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Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

Feeling overwhelmed

13 replies

Lola19 · 03/02/2022 09:06

Hello I’m a first time mum and feeling abit overwhelmed at the thought of starting weaning. I have a 6 month old son and so far have tried him with baby porridge (MILs advice) which he will put in his mouth and then screw his face up. Don’t think he swallows much of it if any! I really want to give him healthy choices. I mashed up some carrots the other day with a fork but it was so lumpy and he didn’t seem to enjoy it.
Also on a side note my mother in law and my own mother keep trying to force rusks on me despite me telling them the HV was totally against them because of sugar. I also explained I want to start on less sugary foods to start with but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears as they keep harping on about bloody rusks and my MIL even bought me some… really boils my blood lol (sorry just wanted to vent that part)

But if anyone could give me any advice on what veg they started babies with? I’ve seen people mention toast and omelettes etc for 6 months olds on here but how can they eat those things without teeth?
Did you mix your veg with milk? And should I be giving him water? If people could just tell me a little bit about what they started with?! Thanks in advance!

OP posts:
thisisit53 · 03/02/2022 09:18

www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/weaning-and-feeding/babys-first-solid-foods/

Articles like this might help. Try blending mash, broccoli, pear. You can buy the little jars of baby food in supermarkets

Pacidove · 03/02/2022 11:13

Ah those bloody rusks!! Stick with your gut feeling on that one - they are completely unnecessary! I'd also put the baby porridge down and practice your best smiling and nodding at MIL whilst doing your own thing.

Babies don't actually need teeth to eat, their jaw strength can be surprisingly strong and can be used to mash food. Also remember that breastmilk and formula will be the main source of nutrition until they are one so solids at this point is more about learning skills than consumption.

Avocado is a great first vegetable as you can offer spears, mash some one to a piece of toast (cut the toast into strips about 2 fingers wide) and also mash some onto a spoon and hold it in the air for him to grab. Steaming broccoli and cauliflower florets is also good, my son loved steamed courgette batons too.

At this age it's also a good idea to offer really resistive foods that they're not going to consume much of but will really help trigger the chew reflex and to start making a mental map of the mouth. Pork ribs, chicken drumsticks with the pin bone removed, mango pit, corn on the cob - it will really help in the long run.

There is no need to give water, if you do it should be no more than 2oz per day until 12months as you don't want to replace the nutrients from breastmilk/formula which he should still be drinking.

Lola19 · 03/02/2022 15:34

Ah that’s great advice @Pacidove and thank you for the article @thisisit53 will have a read!

What sort of thing should I give him for breakfast if the porridge is not good? I already know it’s not exactly giving him much, if any nutrition… I will try avocado on some toast maybe once he gets more used to the puréed veg? I tried him with puréed sweet potato today, again not sure he swallowed much but he didn’t seem that keen yet! He kept screwing up his little face as if to say Yuck!

OP posts:
thisisit53 · 03/02/2022 16:34

Maybe mix fruit into porridge? Pancake Yoghurt Banana

Pacidove · 03/02/2022 16:37

It's unlikely he would be saying 'yuck'! It's more of a 'oooo this is a really strange new texture'

Have you tried any of the allergens yet? Yoghurt is a really good breakfast option but you'd need to make sure he doesn't have a dairy allergy. Once that's clear, you can stir in some thinned nut butter (look for sugar and salt free) which will boost nutrition and also add allergen exposure. Chia jam is another good thing to stir in to yoghurts. Put 100g soft fruit (strawberry/raspberry/blueberry) into a pan with 2 tbsp of water, let simmer a little bit then mash and add 1tbsp chia seeds and cook for a minute more until the mixture begins to thicken. This is also great on toast.

Eggs are another great breakfast option but another of the top allergens so be on the look out the first time you offer them. A great way is to make a thin omelette and cut into strips and offer those. I also like making egg muffins with different veggies and cheese in. 3 eggs mixed with any combination of veggies makes 4 muffins - just bake in the oven at 180C for about 18mins

ALonelyGreyCouch · 03/02/2022 16:42

I think at only six months old then you don't really need to worry too much about introducing all three meals yet. I would start with an evening meal when you have yours and slowly work up to another meal, and then another. I remember being told that food before one is just for fun, and they get all their nutrients from milk.

Kopenbergglass · 03/02/2022 16:45

As a side note, I think rusks taste quite nice with a cuppa and I reckon that most of the ones that DC were given (by relatives who raised kids in the 70s) were eaten by me.

As for weaning, you're over thinking it. Can you're DC put a teething toy in their mouth themselves? If yes them plonk some solid food out in front of them and let then get on with it. They will play with it mostly, but that's the point.

As for purees, cook some fruit or veg, whizz it with a blender and then spoon feed it to them. You can give them all finger food, all purees or a minute (we did a mixture every meal or puree and sometimes they could feed themselves).

BurrosTail · 03/02/2022 16:57

I noticed it’s important to smile when the baby tries something new, they look at you for a confirmation if the food is nice or not, and if you keep smiling they’re more likely to get over the first shivers.

Mwnci123 · 03/02/2022 17:04

Mine liked sweet potato mash at that age. They chewed happily on broccoli from quite an early age too, and liked roast veg.
I think it's quite common to have grandmothers pushing rusks- my mother tried to persuade me too. They are very sugary though, you're right. Apparently baby porridge is really good for iron though.
It's a sort of worrying/ exciting time, weaning. This is the classic advice that I wasn't personally able to take when my own were that small- try to relax and enjoy seeing your baby try a variety of new things without fretting too much about whether you're doing it perfectly.

elbea · 10/02/2022 18:55

Have a look at the solid starts app OP, it’s free and has every food you can think of with pictures and videos of how to serve it at each age. It’s so helpful!

Feeling overwhelmed
Newuser82 · 10/02/2022 19:49

Have a look at sr nutrition on Instagram if you have it. She also has a book. Really useful

Notbluepeter · 10/02/2022 20:19

It takes ages for them to get used to moving foods around their mouths. Which can result in some funny faces.
Which is why purees are good for trying new tastes. I bought a mini blender and pureed loads of steamed or roasted veg combinations. My babies favourite was roasted and puréed butternut squash. Or salmon and quinoa blitzed. Porridge is fine, I make it with water than add some nut butter to give it some fat and protein content and puréed fruit (ripe bananas are usually a hit) then add breast milk/ formula to cool. You don't want to introduce cow's milk too early. Lacoste is a really hard sugar for babies to digest. Even for lots of adults actually!

Cormoran · 21/02/2022 04:00

Go the French way. In France, baby's first food is a selection of soups. Soups are a great way to introduce a variety of flavours, and you can increase or decrease liquid depending if you want if very thin or thick.

Leek and potato soup
Carrot and pumpkin soup
and so on

First veggies are better braised than steamed. Take a small pot, add a few cm of water and the diced vegetable you have chosen, say a carrot. You cook the carrot at low heat for 15 min, making sure there is always some liquid in the pot, so you might have to add it from time to time. Then you blend the vegetables and its water .

The first thing French mother are told is never to give something we wouldn't eat ourself, so make good food. You must avoid salt until they are one, but you can load on fresh herbs, butter, olive oil, spices.
A pumpkin roasted in the oven with garlic and olive oil (do not blend the garlic, toss it or it eat yourself) at high heat until it caramelises and is so tender you can blend it or just use the back of a fork to mush it.
Prepare apple sauce, again cubed apple or that super ripe pear nobody will eat, boiled in a bit of water and blend together. Banana is easier to eat poached, so again simmer a small pot of water, slice the banana into it, cook for half a minute, and blend/fork it .

For breakfast, it doesn't have to be sweet. You can blend some rolled oats and cook them in the morning with a bit of cinnamon and a cooked fruit.

When it will come to fish and meat, boil the fish such as cod. Put the frozen piece of fish in a pot of water, bring it to boil, when fish floats, it is ready. Keep the water, and add a spoonful or two to the fish in the plate, with some melted butter and chopped parsley. If a filet or a sole, cook in plenty of butter in a pan, a few minutes per side.

@Lola19 you are on the right track. You are focusing on what to give your baby and want to give healthy options. This is what will guide you. Avoid industrial food because it tastes totally different to the real thing. The pasteurisation, high heat and other industrial processes gives it a processed food taste which your baby might prefer and will refuse the original vegetable . Pouches also have weird combinations such as spinach and blueberries and who eats that together? They also tend to be sweet-based, so a lot of apple sauce, carrot and sweetcorn.

Avoid the crappy baby junk food such as the melty puffs, baby crisps, veggie stick , baby cereal bar and .... the rusks.

You can make broth to either cook some baby pasta and rice in it, then serve it with a bit of butter or olive oil (a few gr) and real parmesan cheese. You can prepare risotto with zucchini, pea, pumpkin, ..... with parmesan and butter.
This combination of wet and solid is perfect to teach to chew, and then you can start preparing some stew with lentils, hummus, an omelette or crepes (the French ones have no sugar 250 gr flour, 3 eggs, 500 milk, 1 tbls oil, pinch of salt, blend) .
You can use the baby fork from quite early on.

IN France, we don't have the debate between puree/blw, it is quite weird to be focusing on the mean the food reaches the mouth instead of focusing on the food. You don't have to pick. Preparing soups or some creams and puree will allow you to offer the biggest variety of vegetables and in France, soups are eaten a couple of times per week for life.
Salads can be introduced quite early, around the age of 1 or even earlier if interested. . A tomato diced in very tiny pieces, with chopped parsley and olive oil. A cooked green bean cut very tiny, mixed with tomatoes , a bit of crushed feta cheese or some pieces of fish.
For the meat, first chop an onion and let if brown in a pan at low heat, cut a tomato, and push it to one side of the pan, add a bit of butter/oil and cook the meat you want, already sliced very tiny, it will cook in a few minutes, and at the last minute add half a glass of water to detach all the juices and let it mix with the veggies. This way, the meat will not be dry. Or prepare meatloaf and halfway through the cooking time, fill the dish with 3 cm of milk and a few spoons of oil, and let if cook at least 30 min. We coat the meatloaf with French mustard.

Focus on the food, be adventurous at the supermarket and try all the vegetables you can.
From Asparagus (fill a pan with 2 cm of water, cut the end of the asparagus , and with a peeler, remove the fist layer of the asparagus as too fibrous, let the water evaporate and the first time, only give the tip to try, and use the stem blended in a soup or risotto) to Zucchini (cut them lengthwise, as thin as you can, lay on a papered baking tray, brush with olive oil, and for a few minute at very high heat in oven, when they start to brown, they will so soft, they melt in the mouth) .

Think about what you want your son to eat growing up and cook that, adapting it to his ability to chew and swallow .

I can give you more ideas and more recipes if you want them.

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