I gave my baby raw bagged spinach

[C17GLD]

Please help. I’m bedside myself.

I came back from a rushed and rainy food shop, grabbed the bag of spinach and blended it and mixed with baby’s milk and fed him.

After I re read the information on NHS website and it stated it must be cooked. Then I remembered it was bagged and its high risk of contamination of listeria etc.

Now I’m worried I’ve given him poisoning. He had a dirty nappy about 2 hours after work the contents of yesterdays (carrots) and today’s food. I’m hoping the fibre has upset his stomach but I’m paranoid I’ve done a really bad thing. Any advice?!

You fed a baby milk and spinach? For God's sake why? Is that what you often eat?

On a more serious note, I often fed mine frozen peas, sweetcorn, beans etc and never had a problem. I'm sure you'll be fine.

Do you know how many people get listeria a year? It is VANISHINGLY rare

you have absolutely nothing to worry about. You could feed him a bag a day and all would be well. Err don’t do this - the nappies would be brutal 🤣

but honestly calm down. All is well

Firstly, I had no idea this was a thing.

Secondly, listeria is rare. How many people do you know who have had it?

Take some deep breaths and try to calm down. He will be fine. The nappy is likely just due to eating a new food.

I mean you do make an excellent point. I guess I was looking for a new food to try and it made sense at the time. But thank you for the reassurance. I do eat raw spinach in a salad but to be fair have never used milk as a dressing.

I’ve just learnt it’s not a thing. Honestly, it’s been 11 years since my second child and it’s like starting all over again. I feel ever so guilty now that people have questioned it. I think I’ll order a baby cookbook.
Yes, I don’t know anyone - thank you for the reassurance.

It’s an odd thing to feed him. But wouldn’t worry about the listeria risk. in 6 months time he’ll be crawling all over the park in summer, chewing on the grass or whatever else he can get in his mouth. It’s fine.

The risk of unwashed spinach causing an immunocompromised person (infant in this case) to be ill with listeria is about 1 in 200,000 similar to the risk of being hit crossing a busy road.

Ideally you cook it for this age group - but the chance this will cause an issue is very low.

So best not to stress this time as it’s already done.

Thank you. I have major health anxiety and so the minute something I’ve done links to something's dangerous I have an episode 🙃 I appreciate the reassurance!

Well, I was going with the recommended food suggestions on the NHS, missed the part about cooking it, and it said to mix the foods with babies milk 😂🤷‍♀️ 11/12 years since my last baby. I’m sort of lost.

It will be absolutely fine. But don’t mix food with milk.

Spinach zapped with an egg, tiny bit cheese, pop in oven. Little omelette quiche bites.

milk is milk.

Health visitors said to mix all veg with baby milk when weaning him 😢 mind you, she also got angry when I started weaning him 2 weeks before 6 months as he kept opening his mouth when I put my fork to mine. Thank you for the suggestion. I feel a bit stupid now. I’ll read some recipes online.

Thank you everyone. My health visitor said to mix the veg with baby milk when weaning him. I was just trying to follow the advice 😢 feel ever so silly now. I’ll try harder tomorrow. We just all love our precious ones so much and want to do the right thing.

No don’t feel stupid. I read the NHS post you refer to after mine. It seems to be about baby rice and purée feeding. Making things with milk. But as you say I don’t think we would have milk and spinach. Would make a lovely pasta though?

I wasn’t confident enough to do baby led with mine so did purée. But would just purée eg the carrot. Then let them make a mess with that.

I had to wean my fourth at five months. Oh the hate. But she was so colicky and it helped her no end.

I suspect the spinach will make a nice nappy tomorrow but other than that just focus on tiny amounts either finger or purée, whatever you choose and milk separate.

Oh I found this one of the most stressful times.

try a finger of toast. Spread with mashed carrot. Avacado. Things like that.

yogurt.

use the milk in porridge.

rice pudding.

macaroni cheese.

We can do toast at 6 months?!
Just seems crazy relying on gums to chomp toast.
Thank you for the ideas. I had some full fat Greek yogurt delivered in my shop tonight. Perhaps give them a go tomorrow ❤️

Please don’t feel bad about feeding baby spinach with milk. Baby will have a broadened palette and you are doing your best! My children have tasted worse at some point I’m sure, but they now eat pretty much everything so take it as some experimental mixology 😉

They can do loads at 6mo they just gum it. Mine even had meat chunks etc lol
I did a mix of blending/mashing and baby led weaning as I always liked them to be able to touch and mess around with the foods in whole form

Toast fingers, omelette cut into strips
Little egg and spinach mini muffins done in the oven in a fairy cake tin

Look on the solid starts website !! Shows you how to cut stuff up and serve at different ages

Excellent advice. He’s my third! But there’s an 11 year ago gap so I’m lost 😂 thank you for the reassurance

I think the mixing with milk would be if you were making something that resembled more of a puree, not a smoothie.

There is nothing wrong with mixing veg with milk, take no notice of posters complaining. I have spinach with a yogurt based dressing, I also have it with pasta and cream sauce, not that different to spinach and milk. I mix milk with mashed carrot and swede too, makes it nice and creamy.

He’ll be fine op x

Honestly I get it. I still have nightmares about baby led weaning. With my third, a mum who is WONDERFUL led a baby led weaning party. She made all these dishes. Lamb strips, steak, etc. my little girl picked up a bit of steak and started eating it. I had to leave the room and had a complete breakdown. They were all wonderful at gagging versus choking but even after that I couldn’t do it. They respected that, but it did give me the confidence to introduce small stripe of soft finger food.

the egg muffins are a super one.

banana pancake strips.

not everyone’s cup of tea but breadsticks or Ella kitchen puff sticks. I found the later easier as a start point for harder things.

avacado is super.

raspberries squash with finger.

same with carrot, broccoli and veg. So soft but let them pick it up.

this has reminded me, I got so stressed with this that I started freezing things to get the flavour in. Spinach and parsnip ice lolly anyone!

but hey it helped with teething and they got the taste

Yeah I’ve realised that now 🤦🏼‍♀️ luckily he only had about 5 tiny spoonfuls. Now I know why…

Your child will be fine, don't worry. However when your health visitor said to mix things with the baby's milk, I think she meant milky things as he isn't allow cows milk yet - like porridge, baby rice, cereal, mashed potato etc. Not mix everything with baby milk!

I was so excited to get to starting solids as I loved it with my first two. Now I’m more grown and sensible I see all the dangers so not as fun!

Thank you for the ideas - and hearing your story I’m glad I’m not the only one who is freaking out over this weaning stuff! A lot of advice and a lot to take in I find - slow and steady. And no more spinach and milk 🤣