Older parents will remember well introducing solid foods to their babies.  You started with pablum or rice cereal, then veggies such as squash and sweet potatoes, followed by fruits.  A few months later meat would be added to a baby’s diet.  Health Canada is now recommending a change in the way foods are given to babies.  New Canadian guidelines say parents should offer their 6 month old infants meat, fish, poultry or meat alternatives two or three times a day.  They say these iron-rich foods should be the first ones that babies consume when being introduced to solids.  Experts say iron is critical for a baby’s growth and cognitive development and by about six months, a baby’s iron stores start to diminish.  Feeding meats or meat alternatives would boost iron levels to ensure proper brain development.