Thinking about starting your sweetie on solids? You may imagine mounds of mushy rice cereal and pureed peas plus lots of time coaxing baby to open that tiny mouth. But it doesn’t have to be that way. A growing number of moms are bypassing purees and jarred baby food altogether with baby-led weaning — giving their babies control over what (and how much) they put in their mouths.With baby-led weaning — a term popularized by Gill Rapley, a British public-health nurse and mother of three — babies skip spoon-feeding altogether and head straight to finger foods. Whole, baby-safe foods are placed in front of baby to pick up and eat himself — allowing him to decide how much to eat and how quickly.While this philosophy may sound radical, it’s actually an age-old practice and the norm in many cultures. Advocates of baby-led weaning point out that we let our babies learn to crawl, cruise and walk at their own pace — so why not let them learn to eat at their own pace too? In theory, baby-led weaning encourages your little one to eat what and how much he wants — not how much you decide she needs.
By putting whole finger foods in front of him to sample from the get-go (instead of spoonfuls of pureed food into his mouth that he can’t see, feel or smell), your baby has the chance to fully explore what’s on the menu and eat as much or as little as he desires.Experts including the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) now recommend the best time to start baby-led weaning (and all solids, for that matter), is at 6 months old. By that age, most babies are able to sit up by themselves and grab and hold onto objects. They've also dropped the tongue-thrust reflex (which causes them to push foreign substances out of their mouths), plus their intestines have developed the necessary digestive enzymes to absorb solid food.Wondering if baby-led weaning is right for your baby? Run the idea by your little one’s pediatrician for an opinion; while most babies will get the green light, some (those who have special needs and are unable to pick up and chew foods on their own) might not be able to try baby-wed leaning.
Then look to your baby — some like taking the feed lead, others don’t.According to advocates and some research, babies who start solids with baby-led weaning are:Though there are plenty of reasons to consider baby-led weaning, there are a couple of downsides, including:Concerned about choking? Not to worry, as long as you offer safe foods — your little one’s gums are quite capable of chewing soft foods.Your baby will, however, likely gag a few times at his initial attempts, either because he puts too much food into his mouth at once or because he pushes it too far back. This is actually a good thing, since the gag reflex is a safety mechanism that prevents choking: Baby learns to move food from the back of the throat to the front, keeping it from getting lodged in his throat. At the same time, he learns what not to do next time.Still, it’s important to learn the difference between gagging and choking — and what to do if it’s the latter:As long as you present food safely, baby-led weaning is safe for baby.
A few tips to ensure your baby stays safe when you start baby-led weaning:You may be skeptical that your 6-month-old will be able to handle whole pieces of food right off the bat — but your baby’s ability to chow down will likely amaze you. If you've decided to start your baby on solids the baby-led-weaning way, follow these basic principles:As long as it’s soft and/or crumbly, cut into small, manageable pieces (baby fist-size) and not on the list of foods that pose a choking risk, it’s on the baby-led weaning menu. Don’t worry about how much or how little your baby eats in the first few months; just do your best to serve up a well-rounded diet. Consider offering a food from each of these food groups every day to ensure baby’s getting the nutrients she needs:There’s no need to add salt, sugar or artificial sweeteners to your baby’s foods, since they don’t add any nutritional value. What’s more, they mask the innate flavors of baby’s foods — and some research has even found that babies don’t actually have any preference at all for these tastes.
Plus, consistent use of salt or sugar sets kids up to prefer salty or sugary foods in the long run. (It’s fine, however, to season food with herbs and spices — your baby might love the kick in flavor.) Skip chips, cookies and other prepackaged, prepared foods, too, since they tend to be devoid of nutrients and full of additives and unhealthy trans-fats.Keep in mind, too, that baby-led weaning, like so many other parenting philosophies, isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition. You can choose baby-led weaning some of the time, alternating with spoon feeding or adding to it (baby eats a chunk of banana, you spoon in some yogurt).3 things to read next:For many parents feeding their kids is a bit overwhelming, especially in the beginning. It’s really straight forward when they are babies, right? Milk, then baby food. Things start to get a little tricky when real food is introduced and the bottles and baby food are weened away. Those babes turn into toddlers and the eating transition can be challenging.
I’m not just talking about how to get them to start eating table foods, I’ve already covered that in: How to Transition Your Baby to Table Food. It’s all the other things that come along with this transition like when, what, and where to feed them…. when and how do they feed themselves… how long should they sit in a high chair… etc. Okay, if you weren’t overwhelmed already, I am probably overwhelming you now! Obviously, I am going to walk you through the most common mistakes parents seem to make and how you can avoid them to get your kid’s eating started with a good foundation. As an early intervention occupational therapist, these have been common problems I’ve helped parents with over and over again, and they are mostly simple things that the Pediatrician doesn’t have time to tell you or may not even know. Staying on Baby Food Too Long Going to get this one out of the way first. Generally speaking babies should be starting to eat table foods around 8-9 months and should be done eating baby food by their first birthday.
Of course there are exceptions to this, especially if your child has developmental delays. Each child is an individual and I do want you to follow their lead, BUT often I see parents sticking with baby food way too long because it is easier or THEY are uncomfortable exposing their child to more table foods. You may think, where is the harm in it? Although most kids will move onto table foods fairly easily, some can get stuck in a rut and refuse table foods if they are kept on baby food for too long. If you need more help with this transition check out part one and two of How to Transition Your Baby to Table Food. Abandoning the High Chair I know the big high chairs can be cumbersome in kitchens and the trays are annoying to keep cleaning, but these seats and their ability to confine, ahem, I mean keep you child safe are the best bet for a while. Babies have learned to associate eating with this chair and toddlers are notoriously distracted. If you try to have them eat at their own little table or at a big table before the age of 2.5 you are most likely going to be in a constant struggle just to keep them sitting at the table and their eating habits will surely suffer.
There is nothing wrong with keeping your kid in a high chair or booster seat with a strap until they are 3. If you never stray from this they won’t ever know the difference, sitting in a high chair or booster is all they have ever know. Once you let them kneel on a big chair or don’t strap them into the booster, it could be very difficult to return to the original set up.This is my favorite strapped booster seat, I’ve used it for all my kiddos, until 3 years old and beyond really. Once you do move to strap-free eating situation, lay the ground rules quickly about staying seated. If you child insists on getting down, meal time is over for them. Make sure they understand this and follow through. Click here for more info on setting up a schedule and spacing meals apart.UPDATE: Check out 8 Steps to Keep Your Child Seated at Meals and to make sure your child is positioned correctly in the booster you are using you’ll definitely want to head over to The Best Seated Position. You’ll find helpful pictures and the highchairs and booster seats I use and recommend.
Constant Snacking I have to admit, this is probably my biggest pet peeve and the most prevalent error parents make. (Warning: stepping onto my soap box) Somehow our culture has evolved to constantly feeding our kids, most of the time we do this to pacify them. We hand them crackers or cookies in grocery stores, doctors offices, cars, parties, and even church to keep them quiet. It doesn’t always stop there, in the beginning it can be hard to find a schedule for eating that works and leaving food out all the time can seem logical, or meal times become stressful and schedules are abandoned because it seems easier. It may be easier in the short term, but in the long run it will become more difficult to get good eating habits established. When kids are given snacks endlessly, the message sent is that we don’t need to sit and eat together (yes, even if it is just a snack) and that we can eat whenever we want. I think it is important to teach kids to respect meal time in its own right so they can develop healthy eating habits for life.
Constant snacking totally defeats this, and as I have discussed previously, snacking usually ruins their appetite. In my day job (as an occupational therapist), I see huge changes in a child’s eating when the family moves to structured, spaced out meals. At home, I also see a dramatic difference in my kid’s eating when they have snacked too frequently. Toys at the TableNo toys at the table might seem obvious to some of you, especially parents with babies that aren’t really trying to pull this stunt yet. I assure you there will be a day when your toddler is insistent and will ultimately throw a tantrum just to have the truck or doll at the table with them. In the moment, it is very easy to give in because you are exhausted and don’t have the battle in you. However, this is a battle worth fighting, even though that toy may be keeping them in their chair it will mostly distract them from actually eating. Sometimes it helps to place the toy in a spot where a child can see it (sometimes that makes it worse!).
Either way, once your kiddo knows that you mean business about no toys coming to the table, they will stop trying. *If your child is receiving feeding therapy, some therapeutic strategies employ the use of toys at meals. Eating Alone Eat with your kids, often when we start babes out on baby food they are on their own schedule and we focus just on feeding them at their own meal time. This should be short lived, if ever a scenario at all. If possible it is a great habit and benefit to the baby to eat meals together. As they start to eat multiple times a day and begin table foods, try to find a way to have your eating schedules coincide. Serving your kids solo means them missing out on a variety of social interactions, as well as the powerful tool of modeling. These mini-me’s just want to emulate us, and while we all know that they observe everything that we are doing, we often forget to apply that to eating. They notice that the broccoli is on our plate and what we like to eat.