Parental Decision-Making Around Introducing Complementary Foods: An Integrative Review.
Kelsey L Thompson, Jamie L Conklin, Suzanne Thoyre
PMID 36899486WHAT IT FOUND
Most U.S. infants started solid foods between 4 and 6 months, but 29.6% started before 4 months.
Short or no breastfeeding and believing milk was not enough were linked to early start.
Key findings
01Most infants in the reviewed U.S. studies were introduced to solid foods between 4 and 6 months, with a mean age of 5.3 months, and an average of 29.6% were introduced before 4 months.
02Health care providers were a common source of advice, but in one nationally representative sample 55% of mothers who introduced solid foods before 4 months did so at a provider's recommendation.
03Never breastfeeding, shorter breastfeeding, or believing milk or formula was not enough for the infant were consistently linked with earlier introduction of solid foods.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Most of the 29 studies recruited from a single U.S. geographic area, so the findings may not represent all families. Most studies sampled only mothers, so fathers, guardians, and co-parenting decisions are less represented. Studies used different definitions of early and appropriate introduction, making rates and factors hard to compare. The review excluded intervention studies, so it cannot show that counseling, education, or breastfeeding support changes the timing of solid food introduction. Many studies lacked representative samples or had potential nonresponse bias, and the authors did not exclude studies for poor quality. Internet and social media influences were not often measured, although the review was limited to 2012 to 2022 partly because of them.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for the research, authorship, or publication.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 55% figure as proof that provider advice causes early introduction. It comes from one national sample of mothers who had already introduced solid foods before 4 months, and this review included no intervention studies showing that provider counseling changes timing.