Sources of Weaning Advice

Baby-Led Weaning by Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett

(Laura Leach)

As my son approached the age of 6 months I hadn’t given weaning very much thought.  I dutifully pureed the odd bit of leftover carrot and played about with some ice cube trays in preparation. I started with some baby rice which Thomas happily ate… on one condition- he must hold the spoon and put it in his mouth himself.  If I put it in his mouth he was not going to play along.  I realised that we could be at the start of a battle of wills that could last for years so I decided to look again at baby led weaning which I had heard of on the internet.  

Published in late 2008 in response to a growing number of families taking the alternative path to purees, Rapley explores the theoretical and practical reasons why feeding babies a diet that is roughly the same as that of the whole family can be a good alternative to spoon feeding.  She explains the background of weaning techniques and dispels the myth that babies need to learn to move pureed food in their mouths and swallow it before they are ready for any proper solid foods.  

The general idea of baby led weaning is that you don’t give any purees and the baby only has foods which he can pick up himself. One of the main draws of the book is the mix of both theoretical and practical information.  Although you can start the baby eating most things that the family eats, Rapley gives lists of suggestions for the sorts of food a six month old can manage, such as sticks of cheese or steamed vegetables. She also discusses how to go about reducing milk feeds as the baby eats more. 

Rapley addresses the two main concerns many families have about baby led weaning: choking and not knowing how much the baby has eaten. Using both a scientific basis and a more anecdotal series of family case studies, she explains why choking is actually less likely with babies who are given finger foods at 6 months because the gag reflex moves back in the mouth as the baby gets older.  She also discusses why it doesn’t matter if the baby only eats very little initially as the main source of nutrition is milk until about a year.  

Thomas is now three years old and we are still reaping the benefits of baby led weaning. I think that it has made me much more relaxed about mealtimes and about what he eats.  I'm sure a lot of it is luck but we have not had any meal time battles at all and he has a good appetite and will eat most things. While we have rules about manners at the table and he will not be given an alternative meal if he doesn't fancy what I have cooked, I will not insist that he eats everything that is on his plate. 

We now have a ten month old, Elizabeth, who has also been mainly weaned with finger foods. Meal times are great fun and we are able to watch her fine motor skills progress quickly and watch her enjoying being part of the family by eating the same meal as us at the table.  Rapley’s book is simply written and clear. By reading it I gained the confidence to wean my children without purees – the single best parenting decision I have made so far. 

The website is also good

 

Megan

I've got Gill Rapley's baby led weaning book and was given an Annabel Karmel one with my first but, to be honest, they're both a bit 'purist' for me. I kind of prefer the idea that actually I'm just feeding my baby and want to get on with it. I got lots of good advice and ideas from  And I like the River Cottage Baby and Toddler Cookbook. Sensible and food you'd actually want to eat.

Gillian

Annabel Karmel's book was great, I found it the other day and had totally forgotten it had lots of toddler meals too so am giving it a go again.  I also joined a BLW forum which was very supportive and gave me lots of ideas.

Nancy

I have two weaning books. They both date from before baby-led weaning, and when health visitors advised weaning at four months. The first is Annabel Karmel’s ‘New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner’, the other is Lorraine Kelly’s ‘Baby & Toddler Eating Plan’ (co-written by a nutritionist, Anita Bean). From the titles, they sound quite similar, and both books combine recipes with charts telling you what to feed your baby and when (in terms of at what age, and also on a meal-by-meal basis). I found the charts of limited value except, I suppose, with my first child when I lacked confidence and paid a lot more attention to what I ‘should’ be doing. As in life, the Annabel Karmel is a lot flashier than the Lorraine Kelly, with colour drawings throughout and more exotic ingredients required, compared with no illustrations, and more down-to-earth recipes. Both books contain some great recipes, but I tend to favour the Lorraine Kelly ones. My favourite is ‘Cheesy Lentil Savoury’, and my seven-year old still loves the ‘Home-made Chicken Nuggets’. 

Sarah