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Weaning

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

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Original poster

B L W..the synopsis PLEASE

21 replies

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:13

hello....

i realise this is rather cheeky,seeing as there are hundreds of blw threads*,but i would really appreciate some one bringing me up to speed on the central ideas behind BLW?...

dd is six months

i read them enthralled and inspired....but need a bit of background before i get so engrossed in the minutaie (?)

thanks

OP posts:

AitchTwoOh · 07/02/2008 20:16

do you eat fairly decent food? is it unsalted? plenty of fruit and veg?

then give them what you're having.

start with chip-shapes of carrot, cucumber etc. lots of babies really like roast veg. lots of babies also like spag bol.

LaDiDaDi · 07/02/2008 20:17

Wait til 6 months.
Give you dc finger foods from the off.
Watch the mess fun!

I would really reccommend it. Much easier than faffing with purees, just give them what your eating.

Aitch does a blog but I'm afraid I don't know the address to do a link.

AitchTwoOh · 07/02/2008 20:18

www.babyledweaning.com ladidadi

Original poster

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:22

thanks,

couple more quicky questions

(quick but not challenging )...why?..as in what are the benefits (god i feel cheeky not rooting about for this info)

when for meat? dairy?

and aitch...can you please linky me your blog

OP posts:

ruddynorah · 07/02/2008 20:22

main idea is being guided (led) by your baby as to when they're ready for solid food. so, when they're physically capable of picking the food up and eating it then they are ok to have it. it will take a while before they can eat much because their body won't allow them to eat much. hence early days is mostly just sucking, nibbling etc.

so the best bit is, you don't need to do much other than put food in front of them. no puree, no spoons, no fancy weaning guides. just watch that you're presenting a good diet, nothing high in salt, and keep offering as much milk as they want.

Original poster

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:23

a ha!

OP posts:

LaDiDaDi · 07/02/2008 20:24

I knew that you'd get here before me Aitch!

ruddynorah · 07/02/2008 20:25

why- because it helps avoid over feeding your baby. it opens up more food choices to them. it's about showing your baby real food not puree. they don't need puree at 6 months, they can handle proper food. they enjoy the different textures and colours and the whole process of learning to eat. feeding them with a spoon by passes a lot of this.

Original poster

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:25

oh blimey...just went to your site...think ill be there a while...im sure itll answer all my questions ...HOORAH

MWAH
X

OP posts:

Original poster

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:26

thanks r.nora too

OP posts:

AitchTwoOh · 07/02/2008 20:28

strictly speaking the benefits are unproven. the logic is that many children use food as a control so if you never take control away from them then will they have that rebellion?
also if they're in charge of intake then you'd think they'd not overeat. for me, that's the amazing thing, seeing 2 year old dd enjoy half a piece of carrot cake and leave the rest cos she's full.
what else? you get to eat your dinner while it's hot and you get to opt-out of the 'has he eaten enough?' worrying, because how much they're eating isn't as important as that they are demand-fed with milk.

Original poster

beansontoast · 07/02/2008 20:48

stream of consciousness...

im such a wuss about choking...get twitchy even thinking about first aid...know i am part gran part auntie s and would run across room to 'save' infant...can i get past this? cant i get past this?...i know ill do a bit of both..damm those baby pics were soooo cute...dd will love it..LOVE it

OP posts:

ruddynorah · 07/02/2008 20:51

you have to get your head around the difference between gagging and choking. they gag A LOT at first, as they learn to move the food around their mouth. the gagging is to STOP them choking. you'll see

i do think it's a shame to go in planning to 'do a bit of both' when you clearly love the whole blw thing. go for it!

AitchTwoOh · 07/02/2008 20:57

everyone's a wuss about choking, that's a good thing. you need to learn to recognise the difference between gagging and choking, though. choking. no noise, frightened eyes, grimness.
gagging. DISGUSTING noises, almost like half-chewing or something and it's over in a few moments. count to ten during a gag, it'll be done by seven. and they'll probably put it straight back into their mouths.

barbamama · 11/02/2008 18:45

Oh i so want to do BLW as well but not sure can resist the pressure! ds was 23 weeks on Sunday and I caved in and mashed up some bananna for him, rest today. I did notice though that unlike ds1 with the whole puree thing he was trying to kind of pick it up off the spoon and shove it into his mouth himself. Please persuade me to stop and wait a bit. Can Ireally give him a piece of buttered toast or carrot finger (steamed a bit presumably?) in a couple of weeks - I just can't see it? I gave him a piece of bread today and had to fish it out of his mouth as he bit off a massive piece and I freaked and though he was choking (but was maybe gagging). Hmmmmmm. Is there no halfway happy medium? How do you give BLW babies porridge? Don't they need to learn to use a spoon as well - you don't want 4 year olds eating with their hands do you?

MrsMichaelHutchence · 13/02/2008 10:30

they see you eating with cutlery and want to copy you, believe me. maybe keep off the gluten until 26 weeks?
and if you can't wait, you're much better off giving them banana as finger food (or steamed carrot or somesuch as banana can constipate) than putting it in their mouths with a spoon. that's implicated in choking more than a baby feeding himself is, tbh, because they're not in control of what's going in. (plus it gets you thinking that you want them to eat x amount because it's there in front of you, which isn't the point).

try it now, carrot, a bit of fresh apricot, finger of cucumber whatever, of it doesn't go in your baby's mouth then you have your answer and whether you choose to over-ride that at this stage with mashed food for whatever reason is up to you.

MrsMichaelHutchence · 13/02/2008 10:33

oh, and he more likely was gagging. choking is a silent, blue-lipped sort of a thing. let him get on with gagging, tbh, he's on top of things. unless you've been highly trained in infant resus then you are much more likely to cause an accident with fishing food out of his mouth. and porridge pancakes, there's a recipe on the blw blog.

Habbibu · 13/02/2008 20:04

My completely BLWed 15 month old is cutlery obsessed - "poon" and "fok" being mealtime essentials. I think in her case her co-ordination was pretty well developed by self-feeding, so she's taken to cutlery quite well. Insists on full-size adult stuff, mind.

chankins · 13/02/2008 20:14

I find toast much better than bread - bread does seem to get stuck on the roof of the mouth ! also ds started on roasted butternut squash and sweet potato cut into fingers, its soft enough to bite and chew easily. Broccoli and banana good too.
He's 9 mo now and I spoon feed him porridge and yoghurt (although he is now grabbbing the spoon and i let him if he does), but that is it. Its so satisfying also knowing you can carry handy snacks about with you, and not have to worry about heating up purees or whatever. He loves eating rice cakes in the buggy !
Go for it, you will not regret it.

hannahsaunt · 13/02/2008 20:33

So do we think that ds3 at 22 wks is ready for weaning since he bypassed giving me malevolent looks at dinner tonight and decided just to lunge for the raw broccoli I was taking out of the fridge and sink his soggy gums into it, emerging with a very smug look on his face...

AitchTwoOh · 13/02/2008 20:43

could be... why not give him a shot with some cooked veg and find out?

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