The baby led weaning (BLW) is an expression that means that the “ baby directs or leads the weaning ” and gives name to a method or feeding plan that is known as “self-regulated feeding by the baby” or “complementary feeding directed by the baby. ”And consists of giving the child preparations that are part of the family menu with small adaptations, without resorting to the mashed or purees of the conventional diet.
The exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months, and from this age should start introducing different foods taking advantage of the child develops motor skills to start eating.
This is then when 3 alternatives are proposed to carry out the introduction: food crushed with a spoon (the conventional way), very soft food in pieces or elongated that can be picked up by the baby’s hands (BLW), or the mixed option that combines both modalities.
Benefits of Baby Led Weaning
- The baby participates in family meals, which will make it easier for him to try a greater variety of foods and more integration.
- It is a method that teaches by example and therefore the family should plan healthy meals, so following this method is likely to improve the diet of the whole family.
- It favors the motor skills and the autonomy of the baby.
- It allows to stimulate more the senses of the baby when discovering by himself, different flavors, textures, colors and smells.
- It promotes the early independence of the baby and they become less “picky” children with food or poor eaters.
- Babies determine how fast they eat, and therefore enjoy food more, without being imposed or negatively associated with food.
- By not forcing them to eat or finish the plate, they will be willing to try new foods later in life and mealtime becomes a pleasant situation for the baby.
- It favors the acquisition of good eating habits that manage to avoid overweight and / or obesity in the short and long term.
- As “baby cereals”, “infant yogurts”, “worms”, etc. are practically not used. the baby does not consume added sugars or excess salt (ingredients that are also usually incorporated by industrial papillae….) and that should be avoided both in the first year of life and in the rest.
Precautions
Possible risks of BLW include the risk of energy deficiency, iron deficiency, and suffocation or drowning (although many parents do it successfully); For these reasons, at the University of Otago, New Zealand, a study called BLISS was carried out with the aim of achieving improvements in the BLW and it was concluded that:
To avoid energy and iron deficiency at each meal, a protein food should be offered (do not give more than 30-40 g of meat or fish a day or a small egg a day and legumes), a farinaceous (rice, pasta, bread , couscous …), and a vegetable and / or a fruit. To increase the energy intake we can also use olive oil and / or avocado at each meal. To alleviate the risk of suffocation or suffocation, it is advisable to avoid those foods that can cause choking, such as whole nuts (which can be offered ground), whole grapes, popcorn, corn, biscuits, pieces of apple or raw carrot, etc. that can be consumed in these forms from 3 years of age. It is necessary to differentiate asphyxia (total choking) from the gagging that are common in babies since they have very sensitive reflexes that cause anything that reaches the back of the tongue or throat to produce said gagging or coughing. But this is how they learn that they can and cannot swallow. The process is simple if we offer him soft food that he can crush with his tongue and palate, or gums.
Just as relevant is not leaving the baby alone, so they should always eat accompanied.
Tips to get started in the method
- Trust your baby, accompany you on the way and provide security. The child knows what he needs, and he will know how to manage this new situation, just as he has done and will do with other stages of his development that he will face.
- Get adequate information from professionals who have experience in this method and in infant feeding. In addition, each family is unique, and it may be that sometimes the general advice that we can find on the Internet or in books does not work, and personalized advice adapted to specific circumstances is needed.
- Make sure the baby is really ready to start BLW.
How to know if the baby is ready to start
- If you have reached six months: in the case of premature babies we must pay attention to their corrected age, not chronological.
LA AEPap , also advises to pay special attention to children with some difficulty in their development, chronic disease or risk of malnutrition.
- If you stand upright or sit without support.
- If you show interest when you see adults eat and want to do the same.
- He puts the objects in his mouth.
To this, pediatricians also add other signals to know if the baby is ready to start BLW, such as checking if he can crush the food with his tongue and make lateral movements with his jaws, and know if he is able to turn his head to say you don’t want more.
Prohibited foods before the baby’s first year of life
- Due to the risk of choking, avoid all small, hard foods that do not melt in the mouth, such as nuts, raw apples or carrots. Neither should foods with a round shape, such as grapes or sausages be given.
- Due to their heavy metal content, the consumption of large blue fish, such as bluefin tuna, large mackerel or emperor, should be avoided, as well as certain fish such as the heads of prawns and prawns, or the bodies of crustaceans for their high cadmium content.
- Meat that comes from animals that have been hunted with lead ammunition.
- Vegetables with a high nitrate content, such as spinach, chard or borage.
- Honey, due to the risk of poisoning by Clostridium botulinum.
- On the other hand, some types of algae can contain an excess of iodine and / or arsenic that could be harmful to the baby.
- Whole milk should not be offered before the first year of life, but of course, we are not referring to breast milk or formula, as it is their main food.
- In addition, it is convenient to do without salt, sugar or sweeteners for the preparation of ducks.