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How to start solids

Whether the first foods are spoon-fed purees, finger foods the baby picks up and feeds themselves (called baby-led weaning), or a mix of both.

Should we start solids with purees or baby-led weaning?

In short: Parents choose between 4 main approaches: Spoon-fed purees; Combination (purees plus finger foods); Baby-led weaning with coaching on iron-rich foods and choking hazards; Strict baby-led weaning with no coaching. Evidence: your call. No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide. Best settled: 0–6 months.

Evidence
Your call
Best settled
0–6 months
Part of
Pregnancy to first birthday

How to start solids: what are the options?

Parents usually land on one of these 4 approaches.

  1. 1. Spoon-fed purees

    You feed the baby smooth purees from a spoon, then thicker textures.

  2. 2. Combination (purees plus finger foods)

    You use both: some spoon-feeding and some soft finger foods the baby picks up.

  3. 3. Baby-led weaning with coaching on iron-rich foods and choking hazards

    The baby feeds themselves soft finger foods, and you learn which foods give iron and which are choking risks.

  4. 4. Strict baby-led weaning with no coaching

    The baby feeds themselves from the start, with no purees and no special guidance.

How to start solids: what does the evidence say?

Your call. No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide. (Values, with safety rules)

A 2025 review found no added choking risk or growth difference when parents are coached. The main trial, BLISS in New Zealand (206 babies), tested a coached version: babies gagged more often at 6 months but less at 8 months, there was no significant difference in BMI at 12 or 24 months, and the baby-led group was less fussy about food. The coaching is the point: that trial pushed iron-rich foods early, and the exact choking figures could not be retrieved here

Sources

What else is worth knowing?

In the traditional approach an adult spoons in purees and moves to lumpier food over time. In baby-led weaning the baby picks up soft pieces and feeds themselves. Most families mix the two, and the safety rules about choking apply either way.

Questions to ask each other

  • Which of these sounds closest to what we would like to try?
  • How comfortable are we with a baby gagging and feeding themselves?
  • Who will learn the choking-safety rules before we start?

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First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.