Health Tips

Considering to start baby-led weaning?

It may be new for us Malaysians, but this has been practiced commonly in the west.

You may have heard it from other moms too.

But what exactly are the benefits?

In this topic, we take an in-depth look at what baby-led weaning is all about.

What is baby-led weaning?

In simple words, it just means letting your baby eat by himself.

In baby-led weaning, you allow your baby to take charge.

Instead, he sits together with you at the dining table.

He is allowed to explore the food (prepared safely by your good self) and eat it with his own hands.

A majority of the time, parents tend to spoon-feed their babies rather than letting them feed themselves.

Messiness and the possibility of not having enough food (since the food is everywhere other than the mouth) being the reasons.

What are the benefits of baby-led weaning?

I believe this is the most important section of this article.

After all, this could the reason why you may consider baby-led weaning instead of spoon-fed weaning.

• Your baby learns to use his hands earlier.

• Develops a better hand and eye coordination.

• Learns how to use the mouth accordingly.

• Improves his sensory skills. Able to differentiate between cold or hot.

• Less power struggles between you and your baby. For example, your baby refusing feed from the spoon.

• Healthier food selection. We will touch more on this in the later section.

• Learns about self-regulation. Full = stop eating.

What types of food are suitable?

As long as the food is soft for your baby’s palate, and of course healthy, it should be fine.

Here is a couple of food that you can consider trying:

• Avocados

• Bananas

• Cooked broccoli

• Mashed sweet potatoes

• Rice

• Steamed apples

• Steamed pumpkin

You do not have to give your child all this food in one go.

GIVE ONE TYPE OF FOOD EACH TIME

This allows you to counter check for any possible allergic reactions.

If you give a few types at once, you will not be able to pinpoint the exact trigger.

Also, make sure you mash or cook the food until they are soft enough for your baby to avoid any possible choking incidents.

When is my baby ready for baby-led weaning?

Just like spoon-fed weaning, there are a few things you should look out for before starting baby-led weaning for your baby.

• Your baby is able to sit up by himself without support.

• He shows interest in food. He is filled with curiosity when he looks at you eat.

• He tries to grab food from your hands while you are eating.

• He is not pushing food out using his tongue.

• Your baby is capable of chewing, with or without teeth.

• He has the ability to pick things up with his fingers.

How do I start baby-led weaning?

Once your baby shows you all the signs that he is ready to be weaned, this is what you can do.

Step 1

allow your baby to sit together with you at the dining table.

Let him join in the meal times.

Step 2

prepare food which has an elongated shape or has a stalk so that your baby is able to grasp it with his palms.

Most babies are generally weaned about 6 months or so.

If you are weaning your baby around the same time, he will not be able to use his pincer grip (index finger + thumb) effectively yet until he is older.

Therefore, food which is long or has a stalk will make it easier for your baby to wean himself.

You may start off with boiled broccoli or carrots.

COOK THE FOOD TILL SOFT BEFORE LETTING YOUR BABY EAT

Step 3

keep to your baby’s milk schedule the same for the time being as this serves somewhat like a training period for your little one.

Once he is able to take in a regular amount of food, you can gradually cut the milk intake.

Healthier food selection. How does this help?

I mentioned this earlier in the benefits segment.

So how does this help your baby in the long run?

There is this study that focused on the impact of weaning style on food preferences and body mass index (BMI) in early childhood.

BMI IS A MEASURE OF BODY FAT BASED ON WEIGHT IN RELATION TO HEIGHT

According to this study, babies who are spoon-fed have a higher tendency to like sweet food (fine sugar such as cakes, sweets, cookies, etc.) as compared to the baby-led group in the future.

The baby-led group has a higher preference for carbohydrates (complex sugar such as starch, bread, potatoes, etc.) instead.

Here is an excerpt from the article itself.

“Weaning style impacts on food preferences and health in early childhood."

Our results suggest that infants weaned through the baby-led approach learn to regulate their food intake in a manner, which leads to a lower BMI and a preference for healthy foods like carbohydrates.”

Again, in simpler terms, this is what it means.

How you feed your baby now will affect his food preferences when he grows up.

Spoon-fed babies have a higher chance of liking sweet foods when they grow up.

This is linked to weight gain and obesity as compared to baby-led babies who are likely to eat more healthy food and have fewer chances of getting fat.

Does baby-led weaning increase the risk of choking?

Choking is by far one of the main parental concerns when it comes to baby-led weaning.

Does a baby choke less when he is spoon-fed?

At the current moment, the answer is no.

Let us take a look at another study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Here is the conclusion from the study.

“Infants following a baby-led approach to feeding that includes advice on minimizing choking risk do not appear more likely to choke than infants following more traditional feeding practices.“

Got your answer?

THE RISK OF CHOKING IS THE SAME FOR BOTH SPOON-FED & BABY-LED BABIES

However, this is an interesting fact to note.

“A total of 35% of infants choked at least once between 6 and 8 months of age, and there were no significant group differences in the number of choking events at any time.“

“Infants gagged more frequently at 6 months but less frequently at 8 months.“

“At 7 and 12 months, 52% and 94% of infants were offered food posing a choking risk during the 3-day record, with no significant differences between groups.“

To understand this easier:

• There is 1/3 of a chance that a baby will choke when he is weaned, be it spoon-fed or baby-led weaning.

• The chances of gagging decreases if a baby is older.

• If a baby is given “high-risk of choking” type of food, he will choke regardless of what age he is.

What is “high-risk of choking” food?

These are food that has a higher tendency to cause a toddler to choke.

Here are few examples you should know:

• Raw fruits such as raw apples, pears or grapes.

• Raw vegetables such as uncooked carrot or capsicum.

• Slices of meat.

• Nuts, beans and raisins.

The risks of choking will decrease if you pick the right food for your child.

A general rule of thumb, DO NOT give your baby anything that’s raw!

You may want to consider using innovative baby feeders to reduce the risk of choking further.

It’s a less messier option too.

There is no right or wrong to this whole baby-led weaning thing. Most of us (at least from my generation) have been spoon-fed by our parents.

Just look at us, we are just doing fine… I hope.

Ultimately, the choice is yours.

Baby-led weaning. Yay or nay?

The take-home points

• Baby-led weaning has a lot more benefits compared to traditional spoon-fed weaning.

• The risk of choking is the same for both baby-lead and spoon-fed weaning.

• An older baby has lesser chances of gagging compared to younger one.

• Avoid giving your baby raw food, be it fruits or vegetables.

• How you feed your baby now will affect his choices of food when he grows up.

Download our Doc2Us app from Google Play Store or Apple Store and chat with a doctor now.

References:

1. A Baby-Led Approach to Eating Solids and Risk of Choking | AAP News & Journals

2. Baby Self-Feeding: Tips, Tricks and Finger Foods to Try | What To Expect

3. The Impact of Weaning Style on Food Preferences and Body Mass Index in Early Childhood | BMJ Journals

In collaboration with Ethissa.

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Ethissa