BLW - does your baby eat more than you were expecting?

[MamaHobgoblin]

I read a lot of posts about people being a bit worried that their baby doesn't seem to eat all that much on BLW, but once it's established, has anyone found themselves wondering if their DC is eating 'too much'?

DS is 10 months, took to BLW like a ... pig to a trough! Is on three meals plus the odd biscuit stolen from passing strangers snack. Usually loves his food, although has the odd not-hungry day. I keep the food coming like you're meant to, I don't coerce him to eat more than he wants - trouble is, he generally wants more than I've anticipated, so I end up ransacking the kitchen for top-ups, or giving him more off my plate! Don't know if he's genuinely hungry or just loves the tastes so much he wants to keep on going.

I know the theory of BLW is that it's demand-led and therefore impossible to over-feed, but does anyone else harbour a porker?

YES! I have been thinking of starting a very similar thread. DD is only just 7 months but is devouring everything in her path at the moment. As it is still early days I'm taking every meal as it comes but she is showing no signs of slowing down and is happily munching though 3 meals a day.

She has had noticeably less milk. I have been worrying about this but Im presuming as long as she is having a healthy and varied diet this is ok?

I felt a little ridiculous worrying about weaning going TOO well... but it seems there is truly no end to the things a mother can worry about!

Oh yes! Tink loves her food and strangers were always commenting on how well she ate.

Example: I used to do more food than I expected her to eat and a selection so she could try different things. Breakfast was a slice of toast, a Weetabix, 10 grapes, a clementine (I think, it was a small orange anyway) and a banana. She ate the lot!

Phew its not just mine then !had to weigh him and check the growth charts to make sure he wasnt turning into a porker,but seemed to be doing well,he-s almost eight months and attacking everything,The family sits round the table open mouthed in astonishment but the little guy just keeps on chomping, Tangerines and pears are the favourites at the moment!

I shou;d have said, she was the size of the average 3 month old when we started weaning!

Gosh TBMaF I thought my dd ate a lot... that is more than I could manage for breakfast!

My Dd ate a kilogram - 2.2 pounds of food a day when she was weaning (ages 6 months to one year). that was 10 little 100g pots of whatever I had ground up for her every day. She ate a HUGE amount, and grew and grew.

She was breast fed on demand also till 9 months, when she self weaned and then had 5ooml (16 oz)2X8oz) formula every day, along with her kilo of pureé. I used to run to the kitchen and get another homemade frozen leek and chicken or vegetable pureé dinner out of the freezer for her.

For a bit of variation and if we were out and about, I used to feed her Heinz organic, just natural vegetable, parsnip and pea pureé and fruit pureés, to top her up.

Now, at 4 she eats a reasonable amount,(as much as me really) an egg with toast soldiers for brekkie, her fist size of potatoes / pasta / rice and her fist of salad / veges and her fist of protein for lunch and a few spuds and a 100g - 150g salmon steak for dinner, with salad and ice cream for desert...

She's really tall for her age (3.5 foot) and very very active. She's slim and we need belts for all her age 6 to 7 jeans for her.

She drinks a lot of water also. Glasses of the stuff throughout the day - she gets them herself now which is great..

My Dh is tall and slim, as are all of his family. His sister is 5'11" and I would say DD is headed up in that direction.

I've never forced my DD to eat, and she knows where the fruit bowl is if she wants a snack. We also have rice cakes, carrots and nuts on demand also.

Don't worry if your DS is eating you out of house and home before they are one, after my DD turned one she slowed down her growth and intake, and now eats as much as me.

It is a bit frightening when you're just feeding lots at high speed and the little mouth opens up again again for the little spoon. I used to stand back sometimes and wait for DD to explode but she never did.
She'd turn away eventually and that was it! Meal over, Finito.
HTH

DS now eats a huge amount, but you've got to remember all the things they are doing at this age - crawling, learning to walk, talk etc, plus growing, it takes a lot of energy. I heard that babies this age need more calories than when they are 2, so as long as you are BLW and your baby feeds themselves, I would have thought it was fine, especially if they are following their weight curve ok.

I would say though, a kilo of purees sounds a lot and I don't think you should shovel in that much puree, it could easily lead to constipation. Self-feeding means that they have to be more active in filling themselves up.

My DS (1 in just over a week) eats an absolute ton. He only has 1 BF during the day (his choice since I stopped offering) and generally has a reasonable amount of breakfast (2/3 of a slice of toast or a weetabix, or a small bowl of porridge, plus some fruit) and lunch (1 slice of bread as toastie/sarnie plus fruit and a yoghurt or small fromage frais) and a massive tea. In between meals he either has a snack or a BF (or both!)

I think you also have to remember that they'll probably go through an illness or a developmental phase that means they don't want to eat much. If they've porked up a bit then they'll be fine! (I think DS is stuffing his face to recover from his 8-10mo spate of illness and not eating much)

Sounds like you're doing a great job.

oops! I forgot to check for posts! Good to see that other BLW babies are putting it away like it's going out of fashion. DS had a predictable dip just before we started weaning, which continued a while, and from then on he's just kept on getting heavier! He was born on the 25th centile and stuck to it like glue for 5 months or so, and now he's way above the 50th. It's all the cheese!

Funny you should say that, ChairmumMiaow, because DS (and I) are suffering a horrible cold now and virtually all he's had all week is breastmilk and blueberries! (nappies are undescribable) I think he's feeding off his reserves.