weaning

[mummy2t]

Hi all My little one is 20 weeks old and i have just begun to offer a very small portion of baby rice mid morning, he is doing really well with it and really enjoying it. Today i offered the baby poridge and he loved that too, how long should i wait before a offer more tastes and eventually start the proper veg and fruit purees? i dont want to go to fast with it all
all advice welcomed
steph x

[mummy2t]

i did suffer, depression before ds1 and then post natal depression when i had ds1, now ds2 is here i dont have time to get depressed i am to bloody busy!!!

[bergentulip]

Yes, but VS, my baby was physically getting toooo much to eat just continually feeding his appetite with milk. He was getting overweight. Yes, it's possible. Off the chart overweight, having been born on time on the 15th percentile.

I know, I know, percentile charts mean shit, bla bla bla, but I am not stupid, I could see what was happening, I could also tell the difference between tired/over-stimulation/hungry...... Iwas not going for the easy option of just feeding him more food, and it had nothing to do with just wanting a better night's sleep.
The small amounts of baby rice mixed with milk I started to give him at 4.5mths really curbed his appetite, and slowed his weight gain...

and now he is a quite healthy size. Big, but healthy. And at 7mths eating regularly and gaining steadily.

I don't think the argument that all babies just need more milk is 100% true 100% of the time.

[tori32]

VS I am a mentalist! Runs in my family LOL. I was weaned at 12wks and DB was 8wks Neither have allergies/eczma/asthma/bowel problems. Thats not to say every baby won't have problems. Just we don't have any family history so I am probably not as conscious of them iyswim.

[dylsmum1998]

bergentulip you sound like you are describing my ds when he was a baby. exactly why he was weaned so early.
he's 9 now and is definately not overweight now

[LuckySalem]

Ok, I've read the thread and before I start Mummyt. I'd love to say don't feel guilty like the rest and I expect you shouldn't at the moment, but expect to feel guilty if your DD has problems in later life..... as I am going to.

My DD is now 24 weeks old. She was weaned at around 19 weeks due to reflux. She was drinking 5/6 9oz bottles a day but throwing most of it back up. After speaking to HV's who just said "she's gaining weight she's fine" GP's who said "we don't medicate for reflux" and my mother who said "we gave you food at 16 weeks as that was the norm then" I went and saw a different doc who had a conversation with me.

She watched DD interact with things, made her sit on the floor unaided and gave her something she could put in her mouth without choking (I must say I watched this part intently ready to give the heimlick {sp?} ) She then said developmentally she's ready and if she's as sick as you say give her 1 feed in the morning of 2 spoonfulls of babyrice.

DD hated babyrice, tried it spat it out and clamped her mouth shut. So I decided she wasn't ready yet. Cue another week of throwing up (posting on MN for advice - all of which i'd already done) and off we go back to docs who says ok, give her something bland (potatoes apparently) I'm no good at knowing whats best so she pointed me towards the Hipp babyjars. I can't remember the first one but I know it had potatoe in it. She loved it and that was where we stayed for 3 weeks. Same food 1 feed a morning (jars lasted me 3 days)

Now she is on 2 feeds in the day. Her sickness has stopped and I feel we did a good thing for her HOWEVER I am very much still in the wait till 6 months camp and was utterly disguisted (although I had no right to be really) at a friend who was about to feed her 14 week old child rusks in a bottle followed by apple & pear pudding straight off the bat - And she has coeliac (sp) so is just begging for trouble. She was one of those "I had it, did no harm" but it obviously did.

Mummyt - if your still reading congrats cos this got longer than I expected. Listen to lulu and VS (even though I also think VS can come across pretty erm... stern in her posts ) they know what they are talking about.
Also consult with as many people as you can and not just people who have the answer you want to hear.

At the end of the day enjoy your baby and keep your fingers crossed.

[idontbelieveit]

Purplepolecat - re "I really have no idea or particular opinion about the iron debate."

Why did you post the information then?

"Lets not just trade research. I am a researcher myself and know full well you can always find evidence one way or the other. I also know there are often political reasons why some advice gets taken up and circulated (I'm not saying this is necessarily the case here)"

• If you don't think there's any value in discussing research then why did you post research backing your opinions? I'm not being political, I'm just trying to inform people reading this weaning thread and give them access to some relevant information. if you want to post links to information that you think is relevant you're more than welcome.

Trading research as you put it is a very useful way to form opinions and establish facts about this difficult and emotive issue.

[tori32]

Got to go and express now anyway! TTFN

[LuckySalem]

Oh Mummyt (the stuff you actually "asked" for advice on) stay away from gluten, salt and wheat as much as poss as this is apparently what causes the most allergies etc.

Do everything slowly if your DC is happy on just porridge, stick to that until they are 6 months. I'm trying to do that mostly. DD so far has had carrot, potatoe and banana and that's all the tastes i've allowed her as I feel they are quite bland but different enough for her to enjoy them. IYKWIM.

[mummy2t]

i have listened to advice and as i have said i was going to wait until 26 weeks i had no intentions of starting to wean. i do feel that some posters have been rather rude to me rather than just give their advice, i have been basically made to feel guilty

[mummy2t]

thanks lucky, i have just been doing the milk based rice, quite sloppy and i intend on only doing that for as long as poss, at mo he is still feeding regular day and night but he is more settled and happy and not throwing up!

[LuckySalem]

Mummyt - In all honesty it sounds like what DD had. She didn't just possette (Sp) as everyone was saying all babies do, she'd throw up 1/3 - 1/2 a bottle at a time, however giving her that one meal seemed to "line" her stomach and the milk stayed down. We are now able to just give her 5 8ox feeds a day and she is settled.

Like I said - If you feel she is ready and she is showing all the signs. Make sure you've spoken to proffessionals (that's what they are there for) and take it REALLY slow!

[mummy2t]

yeah it sound the same, he is bring back most of bottle, hence hungry again and the cycle goes on. i am going to leave him as he is is as he is quite happy now, i am not going to say " wean early cause i dont believe everyone should, had arguement with sis in law as she has perfectly happy baby feeding by the text book and she has started weaning at 16 weeks ( she thought that was 4 months ) even though little was prem!

[LuckySalem]

Yeh see - your the same as me I was sooo at my friend weaning at 16 weeks when she had an allergy anyway..... [sigh] One of the main reasons I agreed to wean was that none of my or DP's family have food allergies.

[mummy2t]

yes i do agree not to wean before 17 weeks and to wait as long as poss which is what i did, i wanted to get to 26 weeks, never gave it a second thought that we wouldnt but really didnt see any other option in our circumstances, i am just abit upset at how some comments have been but across, ( not u ) e.g if my ds's have tummy trouble it will be all my fault! who say's?? i have friend who has ibs who was weaned at nearly 6 months so i have just found out. my OP post was not whether i should or shouldnt wean and really thats what most posts have answered. i think there are a awful lot of parents out there that are weaning earlier to get the little ones to sleep though, which i find a disgrace

[LuckySalem]

Alot of people wean to sleep and yes its Yuck... everytime you mention weaning you have to be prepared for people to tell you not to... I understand the reasons and that's why i'll always try and say not to if you can help it.

The problem is this is a public forum and alot of people won't ask a question they'll do a search and see what the general consensus is. So the general consensus needs to be that weaning before 6 months is bad.

I don't agree with mother knows best on things that could harm a baby either now or in later life. I believe in researching your opinion and checking with professionals not just people on the web. (Apologies if I offend by saying that. lol)

You also need to be aware of the dangers and sit and ask yourself could you live with that if it happened? I decided that yes I could because DD was SO unhappy, if she had just been a little narked - waking all through the night, constantly wanting a bottle I'd have coped but she was constantly drenched from the amount of sick that came up, the wet made her exzema worse and she was generally unhappy so I decided there had to be soemthing better.

Anyways.... I hope I've explained why you get harsh comments and tbh, if your DS is ill in later life it could well be your fault and you need to understand that fact as well.

[mummy2t]

as alot of posts on here are quite nice but they end in if ds is ill later in life it could be my fault. how will i ever know this? am i going to spend the rest of my days thinking if ds gets ibs i have done this to him? he may well end up with anyway, as my friend did. i have spoken to g.p and h.v before i made my decision, like you i decided to go ahead but i wont feel guilty later in ds's life because there is no way at all to know if i have given him ibs through early weaning
if i was weaning earlier than 17 weeks i would expect the uproar, some posts have been quite offensive, i will be careful what i ask about next time lol

[chipmonkey]

My MIL weaned all her children at 8 weeks and they all have weight issues, BIL in particular is very obese, has had heart surgery at age 42, both BILs and dh suffer from sleep apnoea. but it was 8 weeks so much more clear-cut.

I don't think health professionals necessarily know best either. The paediatrician who looks at your child today, will in all likelihood be retired or dead by the time your child reaches the age when the problems become manifest. And I doubt if all patients with IBS aree asked at what age the were weaned and if they were asked, many would be unable to answer. So the connection is not made.

And I would trust a baby food manufacturer about as far as I would throw him, these are the same people who put "even closer to breastmilk" on the side of a formula carton and bombard health professionals with dubious marketing, No thanks

mummy2t, when my eldest 2 were babies, the advice was to wean from 4 months and all babies should have tasted solids by 6 months. If you do feel happy to proceed, I would stick with basic fruit and veg purees but take it slowly and avoid berry fruits and kiwi. I do think rice can have a bloating effect and it tastes like nothing, just a milk thickener when you think about it.

[seeker]

The issue here seems to me to be really simple. The current advice is to leave weaning to 6 months. Ok, it might change in the future - but at the omoment it its 6 months. The is no advantage in weaning early. It doesn;t help with sleep or anything and there is the possibility that it migh be harmful to some babies.So why do it? You'll probably be OK waening early - but just in case your baby is one of the ones it causes problems for then why not wait?

Just because a baby is grabbing at the steering wheel of the car and showing interest in the speedometer doesn't mean he's ready to learn to drive.

[chipmonkey]

Mine were all driving at 3.

[mummy2t]

i agree seeker, but my child wasnt grabbing at my food etc etc, he was just hungry after his feeds, i had to feed very regular, he was waking a couple of time in the night, i uppped the amount in his bottles and he was taking so much he'd bring the whole lot back. i offer afew spoons of the rice after his morning bottle, he gladly takes its and swallows it, no spitting out gagging etc. i understand he could have been going through a growth spurt and thats why i waited afew weeks before starting the rice. dont get me wrong he is still feeding regular every 3 hours give or take sometimes 2 but he is alot more settled and happy. i wanted to wait until 26 weeks, and i never thought i'd have the issue of having to start early. If everyone else can get to 26 weeks they great, i think thats brill, unfortunately, my bubba didnt and i am not going to be made to feel by some posters ( not you ) on here i am spoon feeding rat poison to him. i keep asking the question what would you do in my positio but only VS has answered by saying to try BLW eg giving steamed carrot, see what happens which i might add i am seriously going to look into BLW. no one else has said what to doinstead of what i have done. if any one has any ideas i would love to hear them

[lulumama]

did you try the hungrier baby formula? do you feed to a routine or responsively?

also good to remember with babies in general, that they have hungry days and not so hungry days.

have a look at the babyledweaning blog www.babyledweaning.com it has lots of useful advice , information and recipes and can help take a lot of the stress out of weaning

thank you to bergentulip and yvonnek for thinking i am so sensible

this is a contentious topic, as has been seen and i think even those that have posted with strong language have done so from the best intentions.

[lulumama]

how did you know he was hungry after feeds? there are more reasons than hunger for a baby to be unsettled... e.g wind, colic, teething pain, boredom, overstimulted, over tired etc...

can be really hard sometimes to know what they want!

[JuniorJ]

I know I am delayed in this conversation, I am a first time mum and to be am currently sick of all the do's and don'ts with your baby but as soon as you have a problem with you baby no one really seems to have a strong opinion then about things.
I have known mums to give baby rice at 12 weeks and their children have been Ok, I will give my child baby rice when I feel he needs it and therefore I belive you should do the same.
If we followed all the rules and guidelines to the line we wouldn't take our children anywhere for fear of not following a guidline.
An example I have had a few problems with my 11 week old and he has had colic along with other things and a number of doctors that have seem have said if we could sleep our babies on their tummies then we wouldn't see as much colic as there was no where near the amount of colic before the research into sleeping babies on their tummies.
I have to say idon'tbeliveit i think you sound like another one of those do gooders that cause many of us alot of issues we all have opinions but your sounds a little forceful

[lackaDAISYcal]

juniorj.....12 weeks is far too young to wean a baby .

[lulumama]

you might not know for 10 , 20 or more years if your friends babies weaned at 12 weeks have been damaged in any way

do you really think that the NHS and the Department of health are wrong in advising absolutly no solid food before 17 weeks? and that the recommended weaning age is 26 weeks.

if it takes around 40 weeks for a baby to develop in the womb, why, 12 weeks later, would they be ready for food?

if your baby is more comfy on their tummy and it helps relieve colic, then fine, as long as you are aware that it is advisable for otehr reasons for them to sleep on their backs...

how will you know your baby is ready at 12 weeks? have you read the signs of readiness for food on this thread?

i don;'t understand why you would choose to ignore guidelines

no-one is saying follow them blindly, but make an informed decision, rather than thinking it is a nanny state and ignoring the rules for that reason