stupid question from a first time mum [blush] pasta hoops

[cantbelieveimonhere]

9.5month old moving from stage two ("textured not lumpy" - what is that anyway?!!!!) to stage three weaning

am extremely scared of dd choking
in past week have done the following for the first time -
eggs (fork mashed hard boiled eggs)
toast
baked beans - whole, not even cut in half or anything!

I found this really worrying and to be honest dreaded meals before introducing these new "lumpier" things

have bought tin of Heinz (other varieties are available) of tinned pasta hoops. books recommend this as lunch snack (although I have some concern it is a bit processed for such a little one?)

want to ask for advice - would a full hoop be too big/difficult to swallow/have higher risk to swallow?
should I cut it up into little pieces, and if so how many?

all help for a nervous mummy weaning pfb would be gratefully received

[Innermagic]

Annabell karmel has tiny pasta shells that you can cook yourself and add your own sauce, I introduced my ds to this about that age I made my own cheese sauce which he loved, I'm sure tinned hoops would be fine though.

[cantbelieveimonhere]

Thanks will look for both of these online. Do you think they would need to go into blender/be fork mashed/be eaten whole at this age?

[cruikshank]

Annabel Karmel's meals are full of salt and sugar. The cookbooks are ok (although I think a lot of the recipes contain too much fruit juice) but the ready meals are abominable. There is more sugar per 100g in her beef lasagne than there is in a tin of spaghetti hoops, and twice as much salt per 100g. Don't buy them.

Op, I second the suggestion of just getting little pasta shapes. Add your own home-made tomato sauce (blended) to them, without any salt or sugar added. If you can't find any little pasta shapes, just break spaghetti strands up in your hands and add to boiling water for a couple of minutes.

And I really wouldn't worry about choking at this stage. A spaghetti hoop is tiny, as is broken-up spaghetti, plus they are really soft. It's only when you get onto things like grapes, strawberries, raw apples etc that you need to think about it, and even then as long as you cut them up she will be fine. However, you do sound very anxious about it so, in order to minimise your anxieties, have you thought about having a word with your health visitor who can teach you about what to do if your dd does choke? That way, you can be confident that even if the worst does happen (and it really won't with spaghetti hoops) you will be ready and equipped to deal with it.

[fattymcfatfat]

Mine both had bog standard sized pasta shapes at that age but they were very good at biting (usually me ) so I'm sure the small ones will be fine.
The hoops will be very processed but they wouldn't need cutting up.
Have you introduced any finger foods yet? I can tell you are nervous, but pasta spirals are good for this, as is soft toast and cooked vegetables chopped into sticks. And your baby will love exploring the new textures and learning how to grasp etc. I know it may seem daunting but you are doing fine, try not to worry so much and trust yourself

[cantbelieveimonhere]

Thanks for the advice and support. I have been in tears when introducing new foods found moving to this new stage very worrying. Every bite into lo's mouth was homemade in stage one. Finding it hard to get balance of meals right now. It took me weeks to build up courage to toast. Lo is such a fast hungry eater. Bites off bits from finger food almost one inch long. Gets frustrated if can't chew quickly enough. So I tend to give her yoghurt and smooth fruit at start of meal, to take edge off hungar, then give lumps on spoon or finger food after that.
Am seriously considering doing red cross baby first aid class. Health visitors v busy and time always short on appointments.

[cantbelieveimonhere]

Lo has no teeth yet btw

[Postchildrenpregranny]

First Aid class sounds a good idea .They will teach you what to do if she does choke .But tiny soft pasta will be fine
Babies are much tougher than you think .You'll find DC 2 etc will grab a chocolate biscuit to munch on (or worse) and you won't turn a hair.

[CultureSucksDownWords]

They don't need teeth to bite and chew at this age - the gums are hard enough due to the teeth underneath.

Babies from 6 months can handle solid food as it comes, it doesn't have to be mashed, chopped or puréed. Ordinary pasta (twirls,bows, etc) is fine as it is easy to pick up and will disintegrate when chewed a little. A bit of sauce on it would be good as well - tomato, pesto, white sauce etc.

I would also agree with speaking to someone about your anxiety levels around this - it sounds exhausting and stressful from your posts. No one should be in tears over giving new foods to their baby.

[LaceyLee]

My six month old is happy picking up and eating ordinary sized pasta twists. She gums and sucks things as she has no teeth. Honestly choking is really unlikely, babies are good at this, but there are also videos on YouTube about choking which are well worth watching to put your mind at ease if you don't get on to a course immediately.

[HeadDreamer]

My DD2 is the same age as yours has fusilli. Macaroni is another good choice. You want shapes that are easy to pick up unless you don't mind mess. The tinned pasta shapes are full of sugar and salt as someone said already. They won't choke honest.

[HeadDreamer]

Cooked pasta is so soft you don't need teeth to eat. And it's hard to choke on. That's why you don't give whole nuts or whole grapes!

[cantbelieveimonhere]

Thanks folks, much appreciated. Am trying to introduce a new food/texture every couple of days at the minute (shopping bill definately notices the difference!)
Think I will bite the bullet and try pasta next.
Admittedly, I might trying something supersmall like this

www.sainsburys.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/gb/groceries/sainsburys-stars-500g?langId=44&storeId=10151&krypto=2K6b0PFeUdKB03p2PR5dVtwoNY5YD0PlGhH%2BKkkDbW5VTujYm%2Br8EWE5Ha5Z9nl%2BdyfVJpVO9hZG%0AW5c2V3en7ZVL8cj36ifJddLBHz9RvjjMCVH85Ed4Vk0EvDALnGlT&ddkey=http:gb/groceries/sainsburys-stars-500g

and if it goes well, then move up to something bigger like macaroni. Might put it in a vegetable soup first, and if that goes well then into a stew or tomato sauce with meat (slow cooked/stewed to get it as tender as possible).

Thanks again for all the advice
It's gentle and encouraging advice like this that is the very best of MN, and not the angry AIBU posters who get it a bad reputation!!!

[GiddyOnZackHunt]

I bought soup pasta (little bows) from tesco for mine. That was fine.
If you're worried about choking then remember that if they're gagging, coughing or making a noise then they aren't unable to breathe. Things like whole grapes, cherries, frankfurters cut across or boiled sweets/lollies that sort of thing are the choking risk.
Speak to your local children's centre or St John's for paediatric first aid courses too.

[dairyfreequeen]

About first aid courses, im booked on an nct one so look into that as well? The nhs website has some videos of what to do in case of choking, which i think are linked somewhere on mumsnet...

[NorahBone]

You can buy tiny pasta with the normal pasta - conchigliette (little shells) or orzo (rice shaped). I've not checked, but I suspect it's cheaper than pasta aimed at babies. I was excited to realize that I'd finally found a use for my soup pasta when I started weaning, but my baby was more about feeding himself so I just used the big stuff Or you could always snap spaghetti into shorter bits?

[Hobbes8]

Do you know the difference between gagging and choking? When babies start eating lumpier food they can make some awful gagging retching noises. They sound alarming but they're completely normal. Sometimes they spit bigger lumps out. It's all about them learning how to eat and what they can tolerate.

You might want to check out some of the baby led weaning websites. I'm not necessarily recommending that approach, but it will give you some ideas about the kinds of foods even very small babies can handle, which might reassure.

[Ausflug]

They won't choke on a spaghetti hoop.

But they might gag.

Babies that are used to smoother purees are used to "drinking/gulping" it rather than chewing it. So they might quickly move it to the back of their throat, and the gag reflex might kick in.

That's what the gag reflex is for, it is fine and normal, and just comes from getting used to the new texture.

If they have been eating lumpy food and finger food anyway, then they'll probably have no problem though.