AM I BEING PARANOID?

Hi everyone..... Dunno if I'm just being a paranoid first time mother but lately I've noticed that family members have been giving my son bits of food to suck on. He's only 2 months and his aunty has had him sucking on a lollipop , he's also sucked on some melon, and just today I think his nanna gave him a little potato salad. I'm just wondering if those little tastes that he's had will affect him in anyway, will he get allergies???? I really don't want him having anything other than breast milk til he's 6 months at least. I'm just worried about what it may do to him. It's only very miniscule amounts but it still gets to me!!

tell them not to as he could choke and die... one way to stop them.
They don't need food at his age .although my son started solids at 11 weeks but that was 13 years ago and you were told to start them around 12 weeks) Rhyley is 12 weeks now and he is no where near needing solids although give him another month and I think he will be.
I know someone and their family who gave 10 month chocolate and although yep its ok she can eat it - wasn't good to get her use to it at an early age. (i'll eat my words one day bet Rhyley taste chocolate by then LOL)

my FIL was the same - giving my six week old son a SMOOTHIE!!!! I was not impressed. he said
"well thats the way we did things when (hubby) was growing up, and he turned out okay"
I said "i wouldn\t be too sure about that!" and walked off. son two he tried to give diet coke so I just increased my vigilance and got MIL on my side and she told him off.

Don't think it will hurt him, but it could with the choaking thing, and more than that, it IS your child. God I could write a bloody book about in-laws at present. poor u living with them!!!

There has been lots of debate on OB! forums about the correct age to start food.
Personally I think it is Ok to start your baby on food when you think it is ready (you do what you like with your own kids, far be it for me to criticize!) but on the right foods, not sugar and milk products like potato salad!
My friend Michelle did a great post on another forum:

Michelle_S wrote: It's definitely better if you can wait, but it's your decision and it's probably not the end of the world if you do start early. I find a lot of people say 'I was fed solids early and nothing is wrong with me' but allergies are far more common these days then ever before so it's definitely made an impact on society I think. Just my opinion though, not based on any solid fact - although I would be interested to research that. Starting early doesn't mean your baby will definitely get an allergy but it certainly raises the odds quite significantly. And I would do anything to try and prevent my kids having an allergy. I think until you actually live with one you can't know what a nightmare it is. I found it really helpful knowing how it actually works... Until a baby is 6 months old its stomach lining is quite permeable, so when they are fed solid food tiny microscopic pieces of it can pass through and enter the bloodstream. The body freaks out at this foreign substance and starts developing antibodies to protect itself from this invasion. Then over time, or straight away, or sometimes never - when they eat this food again the body has an allergic reaction as it tries to rid itself of the 'bad' food. At around 6 months of age the stomach lining is completely closed and there's no risk of this happening.

I also believe that there is even new research to support scientists petitioning WHO to up the age on food consumption in babies to about 8 months. There is an awful lot of information on www.kellymom.com but I don't want to go on there as it scares the be-jez-us out of me as a FF mum!
There is a chance of allergy I am very sorry to say! But don't get to wound up about it. Maybe have a good ferret around of the facts and give it to the worst offenders. Maybe even try to lead a conversations with shocking incidents. If you want the desired effect of them not doing it, a little shock treatment might not be so bad.

But like I say, I am totally cool with other people giving their kids food when they are ready, I started Olivia on food at 4 months although I should have waited. (She has reflux)
All the best with the dreaded in-laws!

First off all you will get a lot of different responses on this. Each parent is different. So I will give you my view on this. You can read through all the advice and decide which is right for you.

Each child is different and will be ready at a different stage to be ready for solids. Havent said that I dont think 2 months is the age. At 4 months yip maybe. I was going to just breastfeed until 6 months. But by 4 this one was grabbing food out of our plates into her mouth. So at 4 and a half I officially started introducing solids.

I will really put my foot down with the family (had to do it with my own.) Tell them that under no circumstances are they allowed to feed him anything or let him taste anything. Or put their fingers in his mouth. Once he is ready to get solids and you feel comfortable you will have a plate and only from that plate they can feed him when you say so.

And make it clear if they dont follow the rules that you will not be able to trust your child with them and you dont really want to do that but you need to do what is r ight for your child.

Their bodies at that age really cant digest stuff like patato salad yet. All they need is milk.

I was readint through my plunket book,. and the nurse advised my mother to start giving me pureed apples at 5 weeks old!!! Mum didn't apparently, and the plunket nurse went a bit crazy on her. the entries stop shortly after!

If it has only been small amounts and there is no family allergies (on either side) I reckon you'll be okay, but I also would stop it happening in the future like SMoody suggests. I think the biggest concern at his age is the choking thing so you really don't want anything fed to him unless you're there - coming back into a room to see him choking on who-knows-what would be soooo very scary. It must be difficult sharing a home with doting grandparents, my hat goes off to you!

Yeah well hopefully we'll be outta here in the next few weeks, we're still tryna get things together for our own place since we had sold most of our things when we moved to Oz and came back to virtually nothing....and with a baby that was due 7 weeks after we arrived home, times have been a bit hard, luckily we were able to get everything we needed for baby's arrival, now its just getting everything so we can move out lol

I'd be livid about someone giving my baby solids before I'd put them on them.  Like others have said - he's your child, it's your decision, and people have to just respect your wishes on it.  Dad keeps joking he's got a chupa-chup for Ella each time he sees her.  Thank goodness he's joking though, because if he did give her one at this age, I'd hit the roof!  May the force be with you, Eva.