Starting Solids While Breastfeeding: When and How to Offer Food

Written by Lauren Remondino, SLP, Feeding Therapist & Advisor at Bébé Foodie

After months of finding your groove with breastfeeding, starting solids can feel like entering completely new territory. Will your baby nurse less? Should you breastfeed before meals? Could introducing solid foods affect your milk supply?

These questions are incredibly common. The reassuring news is that starting solids does not mean breastfeeding is coming to an end.

During your baby’s first year, breast milk continues to provide important nutrition while solid foods are gradually introduced. These early meals give your baby opportunities to explore different flavors and textures, practice eating skills and begin participating in family mealtimes. The transition from exclusive breastfeeding to family meals is a gradual process—not an overnight change.

Does starting solids replace breast milk?

One of the biggest misconceptions about starting solids is that babies should quickly begin replacing breast milk with food. In reality, breast milk and solid foods gradually begin working together.

For much of the first year, breast milk continues to provide:

• Calories and essential nutrients

• Immune support

• Hydration

• Comfort and emotional regulation

Solid foods are often called complementary foods because they are offered alongside breast milk. The World Health Organization describes complementary feeding as the stage when foods are added to breast milk or formula, generally beginning around 6 months. WHO complementary feeding guidance

Why breast milk remains important after starting solids

Especially during the first several months after introducing solid foods, many babies eat only a few bites at each meal. That can be completely normal. Learning how to start solids involves much more than how much food your baby swallows.

Some babies are immediately curious about food. Others need more time to become comfortable with new tastes, textures and mealtime routines. Both paths can be part of normal development.

What babies learn when they begin eating solid foods

As your baby explores their first foods, they are learning how to:

• Pick up food

• Bring food to their mouth

• Move food around their mouth

• Chew different textures

• Experience the smells, tastes and sensations of food

• Participate in family mealtimes

Every messy meal helps build important eating skills—even when more food lands on the bib or floor than in your baby’s belly.

Can you continue breastfeeding after starting solids?

Yes. Starting solids is not the end of breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding can continue to provide nutritional, developmental and emotional benefits throughout the first year and beyond. The American Academy of Pediatrics supports continued breastfeeding alongside complementary foods for 2 years or longer when it works for both parent and child. AAP breastfeeding recommendations

How breastfeeding may change as your baby eats more food

The shift toward solid foods usually happens gradually:

• Around 6 months, breast milk still provides most of your baby’s nutrition.

• By 8 to 9 months, your baby may eat more food while continuing to breastfeed frequently.

• By 10 to 12 months, solid foods generally become a larger part of the diet, but many babies still nurse several times a day.

The pace looks different for every child. Some babies are enthusiastic eaters from the beginning, while others need months of exposure before they consistently eat meaningful amounts. Both can be completely normal. Learn more about how to help your baby find a natural balance.

Should you breastfeed before or after offering solids?

This is one of the most common questions parents have when learning how to start feeding a baby solids.

For many babies, breastfeeding before offering solids works well during the first few months. If your baby arrives at the table overly hungry, they may become frustrated while trying to manage unfamiliar foods and practice new eating skills. Breastfeeding first can meet those immediate nutritional needs while allowing the meal to remain relaxed and exploratory.

Why offering breast milk first may help in the beginning

One routine you might try is:

1. Breastfeed your baby.

2. Wait approximately 30 to 60 minutes.

3. Offer a solid-food meal.

This may leave your baby interested enough to explore food without becoming so hungry that learning to eat feels frustrating.

As babies approach 9–12 months and become more skilled eaters, families often become more flexible. Meals may gradually occur before nursing sessions as solids begin contributing more nutrition.

There is no single perfect feeding order or schedule. You might experiment with the timing and follow your baby’s hunger, fullness and interest cues. The goal is to support continued breastfeeding while keeping solid-food experiences positive and manageable.

Sample breastfeeding and solids schedule for an 8- to 9-month-old

An infant feeding schedule can provide a helpful starting point, but it does not need to be followed by the clock. Every family has a different rhythm, and breastfeeding patterns can vary from day to day.

Here is one example for an 8- to 9-month-old who is practicing solid foods two or three times a day:

In this sample feeding schedule, breastfeeding still happens frequently throughout the day. Solid foods fit between nursing sessions instead of immediately replacing them.

Your baby may eat at different times, combine a milk feed and meal more closely or nurse more or less frequently. Think of this as an example—not a routine every family needs to follow.

How to adapt the schedule as your baby eats more solids

As babies get older, meal sizes gradually increase while nursing frequency naturally decreases—but this process usually unfolds over many months.

Continue watching your baby’s cues rather than trying to reach a specific portion size or eliminate nursing sessions according to a set timeline.

How breastfeeding and solid foods change during the first year

One helpful way to think about starting solids while breastfeeding is that the balance slowly shifts over time.

Starting solids around 6 months

When babies first begin eating solid foods, breast milk continues to provide most of their nutrition. Early meals are primarily opportunities for:

• Exposure and exploration

• New flavor and texture experiences

• Oral-motor development

• Practicing how to pick up and manage food

• Learning family mealtime routines

It is okay if your baby begins with only a small amount of food. At this stage, touching, tasting and playing with food are all part of learning.

Breastfeeding and solids from 7 to 9 months

With repeated opportunities to practice, babies often become more efficient and engaged during meals.

You may notice:

• Greater interest in family meals

• Improving chewing and food-management skills

• Gradually increasing portions

• More consistent participation at the table

These changes may not happen in a perfectly straight line. A baby who eagerly eats one day may be more interested in nursing—or dropping food from the highchair—the next.

Breastfeeding and solids from 9 to 12 months

Meals typically become more substantial during this stage. Many babies:

• Eat three meals each day

• Begin adding snacks when developmentally appropriate

• Drink small amounts of water with meals

• Continue breastfeeding several times a day

• Eat a growing variety of appropriately prepared family foods

Breast milk continues to contribute meaningful nutrition throughout the first year, even as your baby becomes more comfortable with meals.

Breastfeeding and solid foods after 12 months

After the first birthday, solid foods generally become the primary source of nutrition. Breastfeeding can continue for as long as it works for both parent and child.

The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics both support continued breastfeeding beyond the first year when it works for the family.

Does starting solids affect breast milk supply?

Introducing solid foods does not usually cause milk supply to disappear suddenly. Milk production operates largely on supply and demand: removing milk through nursing or pumping signals the body to continue producing it.

During the early months of starting solids, many babies continue nursing frequently enough to support milk production naturally.

How to support milk supply while introducing solid foods

To support ongoing milk production, you might:

• Continue breastfeeding in response to your baby’s cues.

• Avoid intentionally dropping several nursing sessions at once.

• Offer the breast regularly throughout the day.

• Pump as needed to replace missed milk feeds when you are separated.

• Take care of your own hydration and nutrition.

• Remember that temporary changes in nursing frequency can happen.

Most healthy babies gradually reduce nursing as their intake of solid foods increases. If maintaining a particular milk supply is important to you—or you are concerned about a sudden change—an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) can offer individualized support.

Common questions about starting solids while breastfeeding

This stage comes with a wide range of feeding patterns. Here are a few of the questions parents ask most often.

Is it normal for my baby to eat very little after starting solids?

Yes. Taking only one or two bites at a meal is incredibly common in the beginning.

Parents sometimes expect babies to begin eating full plates shortly after starting solids. In reality, many babies spend weeks or months tasting, squishing, dropping, smelling, licking and exploring their first foods.

This is not failure. It is learning.

Every positive interaction with food helps your baby build familiarity, skills and confidence.

How babies learn even when very little food is swallowed

Instead of focusing only on how much your baby eats, you might ask:

• Did they touch the food?

• Did they smell it?

• Did they bring it to their mouth?

• Did they stay comfortable in the highchair?

• Did they watch other people eat?

• Did they interact with a new texture?

These are all meaningful signs of progress.

Why does my baby want to breastfeed more after starting solids?

Some parents find that their baby wants to breastfeed more—not less—after starting solids.

Several changes that commonly happen around this age may contribute, including:

• Teething

• Illness

• Growth spurts

• Developmental leaps

• Separation anxiety

• A greater need for comfort

Babies often move through periods of increased nursing and increased interest in solid foods. Unless your pediatrician has concerns about growth or milk intake, you can usually continue responding to your baby’s feeding cues.

Why is my baby nursing less after starting solids?

Some babies become distracted or seem less interested in breastfeeding once solid foods are introduced. Before assuming your baby is weaning, consider:

• Are they teething or feeling unwell?

• Has your milk supply changed?

• Are they more interested in their surroundings?

• Have solid meals unintentionally replaced several nursing sessions?

• Could a quieter nursing environment help?

You might try breastfeeding in a calm, low-distraction space or offering milk before most solid meals.

When to seek support for a sudden change in breastfeeding

If nursing decreases significantly before your baby is 12 months old, speak with your pediatrician or an IBCLC. They can help determine whether your baby is receiving enough milk and support you in protecting your milk supply if needed.

Why your baby’s interest in solid foods may change from day to day

One of the hardest parts of introducing solid foods is accepting that progress is rarely linear.

Your baby may eat enthusiastically one day and throw nearly everything on the floor the next. Appetite and interest naturally change from day to day—just as they do for adults.

These fluctuations do not mean you are doing something wrong or that your baby has lost all their progress.

How to encourage solid foods without pressuring your baby

Rather than measuring success only by how much your baby consumes, focus on creating positive mealtime experiences.

You might:

• Offer a variety of nutritious foods over time.

• Eat together when possible.

• Let your baby touch and explore food.

• Follow signs of hunger and fullness.

• Continue breastfeeding responsively.

• Avoid pressuring your baby to take another bite.

Purées, finger foods or a combination can all provide valuable learning experiences. Homemade and store-bought options can both fit into family life, too. What matters most is offering safe, developmentally appropriate foods in a way that works for your baby and your family.

Over time, these small and sometimes very messy experiences can add up to greater confidence and skill at the table.

Starting solids and breastfeeding can work together

Introducing solid foods is an exciting milestone, but it is not a race to replace breastfeeding.

During the first year, breast milk continues to provide important nutrition while solid foods help your baby develop the skills needed for eating. Some babies eagerly embrace new foods, while others take a slower path. Both can be completely normal.

Breastfeeding and solids are not competing with one another. By continuing to nurse responsively and offering low-pressure opportunities to explore food, you can support your baby’s nutritional needs while helping them build a positive relationship with food.

If you find yourself wondering whether your baby’s eating is “normal,” know that you are not alone. Feeding is a journey rather than a single milestone. With time, repeated exposure and realistic expectations, most babies gradually become more comfortable and capable eaters while continuing to enjoy the benefits of breastfeeding.

Written by  Lauren Remondino,  M. Ed., CCC-SLP, IBCLC

Feeding Therapist, Speech Language Pathologist, Lactation Consultant & Advisor at Bébé Foodie

Lauren Remondino is a pediatric feeding specialist and mom, with a background in speech-language pathology and lactation counseling. After years working in top children’s hospitals, she now brings her clinical expertise—and real-life parenting perspective—to Bébé Foodie. Lauren works closely on developing our How to Serve guides and feeding support content, helping parents feel confident at every stage of their baby’s food journey. She’s all about keeping things realistic, flexible, and supportive—because feeding isn’t one-size-fits-all, especially when you’re juggling nap schedules and snack requests.