Weaning
Weaning is so much fun, with lot’s of experimenting it can be a wonderful bonding experience for you and your baby!
Many foods are not suitable for babies under six months, including soft and unpasteurised cheeses, liver and foods that are most likely to cause allergies, such as peanuts, other nuts, seeds, cows’ milk, wheat, eggs, fish and shellfish.
*Babies under four months (17 weeks) should not be given solid foods.
*Some people think that starting solid foods before six months will help a baby sleep, but there is no evidence to support this. Go by your own baby, you as a parent will know when your child is ready.
*If your baby was premature, talk to your health visitor or GP about the right age to start your baby on solid foods.
Here are some suggestions to make starting on solid foods easier and safer:
*Go at your baby’s pace. Allow plenty of time for feeding, particularly at first. Your baby needs to learn to move solid food from the front of the tongue to the back, to swallow it. The food is going to taste and feel different – so it’s bound to take time.
*Spoon out the amount you think your baby will eat and heat this, rather than heating a large amount that then goes to waste. This is because you’ll need to throw away any of the heated food that your baby doesn’t eat, as it’s not safe to reheat previously warmed food.
It’s important to heat food thoroughly and allow it to cool, stir well and test, before offering it to your baby.
Also, don’t refreeze any food that’s been warmed or previously frozen. And remember that everything you use
for feeding your baby needs to be really clean.
*Always stay nearby when your baby is eating to make sure that he or she doesn’t choke.
*Don’t rush or ‘force feed’. Most babies know when they’ve had enough to eat. Don’t spend a lot of time persuading your baby to take food – they soon learn that refusing food is a good way of getting attention.
*Ideally, choose a time of day when both you and your baby are relaxed.
*Encourage your baby to help with feeding. When your baby shows an interest in feeding him or herself, this is a good sign. So encourage this by giving your baby the spoon, while you try to spoon in most of the meal with another spoon. It will be messy at first, but try not to worry about it.
*Offer a wide variety of foods that you and your family usually eat, as this might help avoid choosiness later on. Avoid giving your baby any eggs, or salty, sugary or processed foods that haven’t been specifically designed for babies (see What foods to avoid below).
Aim to encourage your baby to eat a variety of family foods and adapt to your pattern of eating.
*Use mashed-up family food when you can. This way, you’ll know what the ingredients are and you’ll be getting your baby used to eating what you eat. Commercial baby foods can be useful but don’t let them replace family foods altogether.
*Remember, cows’ milk isn’t suitable as a drink for babies under a year old.
Recent comments