Babyled Weaning
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3dogsrunning
Posts: 27,167 Member
Has anyone done this? Anyone thinking of doing it?
I was seriously leaning towards it because it just seemed to make sense to me but my doctor (who I have a very good and trusting relationship with) has told me to start with rice cereal and purees. I spoke with the nutritionist who came to my hospital room to talk about baby nutrition and she said the same.
I've seen other reliable sources say that rice cereal is not necessary as long as you introduce sources of iron (I'm BFing).
ETA -
I forgot to include a link for those not familiar with it. (its not exactly as it sounds)
http://www.babyledweaning.com
I was seriously leaning towards it because it just seemed to make sense to me but my doctor (who I have a very good and trusting relationship with) has told me to start with rice cereal and purees. I spoke with the nutritionist who came to my hospital room to talk about baby nutrition and she said the same.
I've seen other reliable sources say that rice cereal is not necessary as long as you introduce sources of iron (I'm BFing).
ETA -
I forgot to include a link for those not familiar with it. (its not exactly as it sounds)
http://www.babyledweaning.com
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I thought about doing it with my third, but she's got so little interest in food that I haven't really bothered. I've made purées for her, and I give her things like toast, which she just crushes up in her hand. She's 8 months now and sometimes she even gags on mashed up banana, so I don't think she'd handle cooked carrot or similar very well. She's so like my first who had no interest in eating.
I didn't bother with baby rice as it's disgusting. I wouldn't give my children something I wouldn't eat myself. I've puréed apple/pear, sweet potato/carrot, chicken stew with low salt stock cube, spaghetti bolognaise etc. I also give her Yeo Valley little yogurts (not sure if they sell those where you are) which are organic and not full of sugar like most yogurts aimed at kids are.0 -
I did it with my second child and it went great! I started her with mashed avocado and then banana. Then I did spinach, squash, sweet potato, apple sauce, etc. Its so easy to make your own baby food with a food processor and then freeze it in ice cube trays. Pop out the little frozen squares and keep in a plastic freezer bag. I never did rice cereal, as I was against processed food. I gave her regular oatmeal, but it ended up being too thick for her until she was over a year old. I will never buy jar food again when you can make it so much cheaper and tastier yourself!0
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Oh and by the time they are 9-10 months, you can give them the soft stuff to pick up themselves...avocado chunks, banana chunks, ripe pear. A tip for apples is to use a grater!0
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I agree, it's very easy to make food yourself. None of my kids have had food from jars.
I have friends who've done BLW and given food like avocado, toast, cooked carrot etc from 6 months. I think of your baby is interested and tries to grab food, then go for it. My baby has no interest. I gave her one of those baby biscotti snack things when we were out. She couldn't even be bothered to hold it. She dropped it on her coat, and was trying to lick it.0 -
It probably would have been a great choice with my littlest, but we got WIC and that means hundreds of jars of food. So we used them for the most part, and now I am making my own food and storing it in the jars. He also eats... everything else that doesn't require heavy chewing.
My older son was BLW and would not eat purees or soft foods, so he gnawed on a lot of crusty things, or big hunks or cucumber, apple etc. and drank a lot of breastmilk until he started being able to really chew.0 -
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We did very black and white BLW at 6 months at it went great for a while...after a while - around 8 months she just would get tired/bored of trying to eat it long before she got full, and even though the book says that's normal and they will just make up for it at another meal...she wasn't as she was having troubles staying asleep because she was waking up hungry because she was picking at food and rejecting most of it...and she doesn't like getting her hands messy so this eliminated just about everything but carbs or "clean" pieces of meat. So now we do a mixture of purees (definitely keep her fuller), and finger foods and "meal foods" on a pre-loaded spoon or fork. You have to do what works for you and more importantly your baby...no too babies, moms or family's are the same, I would caution against EVERY saying you are ONLY doing BLW or that the opposite has to be all purees...you will find your groove as a momma, as long as you are offering healthy options, there's no reason you cant offer what you are eating and then see from there if that's what is going to work for you and your baby. We did add in Oat Cereal at around 7 months for the "at least I know she's getting iron and probiotics" so if she rejects all meat and beans that day she still gets something.0
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toothpastechica wrote: »We did very black and white BLW at 6 months at it went great for a while...after a while - around 8 months she just would get tired/bored of trying to eat it long before she got full, and even though the book says that's normal and they will just make up for it at another meal...she wasn't as she was having troubles staying asleep because she was waking up hungry because she was picking at food and rejecting most of it...and she doesn't like getting her hands messy so this eliminated just about everything but carbs or "clean" pieces of meat. So now we do a mixture of purees (definitely keep her fuller), and finger foods and "meal foods" on a pre-loaded spoon or fork. You have to do what works for you and more importantly your baby...no too babies, moms or family's are the same, I would caution against EVERY saying you are ONLY doing BLW or that the opposite has to be all purees...you will find your groove as a momma, as long as you are offering healthy options, there's no reason you cant offer what you are eating and then see from there if that's what is going to work for you and your baby. We did add in Oat Cereal at around 7 months for the "at least I know she's getting iron and probiotics" so if she rejects all meat and beans that day she still gets something.
Thanks. I did a bunch more reading since I posted this and I read similar stuff to this. I think this is pretty much how I will go about it. I definitely am not going to be anti purée. I'm going to play it by ear and see what works for us. I still don't think I'll do rice cereal.0 -
3dogsrunning wrote: »
Ah, I see! I just assumed BLW was eating whole foods (like nutritionally whole) and graduating to eating what everyone else is having. Its been a long time now and I don't remember when my middle one started actually picking up her food herself, but I know it wasn't as early as 6months. I made her purees and spoonfed her at that age. When she could put food in her mouth herself, I gave her soft stuff chopped up (fruits, soft veg, bread, cheese, eggs, etc) Oh and I loved those little mesh bag thingies! (She also didn't get her first teeth until she was 11 months old!)
ETA (I also just saw the link you posted and read it and realized that I was doing the exact opposite of what they describe! LOL So, I guess no! )0 -
I completely agree there is no reason you have to do cereal (rice or otherwise....we don't do rice, usually barley or oats), just as long as you are making sure they are getting large amounts of iron in somewhere...for us adding a cereal was the easiest way to do that.0
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We did BLW starting just before 6 months, never gave her rice cereal. I will say, the gagging at first was a bit scary, but completely normal. We started with things like steamed broccoli, kiwi, tomatoes. She also loves the Gerber puffed rice things. I started making her farina and oatmeal and giving her yogurt from a spoon because she never got the concept of dipping. Now she doesn't really like the spoon because she wants to do everything herself. She's 11 months now and eat practically anything, even with only two teeth. Fruits like pineapple, raw and steamed veggies, bread, pasta, meatloaf, meat, fish etc. She can be picky sometimes its frustrating when she doesn't want to eat something (or throws it off her tray and then leans over to watch the dog get it) but we're still breastfeeding so I try to tell myself she's getting enough. The best part I'd say is just looking in your fridge and getting something out instead of having to make food ahead of time. I would recommend a mixture of both, like someone else said, you'll figure out what is best.0
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I have of this but never the term for it. I have never tried this and would probably only do it on a case by case basis. I can see how my daughter probably would have done well with this but my little baby now ... he tries to shove everything down his throat by the handful. If I don't watch him closely and monitor how many puffs he has at a time, he will stuff them in his mouth until he is gagging, lol.
Also, the other reason I don't want to do that with him is because (super unfortunately) the rest of our family does not eat so healthy. I am glad he is getting fresh, whole pureed fruits and vegetables right now because that is worlds better than our microwavable burritos, ramen noodles and Mac n Cheese. My husband says 'he is eating how we should be. Imagine if we were to put ourselves on the same dietary restrictions he is on...'
I can see how BLW would work and be a good fit for some families and babies. As for me, I like it the way it is.0 -
tiggerhammon wrote: »I have of this but never the term for it. I have never tried this and would probably only do it on a case by case basis. I can see how my daughter probably would have done well with this but my little baby now ... he tries to shove everything down his throat by the handful. If I don't watch him closely and monitor how many puffs he has at a time, he will stuff them in his mouth until he is gagging, lol.
Also, the other reason I don't want to do that with him is because (super unfortunately) the rest of our family does not eat so healthy. I am glad he is getting fresh, whole pureed fruits and vegetables right now because that is worlds better than our microwavable burritos, ramen noodles and Mac n Cheese. My husband says 'he is eating how we should be. Imagine if we were to put ourselves on the same dietary restrictions he is on...'
I can see how BLW would work and be a good fit for some families and babies. As for me, I like it the way it is.
Maybe it would be a good time to try and "eat what you let him eat..." that is actually a huge part of why we started BLW was because we DIDNT have particularily healthy eating habits the first 6 months of her life so when we started introducing food to her I am forced to cook or find food that is healthy for the rest of us to! Like you husband says...it could be HUGE in your efforts of getting fit to start eating all the good stuff you feed baby!
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toothpastechica wrote: »tiggerhammon wrote: »I have of this but never the term for it. I have never tried this and would probably only do it on a case by case basis. I can see how my daughter probably would have done well with this but my little baby now ... he tries to shove everything down his throat by the handful. If I don't watch him closely and monitor how many puffs he has at a time, he will stuff them in his mouth until he is gagging, lol.
Also, the other reason I don't want to do that with him is because (super unfortunately) the rest of our family does not eat so healthy. I am glad he is getting fresh, whole pureed fruits and vegetables right now because that is worlds better than our microwavable burritos, ramen noodles and Mac n Cheese. My husband says 'he is eating how we should be. Imagine if we were to put ourselves on the same dietary restrictions he is on...'
I can see how BLW would work and be a good fit for some families and babies. As for me, I like it the way it is.
Maybe it would be a good time to try and "eat what you let him eat..." that is actually a huge part of why we started BLW was because we DIDNT have particularily healthy eating habits the first 6 months of her life so when we started introducing food to her I am forced to cook or find food that is healthy for the rest of us to! Like you husband says...it could be HUGE in your efforts of getting fit to start eating all the good stuff you feed baby!
I like that part of it too. We eat pretty well anyway but when my husband cooks, he often leaves out the vegetables (I mean, more vegetables than just potatoes). I'm also hoping this way of eating will help get him in the habit of preparing them.
I definitely understand it can be a case by case, family by family basis.0 -
Just an update for anyone who is browsing the forums - It is now 10 months later - I did BLW and loved it. I am so happy I went that way. It was a little nerve wracking at first but once we got the hang of it it was so much easier, especially when we go out to eat. People are amazed at how well he eats and what he eats.
I realize it isn't for everyone but if anyone is interested or has questions you can PM me or ask here.0
