Anyone else weaning at 14 wks?

[sleepfinder]

My DS has been taking milk only during daytime hours since week 9 - and recently he has been guzzling so much I think that he's going to explode with so much fluid.

So going on the advice of my mother, I tried a little mashed banana after his morning bottle and he absolutely shrieked with joy. After a few days of this, he is now opening his mouth to accept the spoon and swiping at the spoon with his fist (he's not getting it yet though).

No adverse effects poop wise, sleep wise, mood wise etc. Sleeping well through the nights, napping normally and not guzzling huge quantities of milk before bed.

Anyone else on a similar route?

DS is 5 (6 in Feb) and the advice was 4-6 months. DD is 2 and the advice was 6 months.

Ironically, of course, it's the DS (DS3) who was weaned at 6 months who looks to be shaping up as the most severely autistic.

The advice to wean at 12 weeks is certainly not recent (that's not to say some HVs and others were not giving it out as recently as yesterday!). There was a brief period when it was 3 mths, but IIRC this was in the 1970s. It has been 4 mths, then 4-6 mths, and it has been (in the UK) 6 mths since 2003.

I don't think there are any studies that work out a statistical risk, because early weaning is associated with so many ill-effects, some less worrying than others, and some babies are certainly more susceptible to them. For instance, there seems to be a hereditary element to inflammatory bowel conditions, and it would seem sensible not to build up the risks by early weaning if you have this in your family, and because we know that early weaning is simply not physiological ie we know the gut is not prepared for foreign foods until about 6 mths.

The evidence is pretty clear cut: there are no ill effects in growth or health of 'delaying' weaning to 6 mths, and babies who were weaned at 6 mths rather than 4 mths have less gastric infection. The longer term effects are not so well studied, apart from the sometimes more dramatic and more easily spotted effects of very early weaning (see my post below on heart disease and there is also evidence that v. early weaning can cause coeliac disease) .

It's not a surprise at all that a paediatric consultant would not know any of this, or would not be able to give good guidance on everyday issues like weaning. They deal with sick babies, not healthy ones. I could tell you quite a few stories about paediatric consultants not knowing the most basic things about well babies and normal healthy digestion.

aaaah, that's me being a memory-afflicted moron, it WAS four months (I have checked me records!) but of course that's still v different to 6 months!

i am well aware that this is a public forum and i may not hear things that i like, but it is also a democracy, i have listened to your arguments against early weaning and taken on board your opinions. of course 8 weeks is very early (and he could hold his own head. he is a very strong solid baby, who's head circumfrence was38cm at birth) he has maintained his centile (the 91st) throughout and his development has been fab. all i'm saying is that other people do have other ways of parenting and perhaps you should keep an open mind

Sleepfinder - it was no problem sticking my neck out by mentioning what I did with my children. I hope your weaning experience is trouble-free and fun!

Everyone on the other side of the argument - apologies, I have not read all your comments. It is quite upsetting to be told that I have damaged my children, even though I do not believe I have for one minute. Or at least, if I have, I did so following current recommendations, as they stood at that time.

My mother (like Sleepfinder, also a paediatrician) has spent the last 10 years arguing with me over best practice, as I have endeavoured to follow current guidelines and she has argued the case as she knows it. Now, listening to you people tell me I have damaged my children, I am beginning to understand how my mother felt.

I do still agree with you that current recommendations are probably best followed, but I do not agree that anything else is tantamount to injuring your child. Please, all of you with children under 4, remember you are talking to many women with children older than that who did things differently in the belief that they were doing the right thing, and it is a little hard to understand how suddenly, it is seen as so dreadfully wrong.

Oh and I have just seen tiktok say paediatricians deal only with sick babies. Not so. My mother worked in baby clinics, so her opinions were based on healthy normal children (but still out of date, I acknowledge that, but don't say so in front of her!)

i agree DF. thats what has upset me so much. my son is v precious to me and i resent being villified by people who don't know our circumstances. thank you for the debate, we all do what we feel is best for our children and sleepfinder, it was no problem, as you can probably guess this is something i feel quite strongly about and i have a right to raise my dc how i see fit, you have the same. good luck and if you want to talk just put a yell out for me
merry christmas all

and btw hotmulledwinemama, i resent a stranger telling me that i have "fucked up my bundle of joy" research shows that 95%of eating disorders can be linked to parents making a big deal about food, what is right and wrong etc. how fucked up is that?

and i'm not saying that by postponing weaning you will give your child eating disorders, i am saying that all evidence can be argued against. really am going now

Oh, these early weaning threads are always so emotive. They are up there with bf vs bottle, smacking & is Cod a goodie or a badie!!!
We can all relay our own experiences, but there is no denying that all the most up to date evidence suggests it is better to leave weaning as late as you can.
I doubt shovelling down a bit of banana is the end of the world or likely to be hugely allergenic. But at the end of the day its not recommended.
So merrylisemass, while I can understand that you did what you thought was best, surely you can understand that it would be a bit odd if in the face of extensive research, we were all saying "yeah, go for it"?
For example, at 8 weeks I put my DS to sleep on his tummy following extensive consultation with my HV & GP, but I would never recommend that anyone else do that without taking expert advice & being aware of all the associated risks.

I think, df, that it is one thing to wean early b/c that is the current advice at the time - as is the case w/ mums of older children - and quite another to blatantly disregard current recommedations and research as sleepfinder is doing.

in my defence i did say to sleepfinder that she needs to be v careful about what she feeds her dc, and to seek advice from hv. i also said that i did extensive research and took things v slowly. i understand that people feel so strongly about this subject, but i feel that some of the posts were quite rude and offensive. i would never presume to tell someone else that they have fucked up their child or how to raise them, i merely offered my story and was rounded on quite aggresively

Dumbledoresfairy - I know there are paeds who work in the community. They are still primarily dealing with babies who are sick - or who are thought to be sick. Their expertise (mostly) lies with sick babies. I can't think this is me being controversial

Most paediatricians - yes, most - are not knowledgable about the nutrition of healthy babies and how to support it.

That's ok! I don't expect them to be.

My only gripe is when they don't know they don't know!

Don't really want to start nit picking merrielissiemas, but I suppose it is because you suggested that you go with what you think is best & with your instinct.
Sometimes what we think is best - is not necessarily the case. Babies do die from being fed the wrong stuff. The poor little soul who was given mash & gravy & died of a salt overdose springs immediately to mind.
For what its worth I think some of the wordings of posts were aggressive - but that's a diffferent subject altogether!

Exactly Bugsy.

People do what they were recommended to do at the time - well whats wrong with that? Nothing.

That's not to say that current recommendations shouldnt be the the sum total advice and information we are giving out NOW. IF your baby has some medical condition that may mean they require different plan on weaning - but that should be under strict medical advice - not from a bunch of loons on the internet

I honestly dont understand why folk cannot grasp this concept.

Its not a criticism of anyone else who were told otherwise - how could it be?

Those that choose to ignore the current recommendations - well, I think they are fair game

tiktok, I have no argument with what you say. My mother might though!

I second what merrylissimas said about recommending sleepfinder spoke to her HV before weaning early - I did say that in my first post I think. I also agree with merrylissiemas in that what I find upsetting is not that people do things differently now, and want to state their case to Sleepfinder, but that some of them feel they can make emotive statements or are downright rude, suggesting we have harmed our babies.

merrielissiemass - what relevance is it to maturity of the digestive tract to the fact that a baby can hold their head up and are solid in relation to early weaning? - I can't see the link.

Both my dd's were big (well for me I'm 5.4) 8.10 and 9lb at birth and could hold their heads etc - dd2 is nearly walking and is 10 months. Dd1 was weaned at 24 weeks and dd2 at 27 weeks.

I just can't see why people wean babies earlier than 17 weeks when the research states that until then babies don't make amalyse which is needed to break down starch - so the very earliest anyone should wean is 17 weeks - surely?

My understanding is that by weaning earlier then there is a higher liklihood of having 'digestive' problems than if you wait to nearer the 6 month mark. I just can't understand why people want to wean IMHO way tooooo early.

Of course, we all have a wide variety of parenting styles - and no-one is right - different styles for different children.

However, when there is research which says that doing something may well cause harm - then why on earth do it.

If a baby was being bf - you'd have no idea how much milk they were having (I have no idea if sleepfinder is ff or bf as she just says milk) but babies often just want to guzzle when having a growth spurt etc - it's normal!

actually, I said bottle,

and where is the starch in a banana?!?

coleac disease is from wheat and starch
Crohn's disease is highly considered to be hereditary...

but honestly now I'm completely and utterly bored by this now so I'm off, to mash a banana...

yes, there is starch in banana.
by the way, it is possible to be allergic to bananas - I am highly allergic.

I am amazed that in the face of all the evidence to the contrary, you are so cavalier about giving your child food. Banana may not contain startch, but it is well known to have a constipating effect, people can be very allergic to it and...oh, why on earth am I bothering - you're clearly set on your way being the right way and nothing I or anyone else can say will alter your opinion.

You've had some excellent evidence-based advice on this thread. If you choose to ignore it, I would say on your head be it, but sadly, it's on your baby's head - I think this is why this is such an emotive topic

So emotive that I didn't spell starch correctly - pshaw!

er, there is starch in banana
believe me, I know bananas. we have history
evil yellow fkrs

[stands corrected]

yes, quite.
I must say I find the idea of giving a baby mashed banana twelve weeks before the medical guidelines suggest giving solid food quite frankly horrifying.