Weaning should be an enjoyable experience however many parents tell us that they often feel confused and donโt know where to start! This is why weโve teamed up with Nichola Ludlam-Raine (@mummynutrition) to get your questions answered!
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ช๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด & ๐ช๐ต๐ฒ๐ป ๐ฆ๐ต๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐? ๐คท๐ปโโ๏ธ โฃ
๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐? ๐ผ โฃ
Weaning is the gradual introduction of food to a breast milk or infant formula fed baby.โฃ The aim is to expose them to a variety of different tastes and textures.
๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐จ๐๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐? ๐คฑ๐ปโฃ
In the U.K, mothers are encouraged to breastfeed exclusively for their babyโs first six months of life, this is because breast milk can help to protect babies from infections and diseases and itโs also beneficial for the mother too! If mothers cannot breastfeed then other alternatives can be explored, for example using formula milk.โฃ
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐ค ๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐ ๐ข๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฎ ๐๐จ ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฎ? ๐ฃโฃ
Weaning should start when your baby is around six months old, providing they can hold themselves steady in a high-chair (or for a few seconds when sat on the floor), are able to bring objects to their mouth, and have lost their tongue-thrust reflex i.e. they swallow food rather than spitting it straight back out.
๐๐ค๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ผโฃ To check your babyโs tongue-thrust reflex, place a clean finger or spoon onto your babyโs lower lip; if they re-actively stick their tongue out, then they may not yet ready to be weaned.โฃ
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐ค ๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐ ๐ข๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฎ ๐๐จ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ช๐๐? ๐ฒโฃ
During the initial stages of weaning, the main focus should be supporting your baby to become more familiar with food and the idea of eating. Try not to worry too much about how much food theyโre eating, as they will still be getting most of their nutrients from milk! โฃAs your baby grows and becomes more familiar with eating though, the proportion of energy from food will naturally become more than that from milk ๐๐ผ โฃ
๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ช๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด?โฃ ๐ถ๐ผโฃ
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ค๐๐จ ๐จ๐๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ ๐ค๐๐๐๐ง ๐ข๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฎ? ๐ฅฆ ๐ฅโฃ
At around 6 months of age, your baby can be given foods such as fruit and vegetables, with most parents offering them as a pureed or mashed consistency. At around 7 months, most babies progress to foods with some lumps, and are having soft finger foods too. Cooked pieces of broccoli, parsnips, peppers and avocado, as well as banana, kiwi and pineapple are great options for your babyโs first food!โฃ
Offering green vegetables such as broccoli, kale and spinach are useful to encourage your babyโs bitter and sour taste buds to develop. At this point, your babyโs sweet taste buds are already mature, meaning they will naturally accept fruit more readily.โฃโฃ
๐๐๐๐ฉโ๐จ ๐ฃ๐๐ญ๐ฉ?โฃ ๐ฅ ๐ฅโฃ
From 6 months, once babies have been exposed to a range of fruits and vegetables, other foods* can be given such as porridge, mashed potato and crustless toast sticks. Offering soft pieces of slow cooked beef, dark chicken, turkey, fish (with no bones), eggs and lentils is essential too, as theyโre rich in protein and iron!โฃ *Itโs important to offer new foods in small amounts and one at a time initially in order to spot if your baby is allergic.
๐ฅ Full fat, unsweetened and pasteurised yogurts can also be offered. Full fat and pasteurised cowโs milk can be used in cooking, on cereal or to mash up food but it shouldnโt be offered as a drink until your baby is 12 months old (continue with breast or formula milk for that). Baby rice can also be useful to thicken purees if they come out too runny.โฃ
๐ฆ Itโs good practice to offer a small amount of water with a meal from a free-flowing cup to teach your baby how to sip (fill it to around 50ml so the cup isnโt too heavy!). If your baby is under 6 months old the water should be cool-boiled. โฃ
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐ค๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ ๐จ๐๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ ๐ค๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐ค๐ค๐?โฃ โฐ โฃ
Once a day is sufficient during the initial stages of weaning. However, itโs beneficial to build up to three times a day to mimic your own meal pattern at around 7 months.โฃ
By the time babies are around 12 months old, they should be eating at least 3 small portions of healthy family meals plus 2 small snacks such as fruit in between โ โฃ
If foods are rejected, and the bitter vegetables may be rejected (at least initially!), keep offering the food as it may take several attempts for your baby to eat and enjoy it!โฃ
๐๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐? ๐โฃ
๐ฝ๐ง๐๐๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐จ๐คฑ๐ปโฃ
If your baby is breastfed, youโll need to give a daily supplement of vitamin drops containing 8.5 to 10mcg of vitamin D. โฃ
๐ From the age of six months, they should be given daily vitamin drops containing vitamins A, C and D. โฃ
๐ผ ๐๐ค๐ง๐ข๐ช๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐จโฃ
Formula fed babies only require a supplement if theyโre having less than 500ml of formula a day, as itโs already fortified with the nutrients your baby needs. Once your baby starts to have less than 500ml daily formula, you should then start to introduce daily vitamin drops as mentioned above.. โฃโฃ
๐๐ผ These vitamins should be given until children are five years old.โฃ
๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ฑ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐๐ผ๐ถ๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ป ๐ช๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ ๐ปโโ๏ธโฃ
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ค๐๐จ ๐ข๐๐ฎ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ค๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐๐จ? โ ๏ธโฃ
To reduce the risk of choking, do not offer babies whole grapes, hard and small pieces of fruit or vegetables such as raw apple and carrot (these should be grated, initially), round chocolate, whole nuts or popcorn.โฃ
โ ๐ฏ Babies should not be given honey before the age of 12 months. Although very unlikely, it should be avoided to eliminate the risk of consuming the food poisoning bacteria ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ญ๐ช๐ด๐ฎ, which can make your baby extremely ill.โฃ
๐ง๐ซItโs also advisable to not add any sugar or salt to any of your babyโs foods. If you wish to add them to your own portion (if youโre eating the same meal), always remove their portion of food from the pan first!โฃ
๐๐ผ ๐ช Sugary foods such as biscuits and cakes do not offer your baby any beneficial nutrients, and salty foods such as bacon, ham, bread and cheese should also be limited.โฃ
HAPPY WEANING!
By Nichola Ludlam-Raine, Registered Dietitianย @mummynutrition
