Start 4 Life

 

 

It’s been a long time waiting but the  Department of Health have published a new up to date leaflet “introducing solid foods”  2011

http://www.nhs.uk/start4life/Pages/Welcome-to-Start4Life.aspx. or order 0300 123 1021

This leaflet is a great combination of new and traditional  methods of introducing solids with a step by step guide.

 

 

      

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Drinks

 

Weaning takes around six months to complete so milk continues to be important.

 

 

  Babies will continue to feed the same amount at the start of the weaning process and if you’re breastfeeding you will have the benefit of not worrying about drinks during meal times as a baby will satisfy her thirst from the breast milk taking the watery part of the feed.  Formula fed babies will need to be introduced to a cup of water as they may become thirsty once food has been introduced.   The best cups to introduce are those without a lid or spout.  At first you will need to help baby manage his cup and like food, water is a fun experience for baby to explore.  If your baby is thirsty he will take a drink.

 

Start by putting a small amount of water in the cup first so you’re not dealing with too much excitement.  Parents sometimes report that their baby appears not to like water but this is usually not the case, they simply are not thirsty allow time for water to be introduced.  A good indication on how your baby adjusted to weaning will be by his nappy.  Baby’s stools will start to change and you will notice that they become smellier! 

 

There will also be a change in colour and texture.  Some babies may also appear to look uncomfortable when going to the toilet, this again could be normal as they are often battling against gravity at toilet time so observe his stool to make sure it’s not too hard or blood stained.  If you’re concerned speak to your health visitor or GP or head down to your local breastfeeding cafe.   Prolonged use of a bottle or spout can cause damage to your baby’s teeth especially if used with milk or juice; by introducing a cup at this stage will help when the time comes to stop using the bottle at around one year.

Now the Fun Begins

Now that we have covered most of the essentials it’s time to talk about what to expect

 

 

The first time you to eat a meal with your baby you might be feeling slightly nervous, definitely excited and keen to see what he’s going to make of it all.  If you’ve decided to go for the baby-led approach its likely you will observe your baby exploring, touching, throwing maybe tasting but the one thing for certain baby will be enjoying his new experience with food.

 

Like most things, when it comes to children your baby will probably not want to sit for long so try to allow him to lead. It may take a little time for him to actually managed to put some food into his mouth but don’t worry, your baby will not starve as his needs will be met from his milk feeds. This appears to be a question often asked by many parents but if food is offered, healthy hungry babies will want to take it and basic rules of human nature will apply.

 

To make things easier cut food into easy to hold sizes, remembering that it may take a little time for your baby to figure it all out, don’t over load the plate. Babies generally only need a palm sized amount of food at each meal time.  A baby at six months will need to be offered three meals a day with two snacks in between and in the early stages of weaning this may mean extra work for you but remember the whole concept of baby-led is to allow baby to fit into your life style so if your lunch time consists of a cheese sandwich then just offer the same. Baby will be keen to explore the same food. So it doesn’t have to become another job for you to do!!!!

 

Another piece of reassurance is that a baby who is allowed to feed himself food will be less likely to choke. Babies need time to learn how to chew so what you will most likely observe once baby has managed to get some food in his mouth, is that he will simply move is around and push back out. This is the first stage of learning how to chew before swallowing.  Now once baby has acquired this skill you may find that on some occasions he will gag, which for most parents can be terrifying but stay calm and allow his natural gagging reflex to push the food back out…  This is perfectly normal as everyone has a gag reflex but babies have a very noisy one and it is completely different to choking.  If you baby chokes then you will hear no noise and this will be the time to act to remove the object.  It is always a great idea to attend a basic first aid course as becoming a parent does sometimes land you in A & E so a basic knowledge of first aid will always be useful.

 

My own personal experience of baby-led worked great for my life style as my last child did just fit into family meal times; I found that having two older children who needed constant collecting from various school activities allowed this method of weaning to really work for us.  I had already made healthier choices for our food and was accustomed to the constant chore of tiding up.  But for a first time mother I can understand why you may decide not to explore this method but there is no reason why you can’t link both!!!!

 

Now I will guide you through the process of spoon feeding, this method of weaning is more traditional has its advantages and disadvantages.  Spoon-fed babies tend to not be in control with regards to what they eat and how much they eat. I have no objection to this method providing simple rule are considered. Be aware of when your baby has finish never force feed. Babies at six months do not need puree foods, this used to be the case a few years ago when weaning started at four months .Simply mash the food to start with, allow time for baby to chew in between spoonfuls, but still allowing your baby to touch his food. Although you may have chosen to spoon feed this doesn’t mean your baby can’t have family foods. I think the quicker you introduce family meals the better as you don’t want to be cooking separately. As parents we make choice that apply to our own family needs and as we all know we all parent differently so providing you follow the simple concepts of weaning not much can go wrong……but stress free will always be the way to success……..

 

(see http://www.rapleyweaning.com/ for further info)

http://www.nhs.uk/Planners/birthtofive/Pages/Birthtofivehome.aspx

Baby-led Weaning Presentation

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Before you Start

Starting weaning at six months old allows you to have fewer restrictions to foods that can be offered; basically most babies can have all the lovely food that you eat from day one

 

 

Now is the best time to start thinking about healthy eating, bearing in mind, that most things can be beneficial if used in moderation. Limit salt, sugar, and stick to general principles of good nutrition. Maintain good hygiene; always wash baby’s hands before meal times. Be prepared for the mess because this will completely unavoidable.

 

I used to bring the baby bath into the kitchen so that once my daughter had finished eating I could place her straight into the bath. Keep thing simple buy an easy to clean highchair or just sit baby on your lap during meal times, baby needs to be sitting with good posture with the freedom to grab and reach food.  At first you don’t need to any utensil baby will need to develop his palmer grasp and coordination before progressing onto a spoon.  So just sit back relax and enjoy your baby’s first experience of food.

Healthy Eating Presentation

Make Sense of Weaning

The first thing you need to be aware of is that everyone you have contact with relatives, friends and neighbours will want to offer advice on what to feed your baby.

 

 

I remember my hairdresser offering some useful tips but I guess like all information received some will be useful whilst others will be completely bonkers, but at the end of the day as parents we have to sometime take a step back and reflect on the positive. There are two very different methods of recommended weaning today; baby-led and traditional spoon feeding. Both methods encourage the same outcome but with a very different approach. First we will explore baby-led weaning which has been researched and is a positive method to use. 

 

Gill Rapley who is the creator of this approach to weaning and a very experienced health visitor discovered that allowing babies to feed themselves from six months encouraged baby to enhance their development. It is a natural continuation to exploring their sense and mastering key skills of development but most importantly baby fit into your life style not the other way round, enhancing family meal times!!! . 

 

A baby of six months will enjoy the interaction between family members at meal time and it’s a great opportunity to learn all about food and use his observational Skills.  It’s also a great chance for all the family to sit and eat together.  As your children grow sitting at the table all together may become a difficult task but it can also the most important time of family life. 

 

So start as you mean to go on……

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Understanding Child Development

Parents are often keen to begin starting weaning for many reasons.  The current guideline from the NHS and WHO recommend introducing solid food to your baby’s diet should begin around six months

 

 

So looking at your child’s development will be the key to successful weaning. Healthy babies are born with primitive reflexes that respond to specific stimuli; these special reflexes need time to develop into becoming more voluntary and are indicators of how the central nervous system works.

 

The first and most amazing reflex a parent can experience is rooting, the moment your baby is placed onto your skin from birth he will begin to find his own way to the breast and start to root, suckle, suck and swallow; a breastfed baby will tell you when it’s time to feed and will be in control with regards to how much milk he or she needs. Some other important reflexes to observe will be the Grasp reflex, stepping or walking, tonic neck reflex, startle and falling reflex. Your baby has been born with all of these reflexes is part of his survival.

 

Between the ages of three to six months your baby would have made huge progress regarding his or her development. Baby should be starting to demonstrate better head control, will sit with support, visually alert, can grasp and hold objects developing a palmer grasp, bringing object to his or her mouth, responds to familiar routines. Babies start to become experts at observing the world around them and this will be the start of learning about how to extend their experiences, along with an exciting adventure for all to enjoy.

A Bit About Me

The focus of my blog is to support parents, grandparents and babies through the wonderful experience of moving onto solid food where milk becomes a substitute.

 

 

During my experience of working and promoting child health in a community setting  I have regularly observed  parents even Grandparents feeling anxious regarding moving baby onto solid food. As a mother of three children ranging from twelve years down to two years I can relate to how confusion can become apparent but weaning is an exciting time for all the family to enjoy.

 

So hopefully one visit to my blog will gently guide you through the successes of weaning…