When should solid foods be added to a baby's diet?

Sometime between a baby's 4-month and 6-month birthdays solid food can be introduced. Exactly when depends on several factors.

One factor involves the disappearance of the involuntary action called the extrusion reflex. Before this reflex disappears, feeding solids usually involves putting a spoonful in the mouth and scraping most of it off the baby's face as he or she spits it back out.

Also, babies should be able to sit up and turn their heads away. That way, Schanler explains, they can communicate that they're not ready for the next spoonful or just not hungry anymore.

Usually, the first food recommended is a single-grain, iron-fortified infant cereal. Starting with single-grain cereals makes it easier to pinpoint any allergic reactions.

The biggest concern with feeding solids too early is that the solids will replace breast milk or formula in the baby's diet. "Solids vary nutritionally depending on the food," says Schanler. "None of them is a complete as formula or breast milk. You don't want to rob the baby of milk."

Feeding babies exclusively with breast milk or formula during the first few months is not only the best thing for the babies' health, it can also be a blessing for busy, overtired parents. Now if only the baby would sleep through the night.