Can I ask some questions about BLW?

[samstown]

DS is 5 months and at the moment does not really seem to have much interest in food, loves his milk to much! He is bottlefed and has 5 bottles of 7oz a day, so I could give him 8oz bottles before needing to think about food. The nearer that we get to reaching 6 months without food, the more tempted I am by BLW. However, everyone I know seems to be going down the puree route and so I have a few questions:

-Is it best to start off with just steamed veg, eg. carrot sticks, brocoli florets, or do you go straight into 'whatever mum and dad are having' (minus salt and the obvious foods to avoid).
-What do you do when you go out. My friends who are currently weaning use the pouches or just a little container of puree and feed this. I have heard that BLW can get very messy so what do you do if you are round someone else's house - do you just choose less messy foods?
-Finally, the WHO say that children can 'eat pureed, mashed and semi-solid foods beginning at 6 months, from 8 months, most infants can eat 'finger' foods, and from 12 months, most children can eat the same types of foods as consumed by the rest of the family.' I suppose what I am asking here is is BLW 'safe' and is it ok for children to be eating in this way from such a young age.

As I said no one I know seems to be doing BLW so I really want to be confident in my decision if I do decide to do it!
Also any recommendations for ideas for foods (particualrly starter foods) would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!

This is the official NHS advice. It probably is best to start with a few sticks of soft fruit or veg from your meal, just to get him used to the idea of feeding himself and moving things around the mouth. Just watch your baby, you will soon notice he starts to chew things, then clamp down and bite off chunks with his gums, then he will get a pincer grip - all these new developments will allow him to eat more tricky types of food. As for eating out, you could take a packed lunch (breadstick, chunk of cheese, dried fruit, boiled egg etc.) or you can usually order something for yourself and pick off the baby-friendly bits for him. It is messy, but nothing a couple of baby wipes can't sort out. The bit I find most difficult is avoiding salt because most cafe/restaurant meals are packed full of it :(

I BLW DS, started when he was 6 months and a day. I gave him anything (but not soft eggs, salt, honey or sea food), cut up small, from the off. He was great. I fully intend to do the same with DD in a few months time. i went to a weaning talk by my HV today and she is very much in favour of the BLW at 6 months "anything and everything, cut it up and keep and eye on baby" approach. As for going out - side order of peas, bread and butter and bits off adult plates tended to do the trick. Messy yes, a bit - but have you seen the mess a baby can make with a couple of spoons of pureed veg?

I always order a side veg or starter with DD in mind. I also choose my main considering if theres anything DD can eat off it. Unsalted chips are great finger foods and very easy to get at most places. I also bring my own rice cakes. And antibacterial wipes to clean the table surface before you start. And a bib and your own sippy cup.

It gets really easy once they have the pincer grip. It's 8.5mo for DD. They can pretty much pick up anything and shove it in their mouths from that point.

I don't worry too much about the salt since I don't eat out a lot. If I do, I'd probably pack a lunch. Things you would pack in any kids lunch box basically.

Thanks for the replies. I actually went to a weaning talk today at my local children's centre, all ready to ask at the end what they thought about BLW and it turns out the whole thing was based around it as that is what they are now promoting! So feel more confident about it now... sort of!

My DD2 is 7 months and we're doing blw and really enjoying it. Much easier than all the purees I did with DD1.

When eating out we've found that she can usually have something from our plates. Places with a salad bar are great- breadsticks, pepper, cucumber etc. We usually also take some snacks with us, rice cakes and chopped fruit or veg, and the same if I'm going to someone's house. I save messier stuff for home!

We started with plain veg, but moved on very quickly to a range of food and now she eats almost everything that we do. I do put a bit more thought into meals, and sometimes she takes ages- but overall I still think it's easier than purees.

Oh and although she gagged quite often at first, she seemed to get the hang of food very quickly and I can't remember the last time she gagged or looked the slightest bit like choking.