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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

if I decide on blw she wont choke will she?

8 replies

pippel · 23/10/2009 13:25

I understand the theory and it sounds great, Im too lazy for Annabell Karmel really

but then there is a little voice going "she'll choke shes too little"

I know she wont but I need some one too tell me she wont!

Also how do you know they are ready? When they say sitting does it mean completely independently in a high chair? or supported on your knee? She can grab things from me but do I have to wait until she can pick them up for herself? Ive never actually met a baby weaned like this, even though I know a lot of babies.

so many stupid questions so little time

OP posts:

ShowOfHands · 23/10/2009 13:30

Sitting is unsupported.

When dd was able to pick up (with a pincer grasp too), put food in her mouth, chew and swallow whilst sitting unaided I let her go nuts. She was almost 7 months.

The idea is that they're developmentally able to chew and swallow and can move food around their mouths properly.

I think it's common to gag a bit at first though dd never did but no highly unlikely to choke. Choking is something that can happen at any age to any person weaned in any way, I don't think blw causes choking.

ScreamingMormolykeia · 23/10/2009 13:33

She may gag on a few bits, but she is very unlikely to choke. If she is grabbing food and putting it in her mouth then put her in the highchair and let her play with some broccoli florets etc. She's either eat it or not! Such is the beauty and simplicity of BLW!

theyoungvisiter · 23/10/2009 13:36

well I did both my babies like this and can honestly say they have never, either of them choked on anything, except DS2 once got a teeny piece of gristle stuck in his throat and coughed it up.

You have to be sensible with what you give them - easy to manoeuvre, fairly soft fingers of stuff that don't pose choking hazards at first - like chips, or cooked carrot batons, or broccoli. And of course you should always supervise them closely at first.

Getting something going down the wrong way is not the same as choking. Water or puree can go down the wrong way and cause them to cough and splutter it up. The things that really pose a hazard are hardish stuff that can completely occlude the windpipe, like grapes, or chunks of apple.

Gagging is also not the same as choking. It's common for them to get something a bit too far back and gag to bring it forwards. This isn't a risk - it's just their emergency way of getting stuff back up into their mouth when it's drifted too far back.

You might also want to do a first aid course if you haven't already - just for your own peace of mind. Health visitors sometimes run free ones. They can tell you what to look for and when to take action and what to do.

Good luck - BLW is great and I will be surprised if you meet anyone on hear whose baby has choked. It's a common fear but clever old evolution has given babies a pretty good set of reflexes for dealing with stuff in their mouths.

theyoungvisiter · 23/10/2009 13:38

anyone on here

Original poster

pippel · 23/10/2009 14:12

shes nearly 22 weeks so she can sit supported on my knee, and even though shes grabbing things out of my hand and putting them in her mouth, but I dont think she is ready just yet to pick things up off a tray, so I will wait a couple of weeks and then go for it!

Im a bit paranoid about chocking because dd1 did choke on a piece of pear when she was about 9 months, but that could have happened at any time really.

OP posts:

ScreamingMormolykeia · 23/10/2009 14:20

22 weeks is only a few weeks off "the middle of the first year", and if she is trying too put food in her mouth then let her. If she's not quite ready she will just gum it and then spit it out. Stick her in the high chair when you are all eating and let her play with some food, she'll have a great time making a mess exploring the textures with her hands and mouth....

Original poster

pippel · 23/10/2009 14:29

I'll do that then, dont think much will actually go down but she will have great fun!

Now I have just got to explain it all to my Mother again, shes very concerned about how you know how much they have eaten, and how you make sure they get enough iron, shes obsessed with iron

OP posts:

GhoulsafraidofVirginiaWoolf · 23/10/2009 14:43

DC2 did quite a bit of the spluttering in the early days of BLW but never choked on food (little monkey put just about everything in her mouth so did a bit of nearly choking on other things she could get hold of)

Mush-fed #1 did partially choke on some omlette with bits in when she was about 10 mos, having taken purees for about 5 mos. She must have had the food in her throat and when I took her into the lounge after the meal to play, I left her to do a bit of washing up and came back in fortunately almost immediately to find her in difficulty. She never did that gumming thing and tho her teeth came thru on time (6 mos) she didn't know what to do with them. A BLW baby gets the idea sooner.

It's all down to being careful and vigilant and as YV says, avoiding the more dangerous foods like whole grapes until they can really break them down.

I am a complete BLW convert, but horses for courses. Good luck with your Mum

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