chewing

[jane1995]

ive started weaning DS as hes six month now, but ive been pureeing his food so its as runny as possible because im scared if there's lumps hell choke, how lumpy is it safe to be for him? I see babys the same age as him holding and eating milky bars and I just dont understand how they chew it up!?

At six months they can have solid normal food as long as they feed themself. A baby is just as likely to choke on purree food as on solid food. There gums can do allot, other then raw carrots and whole nuts they can consume anything

Their gums are rock hard as all their teeth are underneath waiting to come out! They can chew with their gums really well - just try letting your lo chew your finger for a bit to see :-)

As pp has said, they can (and should) have finger food from 6 months. You could try some steamed carrot or some banana to begin with. Choking is possible on any food - finger foods don't make them more likely to choke. If you are worried though, maybe go on a baby first aid course - try your local family centre as they often run them.

Btw giving a 6 month old milky bars is not a good idea - far too much sugar, and very little nutritional benefit! So don't worry about not doing that

thanks for the advice I will definitely look up a course to put my mind at rest, think im just worried incase he wont know how to chew and just swallows a big lump, I tried mashing pasta before and it was just in little pieces so would this be totally fine for him? and with the carrot how big would I need to make it for him to eat himself? im the only one in my family with a baby and hes my first so I dont get alot of advice :p & I know, he can have his first chocolate when hes old enough to ask for it haha! most people seem to be giving it so young, I knew a woman who gave her baby a milky bar at 11 weeks old :o

(the smiley face was meant t be )

Wen they feed themselves they learn how to chew and swallow - but they do often gag, so you should be aware of that. It's not the same as choking - gagging is noisy, choking is silent. Gagging is actually a good thing as it's their protection mechanism against choking. They will often gag as they learn how to move food around in their mouths, but it will get less and less. The trick is not to panic if they gag, and just leave them to it. My ds would gag a bit till the bit of food came forward, and then happily try again (a bit gross really!)

For things like carrot, I would do batons that are a bit longer than your baby's fist, so that when he's got hold if it there is still plenty sticking out to chomp on. You can get a crinkle cutter for a couple of pounds (I got one from Amazon) - crinkle cut veg is handy for gripping when they are little. Avocado is another good one to start with, as is ripe pear. Steamed or poached apple also works - not raw apple in the early days as it is a bit too hard IMO. HTH!