if your baby doesn’t like a food at first, it might take them a while to get used to
Common weaning worries
It’s normal to worry about introducing your baby to lots of new foods, tastes, and textures. The key to successful weaning is to start slowly and take the lead from your baby on when they are ready to start weaning.
If you’re concerned about allergies or medical conditions that could play a role in weaning, talk to your GP or health visitor.
Although it’s frightening, choking is rare. Babies use their gag reflex to prevent choking, by bringing food back into position so they can chew it. You’ll see your child do this a lot while trying new foods.
You should still always be with your baby during mealtimes. The Child Accident Prevention Trust has advice to keep your child safe from choking. It’s also worth knowing how to help a choking child. You can look for baby first aid courses in your local area.
Constipation is common while weaning. Make sure your child drinks enough water with meals and offer vegetables and fruit. Baby massage can help with constipation. Your local children’s centre or family hub might run baby massage classes or NCT has a video showing how to massage your baby.
Introduce foods that could cause an allergic reaction one at a time and in very small amounts. This makes it easier to spot a reaction and know what caused it. Some of these foods include:
- cow’s milk, cheese and yoghurt (mixed in food and cooking)
- nuts and peanuts (serve them crushed or ground, not whole nuts)
- soya
- eggs
- cooked fish and shellfish
- seeds
- gluten, wheat, barley and rye
The NHS has more advice about food allergies and weaning.
