Breast milk is the best for babies. The World Health Organisation recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life. Unnecessary introduction of bottle feeding or other food and drinks will have a negative impact on breastfeeding. After six months of age, infants should receive age-appropriate foods while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of age or beyond. Consult your doctor before deciding to use infant formula or if you have difficulty breastfeeding.

How much milk does your baby need?

If you are breastfeeding, the amount of milk that a newborn baby takes is not fixed. As breast milk is easier to digest, you should feed on demand (every 2 - 3 hours) round the clock. If your baby has had enough, your baby will pass clear urine and have bowel movements 2-5 times or more in a day. Your baby's weight will increase after the initial drop in birth weight. Your baby will gain about 150 - 200 grams per week.

If you are feeding your child a milk formula, the total amount of formula milk you should feed your baby is approximately 150 ± 30 ml per kg per day. The formula of calculating the amount of formula milk is:

Total amount of milk ÷ No. of feeding daily = Amount per feed

For example, a baby weighing four kilograms should drink 150 × 4 = 600 ml of milk over six times in a day, so the single feeding amount is about 600 ÷ 6 = 100 ml. However, every baby is different, and no fixed amount of milk works for everyone. Generally, the baby is having enough milk if his/her overall growth and development and vitality are within the normal range.

Anaerobic milk period (Milk strike)

The anaerobic milk period may not always happen in the first few months of the baby. In the growing process, usually, a baby will have certain stages that his or her milk intake will reduce. Temporary milk refusal is characterized as that a child's physical development is normal, mental development is active, but the amount of milk intake is temporarily reduced. The length of this period is not necessarily the same for every baby. In about a month, usually your baby's appetite will naturally come back. As long as your baby's growing well, you do not need to worry too much.

What you should do:

• Do not force baby to drink milk. Forcing your baby to drink milk may cause your baby to fear drinking milk or even disgust. Parents' emotions and stress will affect the baby too. If we are impatient and anxious when we are feeding our baby, how can our baby happily enjoy the milk?
• Have small meals more frequently. Try feeding your baby on demand. This means when your baby feels like eating, feed him or her small meals more frequently and allow him or her to eat as much as he or her wants. The most important thing is that he or she is willing to eat.
• Change the feeding method. Try using bottles with different colors or shapes a sippy cup, or try to get your baby to hold the milk bottle/sippy cup by himself or herself to increase his or her sense of participation. If your baby starts teething, he or she may like to bite and chew instead of suck, that is why he refuses to drink milk. You can consider trying spoon-feeding, this may help increase your baby's appetite.
• Adjust the dining environment. Your growing baby starts to get curious about the environment around him or her. If there are toys, sounds and lights next to him or her, your baby will be curious and stop drinking milk. Therefore, choosing a quiet room instead to avoid any distractions.
• Do not change the taste of milk. If your baby finds the taste of milk has changed, it may also cause him or her to refuse the milk. Remember not to mix medicine with milk to feed your baby. Just out of convenience, some mothers will add medicine with milk to feed her baby. If the baby senses the taste is not right, he or she will reject the milk.
• Introduce weaning food if your child is 6 months of age.

Introducing weaning food

It is advised not to introduce weaning food to babies who are below 4 months old. After six months of exclusive breastfeeding, weaning food is a must in the baby's diet. Otherwise, the risk of malnutrition may arise.

From 6 months of age, your baby is just about to learn how to swallow food. While milk should still be his staple, you can start by giving your child 3-5 baby spoonfuls of a single ingredient food. Most parents begin weaning their babies with iron-fortified rice cereals. These cereals are fortified with iron to help meet the baby's increased need for dietary iron at this time. Vegetables and fruit can also be included to provide vitamin C which enhances iron absorption. You can also give him porridge blended with mashed or pureed vegetables like pumpkin, sweet potato and carrot. Introduce other cereals like wheat and mixed cereals when he is a little older. If your baby is eating well, gradually increase it to a meal. To see if your baby is eating well, look at his bowel movement, his weight and his height.

By about 6 - 7 months, you can slowly introduce some protein food. The form and texture of each food should also vary with the age of your baby. Do not add sugar, salt and seasonings into the food. Salt cannot be added to baby's food till after 12 months as the kidneys may not be able to excrete the high salt load. Natural spices can be used in cooking to expose your child to a wide variety of tastes and flavours.

If your baby has a strong family history of allergy or has a personal history of other allergic problems, food allergy is more likely to occur. If you are concerned, consult your doctor. 

How to introduce solids

Establishing a routine whilst allowing your baby to enjoy his food

Your baby may be ready for solids but he may not want to eat as he is not used to it yet. You need to establish a routine for eating. Once he is used to it, the process becomes easier and enjoyable for your baby.

Here are some tips on how to establish a routine:

• Set a time for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.
• Seat your baby in the same place at mealtimes, preferably at the dining table. Put him in a high chair. Remember to pull the straps on the high chair firmly so that he cannot climb his way out.​
• Minimise distractions. Keep toys away and do not switch on the television.

Feeding baby

• ​Start your baby on a single-ingredient food. Give him only half a spoonful of the food. Bring the spoon towards his mouth and if he opens his mouth, place the food gently at the back of the tongue. Remove the spoon and see how he learns to swallow.
• Give your baby sufficient time to finish his food. Do not force him if he is not hungry or is not interested. If he rejects the food, give him milk and try weaning again during the next meal. It may take your baby up to 8-10 times before he accepts a new food. Many babies have a tongue-thrusting reflex ​​when trying new solids, but this does not mean that he does not like the food.
• Use the above table on “Recommended number of servings per day for infants 6-1​2 months” ​to transit your baby towards eating regular meals and snacks from all the food groups in age-appropriate portions.
• Teach him how to feed himself. Allow him to pick up food with his fingers or a spoon and to put it in his mouth. This will help develop his motor skills. Teach him to drink from a sipper cup. Do not be fussy about neatness during mealtimes.
• Introduce one new food every 3-4 days.

Prevent choking

• ​Never leave your baby alone when he is eating. Always watch him to make sure he does not choke.
• Ensure he sits upright and is not slouched over while eating.
• Ensure that the food is properly pureed, mashed or scraped so that it is easy for your baby to swallow without choking. As he gets older, food should still be soft, but chunkier and textured to help him learn how to chew properly.

​​​​​​Avoid:

• ​Hard food such as nuts, raw carrots, apples. These should be grated or cooked until soft.
  Food with small bones. Fish bones should be removed.
• Small, round food such as grapes and berries. These should be cut into bite-size portions and served.

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Food preparation

• ​​Food hygiene in food preparation is very important.
• Wash your hands before and after preparing your baby’s food.
• Have a designated space in the kitchen for food preparation. Clean surfaces before and after preparing food.
• Do not use cracked or chipped utensils (these have a higher chance of harbouring germs).
• Do not mix raw food, especially meats, with cooked food. Meats, if used, must be cooked thoroughly.
• If you re-heat food, make sure you bring it to full boil for a few minutes.
• Discard unfinished food from your baby's bowl.
• Keep food storage areas pest-free.
• Cover rubbish bins properly and empty them regularly.

Vary the form and texture of food with your baby's age

Reference: HealthHub