Baby-led weaning or baby-led feeding is an approach to introducing solid foods to your baby whereby spoon-feeding and purees are skipped in favor of solid foods that a baby self feeds that parents and child care providers follow a baby’s lead. This strategy allows parents to completely avoid the concept of infant purée food.
Baby-led weaning is becoming popular day by day and it is especially hailed by those who want to avoid their baby being a picky eater or those who give in to Montessori-type philosophies of rearing their child where the child is encouraged to be self-sufficient as baby-led weaning specifically emphasizes the independence of the infant.
A study was published in the National Library of Medicine in 2017 regarding Baby-Led Weaning. The examined data showed the percentage of infants who can reach their own food and were self-sufficient. For those who aged 4 to 6 months, 68% infants reached out for food, for 6-7 months this was 85% and almost 96% for infants of 7 to 8 months.
WHEN TO START BABY-LED WEANING?
Baby-led weaning (BLW) is for introducing complementary solid foods along with breast milk or infant formula for fulfilling the required nutrition of the baby and helping in proper growth and development. It is extremely necessary to introduce it at the proper stage. It is scientifically proven that babies who begin eating solid foods before the age of six months have a lower incidence of asthma and allergies.
Some women begin feeding solids as early as four months, while others wait a little longer. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation, you must wait till six months to start introducing solids. However, it all depends on the developmental progress of your baby.
How will you know whether your baby is ready for solid food?
The baby can sit up and keep their head up without any assistance, reach for your food, pick it up, and bring it to their mouth. Always consult your child’s pediatrician to get approval before starting any introduction to baby’s solid food.
The Pros & Cons of BLW
Pros of BLW:
The benefit of baby-led weaning (BLW) is that it enables babies to self-feed. BLW encourages the development of fine motor and oral motor skills since baby-led weaning (BLW) allows your child to explore with their food like textures, sensation and taste. This also help improve their hand-eye and coordination, promotes independence and reduces parental micromanagement during mealtime.
Learning to chew food first before swallowing - Even in the absence of teeth, your baby's gums are powerful enough to break down anything that is soft. Just make sure the food you are introducing is good enough to be mash between your finger and thumb. Also, BLW cuts the cost for store bought food (Cynthia Ramnarace, 2021).
Also, baby led weaning aids in diverse palate development which encourages your infant to sample a range of meals; by the time they are 12 months old, they will have probably tasted 100 different foods! And fortunately your child will be a less picky eater (Sonya. L Cameron, 2012).
Cons of BLW:
There is concern of choking for babies, however analysis indicates that there is no greater risk of choking during baby-led weaning, but there may be more gagging as infants get habituated to swallowing.
Compared to spoon feeding, baby-led weaning can be messier.
Parents are also conscious that whether baby-led weaning offers a varied and nourishing diet to their infants? But multiple studies now demonstrate that a baby-led weaning strategy allows infants to consume enough energy.
Tips to Lessen Parents’ Resistance
Are you afraid that introducing non-puréed solid food to infants increases the chance of choking? Although this is a legitimate worry for parents and childcare providers, baby-led weaning does not increase the risk of choking versus traditional weaning if it is done correctly. It's crucial to wean your infant as safely as you can to avoid choking hazards. Some of the points for your consideration are listed below. For this, appropriate hands-on experience is required:
Give ONLY Soft Foods: You can see if your baby's gums are strong enough to chew on food by pressing it between your finger and thumb. No hard fruits or vegetables, such as raw carrots, apples, popcorns, and hot dogs. Always cut lengthwise not cylindrical (round )
Don’t pick Food out of your Baby's Mouth: Your infant should be able to decide what goes in their mouth. Allow them to experiment on their own with soft, manageable meals. Encourage them to spit out or cough any food that is giving them discomfort when chewing.
Steer Clear of Meals that can cause Choking: This contains hard bits of fruit or vegetables, whole nuts also for, entire grapes, whole berries, popcorn, and full whole nuts. Every food item should be easily crushable between your thumb and finger.
Never leave a baby unattended: Never leave the room while your infant is feeding; remain in the room.
How to work with your Nanny:
It can be challenging to balance a private and working relationship with a nanny. Thus, it is crucial for parents to actively supervise their nannies in this productive relationship so that your nanny is capable of achieving success.
Describe clear expectations: A detailed job descriptions, compensation , agreements, and any other basic rules you want to set should all be included in the written agreement.
Develop mutual trust: You must have trust in your nanny because she is caring for your children, who are your most priceless possessions.
Be open and honest in your communication: It is vital to discuss every facet of the parenting approach you would like to take with the kids in order to benefit them.
For Baby Led Weaning, discuss in detail with your nanny regarding the infant’s routine. Parents should train nannies to give children soft, age-appropriate, finger-sized food that has been sliced up, allowing them to reach for it, play with it, and eat like they were intended to. This would help your nanny to better take care of your infant.
To Sum Up
Baby-led weaning may encourage healthy eating habits, prevent your baby from gaining too much weight, and lessen fussiness when it comes to food. It can also simplify the process for parents to feed their infants.
Baby-led weaning can be a wonderful method to introduce your child to a range of healthful foods at a young age if you choose the proper foods, serve them in the right consistencies, and take proactive measures to lower the risk of choking.
References:
National Library of Medicine, 2011, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21739856/
Food Allergy Canada, https://foodallergycanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/FAQs-for-early-infant-feeding-guidelines.pdf
Cynthia Ramnarace, 2021, Rethinking Baby Food: Baby-Led Weaning Basics”
Sonya. L Cameron, 2012, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23201835/
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