In my excitement to start introducing solids a couple of weeks ago, I was researching recipes and how to get started on
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/. There, I read that many moms were now starting to introduce solids using baby led weaning-or BLW-instead of purees. This intrigued me and sparked a mass-raid of the internet and anything I could find involving BLW.
Let me clarify. I am not discussing weaning Staci from the breast just yet. We are nowhere near ready for that!
There is a lot more to it, but the most basic explanation of BLW is that it is simply giving Staci suitable sized pieces of food, soft enough for her to gum at this point since she has no teeth. It is not important for her to get many nutrients from solid food at this age, because breastmilk is the most calorie and nutrient dense food available. It's imperitive that in the first year she receive the majority of her calories from breastmilk alone. That being said, the motto of baby led weaning is 'If it's before one, it's just for fun'. BLW mothers take mealtimes and view them as play time. A time to try new things, explore, and learn to chew and swallow because frankly, food is yummy!
The whole point of introducing solids to a baby is so that they learn how to feed themselves, i.e. pick up food, bring it to their mouth, chew and swallow. Clearly, a puree-weaned baby is simply learning to suck and swallow food from a spoon. While they are experiencing lovely new tastes, they don't have the luxury of experiencing the new texture as well. There is also the potential to overfeed that lies in spoonfeeding. Often, moms may feel pressure to get that extra bite of food in to finish the jar or bowl of mush, even if the baby is not hungry.
BLW babies, on the other hand, get to pick and choose what-and how much-goes into their mouths. This encourages a healthy appetite to try new things. Studies have shown that BLW babies are far less picky and much more willing to try new things than puree weaned babies are, as discussed in Gill Rapley's book,
Baby-led weaning. As many of you know, this is a HUGE reason for me to try this method of introducing solids. My husband is one of the pickiest eaters I know, second only to his mother, who refuses to eat anything green unless that's the color of the icing on her store bought cookie-cake! (Ann, you know I love you!)
Some of you may worry that she may choke. This angle is also discussed in the book, and it's important to note that a baby's gag reflex is actually located further forward in their mouth than it is in an adult's. Gagging is actually an important part of learning how to eat, because it teaches them how to move food around in their mouth to chew it, and helps them learn to take smaller pieces instead of cramming the entire chunk in all at once. It is also pointed out that, in actuality, spoon feeding is more likely to be a potential choking hazard, simply because the baby is not in control of what goes into their mouth, how far, and how much.
A great quick resource I found is this pamphlet, a quick overview of the book:
http://www.rapleyweaning.com/assets/blwleaflet.pdf. If you are interested, there are quite a few videos on youtube of babies having their first meal BLW style, and it is really neat to watch!
I can't wait to get started. I am leaning towards introducting avacado first, simply because of all it's health benefits and (bonus!) ease of preparation. All I would have to do is slice it! And of course eat the other half. :) Stay tuned for updates as Staci learns to eat like a big girl!
