Solid food before 6 months has a positive effect on infant sleep

While doctors generally recommend waiting until 6 months of age for an infant to begin dietary diversification, a new British study takes the opposite side of this recommendation by highlighting the links between good sleep babies and solid food.

Published Monday, July 9 in the American Journal JAMA Pediatrics Researchers at King's College London show that children receiving solid food wheat or fish before their 6 months sleep longer and wake up less often at night than those who are exclusively badfed.

Fewer nocturnal awakenings

To reach this conclusion, the researchers chose to follow, from 2009 to 2012, 1,303 children under the age of 3 months in England and Wales until their third birthday. Half of the parents gave their offspring solid food before 6 months of age, while the other half followed the recommendation of exclusive badfeeding until that age.

If children started to eat mashed potatoes carrot and fish before 6 months do not make the nights completely complete, the result highlighted by the experience is considered significant: they wake up more than an average 1.74 times the night, against 2.01 times for milk drinkers. They also sleep longer: an average of 16 minutes more per night compared to badfed babies.

The researchers agree, however, that these results should be put into perspective: indeed, it is possible that mothers giving solid foods anticipated a positive effect on their baby's sleep. But according to them, it is unlikely that this bias extended beyond six months.

Dietary diversification, how to use

Dietary diversification involves introducing solid foods into the diet of badfed infants or receiving infant formula. Parents are generally advised not to start it before the age of 4 months due to the risk of food allergy. The introduction of solid foods, such as vegetable purées and fruit compotes, often begins around the age of 6 months.

However, it is also not recommended to delay the introduction of solid foods beyond 6 months, even in children at risk of allergy (father, mother, brother or sister allergic), because bad milk and infant formula do not sufficiently cover the nutritional needs necessary for the proper development of the child from of this age

We must choose in priority sweet vegetables, well tolerated by the fragile stomach of babies: green beans, spinach, skinless and skinless zucchini, leek whites or carrots. On the preparation side, the vegetables must be finely mixed, boiled or steamed, without added salt.

Even when dietary diversification has begun, milk must remain the basis of the child's diet. until at least 8 months. Vegetables are therefore introduced at lunch, in addition to a bottle of milk.