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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

HV advises giving DD tastes of foods on my finger from 4months?

12 replies

Thandeka · 14/05/2010 18:14

I was planning to wait til 6months and begining BLW, HV advised me to squidge soft foods we are having on my finger and give her little tastes of different food before then. In her opinion most babies are ready to (and want to) taste food before then.

Is this okay to do in terms of allergies etc?

OP posts:

MarineIguana · 14/05/2010 18:18

You will be told on here that it's definitely the devil's work to give anything before 6mo - but, my HV while not suggesting this was quite flexible and said pay attention to what your baby is telling you. I find I have a powerful instinct to give them a little taste of this and that, which is hardly surprising really (though I resisted it until shortly before 6mo last time). After all we must have managed somehow for millennia before the days of strict cut-off dates, and babies do vary.

Northernlurker · 14/05/2010 18:20

Depends what you squidge

The weaning at 6 months is based on the belief that the gut isn't sealed till then and early exposure to certain foods may predispose certain allergies. It's quite a logical theory which has some evidence behind it but it's never conclusively established that weaning at 6 months totally removes the risk - obviously it doesn't. Nor have I ever seen any evidence that weaning after 4 months is harmful. there are a lot of maybes in this debate and ultimately it's your baby and your decision.

I weaned all mine at 4 months plus and was told to avoid gluten till 6 months, also eggs and to be cautious with certain fruits - the only one I can remember is strawberries. If your baby is happy with milk then I see no reason for you to wean early but lots of babies do get interested in food before 6 months and imo it's fine to take things at their pace.

oopsandbabycoconut · 14/05/2010 18:21

I have to say I would wait. There is very little these 'tastes' will do for her at all. I waited until DD was 6mo and did BLW and she has no issues with the tastes of anything - she loves most foods and will try anything.

ShowOfHands · 14/05/2010 18:22

Well babies are interested in all sorts of things. DD used to lunge for the television cable. Was she ready for NVQ level 4 in electrics? Probably not.

There's no harm in waiting. It's easier and you avoid any theoretical issues. Up to you but if there's no good reason to do it, it's probably not worth it.

thisisyesterday · 14/05/2010 18:23

i can see no purpose in it tbh...

are you breastfeeding? if so she will be "tasting" all kinds of different things via your milk anyway

i cannot for the life of me understand why you would want her to "taste" things for 2 months prior to weaning... just seems pointless

Northernlurker · 14/05/2010 18:26

Yes but SOH - you didn't wave the television cable in front of her but out of reach three times a day - did you? Of course baby's are interested in lots of things. Food is something they see us shop for, prepare and then enjoy - often in a social context. Some cope better with that interest than others. If the op wishes to explore that there is no known harm in it.

Original poster

Thandeka · 14/05/2010 18:41

yup am breastfeeding, my breastmilk probably mainly tastes of jamaican ginger cake- since I eat rather a lot of it to quell the constant feeling of breastfeeding starvation!

Am happy to wait til 6months - was just querying HV advice whether it was a good idea or not. I am soooo looking forward to starting weaning but will mainly be following DD's lead.

OP posts:

tiktok · 14/05/2010 18:49

It isn't the devils work to give solids before 6 mths. The guidance in the UK is not based on allergy avoidance (the evidence for this is thin)but because there is no known nutritional benefit to solids before 6 mths, and giving solids before then may replace milk, not add to it, which is not a great idea. I dont suppose little dabs of stuff on your finger will do this.

I have no idea where the HV has got this idea from - ask her! I don't think it's likely to be harmful unless you have reason to worry about certain foods, but I cannot see the benefit of it, and why it would somehow not be as good as just sticking to bf for the moment.

ShowOfHands · 14/05/2010 19:31

Northernlurker, I'm saying nowt about my television habits when dd was under 6 months. Committed probably sums it up. See also cake and napping.

ChocolateMoose · 16/05/2010 13:23

Northernlurker, I daily wave the remote control around out of DS's reach. Which he thinks is cruel and can't understand why I won't let him chew it and press all the buttons.

EdgarAllenPoll · 16/05/2010 13:37

the benefit of it might be that the maturity of the gut is driven by having food introduced, and there is evidence to suggest introducing foods whilst BF helps avoid allergies. that kind of thing is quite hard to prove however.

so, your HV is not giving you silly advice, though if you aren't particularly considering weaning anyway, perhaps not particularly relevant advice.

BrokenBananaTantrum · 16/05/2010 13:42

I was advised by my HV and GP to start weaning DD at 4 months as she had reflux and they thought it would help. She was my first baby and followed their advice (hadn't found MN by then). I would not wean another of my babies at 4 months and would go with BLW from 6 months but having sadi that I don't think it will be harmful but just don't see the point TBH.

Trust your instinct. I wish I had.

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