Comments on today's Associated Press article, "Baby Can Eat The Darnedest Things."

If you did not see this article appear in today's Chicago Tribune, take a gander.

In short, the crux of the article states that we discard everything we know about feeding babies, because the advice on how to wean infants onto solid foods is more myth than science. A Stanford professor and spokeswoman from the American Dietetic Association both profess that 6 month-olds can eat many of the things their parents do.

Just when you think you've heard everything, now this. At least they had the decency to mention that if you have a family of history of allergy, introduce one food at a time to watch for reactions. If everyone followed the suggestions of this article, the rate of gastrointestinal issues in babies would be much higher than it is even now. They suggest that one does not have to wait until one year to introduce peanut butter. This is dangerous. I do not recommend it until at least two years.

In my experience, we always start with bland foods first. I have found the most positive results from squash, sweet potato, avocado, peas, and green beans first. Then, iron-enriched rice cereal because extra iron is usually needed after six months of age.

From there, parents can gradually add and test their family's foods one at a time to test for reactions. Never test high protein foods before six months of age because they are more difficult to digest and cause more allergic reactions than do carbohydrates.

Bonnie and Steve