Starting Solids at 4 Months: Everything You Need to Know!

Your baby is already 4 months old and it’s time to start introducing solid foods. They now need stage 2 formula if they are formula-fed. You can start gradually introducing fruits and vegetables to expose them to new tastes. What exactly can they eat and what does their meal plan consist of? Here are the insights from Christine Zalejski, Dr. Ph., an expert in infant nutrition for ages 0-6 years and author of a mixed diversification guide with Céline De Sousa (Ed. Larousse).

How Many Meals a Day for a 4-Month-Old Baby?

“If the child needs to go to daycare, it might be necessary to ‘stick to’ a schedule. Otherwise, ‘let the baby follow their own pace if it doesn’t disrupt the parents’“, explains Christine Zalejski. Also, if your child is in a group setting, remember that four months = four meals a day! It’s not mandatory, but it’s a good average.

Meal Schedule for a 4-Month-Old Baby

While every child is different, on average, a baby takes 4 milk-based meals, sometimes 5 during the night, gradually adding solid food at lunch and then at snack time.

How Much Milk at 4 Months?

“The baby drinks the amount they want and need“, emphasizes Christine Zalejski. Each baby indeed has their own needs, but on average, a 4-month-old drinks between 720 and 840 ml of milk spread over 4 or 5 bottles.

“On average, a 4-month-old drinks between 720 and 840 ml of milk spread over 4 or 5 bottles.”

How to Start Introducing Solid Foods at 4 Months?

“It is possible to start introducing solid foods at 4 months without forcing your child“, indicates Dr. Zalejski. Initially, you can give the bottle or breastfeed your baby, then offer a few spoons of vegetable puree at lunch, or vice versa. Don’t be too rigid about rules. It’s mainly about getting them accustomed to new flavors and textures.

List of Vegetables to Introduce to a Baby Starting at 4 Months

For Christine Zalejski, there’s no reason to delay introducing all kinds of vegetables to a baby. “You can offer many vegetables to the baby except perhaps white and red cabbage at the very beginning“, she notes. In the first few days, you can introduce (list not exhaustive):

• Carrots
• Pumpkin
• Butternut squash
• Zucchini
• Extra-fine green beans
• Spinach
• Pumpkin
• Leek whites
• Tomatoes
• Swiss chard
• Broccoli
• Parsnips
• Turnips

List of Fruits for a 4-Month-Old Baby

“You can introduce many fruits to your 4-month-old baby”, advises Dr. Zalejski. You can start with (list not exhaustive):

• Apples
• Pears
• Bananas
• Apricots
• Persimmons
• Melons
• Plums
• Oranges
• Watermelons
• Peaches
• Prunes

Feeding Chart for a 4-Month-Old Baby

Should You Start Weaning a Baby at 4 Months?

If you haven’t started introducing solid foods yet, you can begin about two weeks before the desired weaning date and progress gradually by replacing a breastfeeding session with a bottle of infant formula.

If the baby is already eating solid foods, it’s not yet time to directly replace a nursing session with a solid meal. It’s better to offer spoon-fed meals after nursing, progressively at each meal. For instance, during snack time, breastfeeding might be replaced by infant formula or a dairy product.