why has the advice changed again!!

mummydeb · Apr 1st, 2012, 14:00 PM

3yrs ago i was advised to wean my dd at 15wks with baby rice then slowly introduce veg and fruit.
this time round i was advised to wait till 4 months why has it changed in 3yrs? whats there new discovery now?
my ds is on 9oz bottles 4/5 times a day sleeps from 7 till 7 and has since 11wks he can sit up well in a bumbo, interested in what we eat i feel he is ready but will hold of untill 4 months but i dont no how ill get through till the 15th april as he is a big boy.
whats changed? why have they decided this now? it was my hv who told me to wean dd

aimee-lou · Apr 1st, 2012, 14:16 PM

4 months/17 weeks was the minimum when I weaned my 2.5 year old. I think this is the same now, especially for formula fed babies (or so I am led to believe). The older the better really, but Earl was the same as your little boy, and we just about got there (16weeks and 6 days when he stole some toast from hubby's plate

). According to research the infant digestive tract isn't mature enough prior to 17 weeks to cope with solids without risking causing problems in the future.

summer rain · Apr 1st, 2012, 21:22 PM

The advice has actually been as close to 6 months as possible since 2003, and no earlier than 16 weeks then (a couple of years later they reiterated this to be no earlier than 17 weeks) a HV advising weaning before then is actually going against guidelines and their own training and could face disciplinary action, weaning before 16/17 weeks has not been advised since the early 90s officially so guidelines have not changed recently xx

ETA: this is the official government advice; it has roughly been the same since 2003 but has recently been revised to even more strongly advise waiting until 6 months and also to include baby led weaning

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnan...s-weaning.aspx

Kess · Apr 2nd, 2012, 11:00 AM

BTW, just because he's big doesn't mean he needs solids. My little boy is... well... not little! - he's in 12-18 month clothes at 8 months and was around the 95th centile (or a couple above or below) most of his life before 6 months (when his growth actually slowed down thank goodness!). We managed fine waiting until 6 months. Yes he watched me eating before that, but he watched me doing lots of things he isn't/wasn't ready for himself. He was hungrier (there's a growth spurt around 4 months) but I just fed him more milk.

mummydeb · Apr 2nd, 2012, 16:01 PM

well i will be weaning at 4 months not 6 as i was advised by my hv.
he is having 9oz bottles of hungry baby milk today he has been hungry every 2hrs so i obviously feed him more milk but my poor little man is hungry and milk dont seem to be enough right now holding of for another 13 days then start him on his first tastes.
not impressed about my old hv advising me to wean my dd at 15wks seeing as its supposed to cause so many problems just hope it dont. although iv had no problems and i was feed from 8wks back then though babys was feed early and there wasnt any warnings

Miss_Bump · Apr 2nd, 2012, 16:27 PM

Ounce for ounce milk has more calories and nutrients than food and if you are weaning at 4 months I'm guessing you will be starting with somethig like baby rice which will just stodge his tummy out and make him feel fuller without giving him all the goodness that milk provides..

lozzy21 · Apr 2nd, 2012, 23:51 PM

Your HV is still giving you the wrong advice, guidelines are to wean at 6 months not 4. The 17 week guideline is for baby's with conditions like reflux where weaning can help their condition.

Maxy1 · Apr 4th, 2012, 18:06 PM

My DS is a 'big boy' also and we have got to 5 months (23 weeks) before he started stealing food from us!! He doesn't sleep through and in the past four weeks has been ravenous every 2 hours including nights where he can barely go 3 hours without thinking he is starving. He used to sleep through with one feed!! His dr said I can start giving him some baby rice in the evenings and see if that will let him sleep a bit longer, especially since he has started grabbing at every bit of food he can reach and shoving it in his mouth!! LOL!!

Was your previous HV an older lady? I know the old rules in the 60's was '16 weeks or 16lbs whichever came first' for when you could wean. Maybe she was harking back to that???

summer rain · Apr 6th, 2012, 17:32 PM

Maxy1, in the UK the age was only changed to no earlier than 16 weeks in 1993-before this the earliest weaning age was 12 weeks or 12lb! Even up to when my eldest was small many weaning guides in magazines and baby books said if your baby was 12lb by 17 weeks then they should be weaned then-the 6 month guideline had only come in late the previous year and wasn't really being implemented yet. In the UK in the 60s the recommended weaning age was 6 weeks and the ideal first food recommended tended to be weetabix! This guideline only changed in the mid to late 70s but even still I have heard anecdotally of HVs advising solids before 10 weeks to this day! xx

Amy31 · Apr 8th, 2012, 11:23 AM

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12180052

Interesting article.

Apr 1st, 2012, 14:00 PM	#1
mummydeb Mum (Mom) Chat Happy BnB Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: england Posts: 1,087	why has the advice changed again!! 3yrs ago i was advised to wean my dd at 15wks with baby rice then slowly introduce veg and fruit. this time round i was advised to wait till 4 months why has it changed in 3yrs? whats there new discovery now? my ds is on 9oz bottles 4/5 times a day sleeps from 7 till 7 and has since 11wks he can sit up well in a bumbo, interested in what we eat i feel he is ready but will hold of untill 4 months but i dont no how ill get through till the 15th april as he is a big boy. whats changed? why have they decided this now? it was my hv who told me to wean dd

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Apr 1st, 2012, 14:16 PM	#2
aimee-lou Mum (Mom) BnB Addict Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Norfolk - UK Posts: 8,891	4 months/17 weeks was the minimum when I weaned my 2.5 year old. I think this is the same now, especially for formula fed babies (or so I am led to believe). The older the better really, but Earl was the same as your little boy, and we just about got there (16weeks and 6 days when he stole some toast from hubby's plate ). According to research the infant digestive tract isn't mature enough prior to 17 weeks to cope with solids without risking causing problems in the future.

Status: Online

Apr 1st, 2012, 21:22 PM	#3
summer rain Mum (Mom) BnB Elite Join Date: May 2010 Location: South East England Posts: 16,297	The advice has actually been as close to 6 months as possible since 2003, and no earlier than 16 weeks then (a couple of years later they reiterated this to be no earlier than 17 weeks) a HV advising weaning before then is actually going against guidelines and their own training and could face disciplinary action, weaning before 16/17 weeks has not been advised since the early 90s officially so guidelines have not changed recently xx ETA: this is the official government advice; it has roughly been the same since 2003 but has recently been revised to even more strongly advise waiting until 6 months and also to include baby led weaning http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnan...s-weaning.aspx

Status: Online

Apr 2nd, 2012, 11:00 AM	#4
Kess Mum (Mom) Chat Happy BnB Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: England Posts: 2,103	BTW, just because he's big doesn't mean he needs solids. My little boy is... well... not little! - he's in 12-18 month clothes at 8 months and was around the 95th centile (or a couple above or below) most of his life before 6 months (when his growth actually slowed down thank goodness!). We managed fine waiting until 6 months. Yes he watched me eating before that, but he watched me doing lots of things he isn't/wasn't ready for himself. He was hungrier (there's a growth spurt around 4 months) but I just fed him more milk.

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Apr 2nd, 2012, 16:01 PM	#5
mummydeb Mum (Mom) Chat Happy BnB Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: england Posts: 1,087	well i will be weaning at 4 months not 6 as i was advised by my hv. he is having 9oz bottles of hungry baby milk today he has been hungry every 2hrs so i obviously feed him more milk but my poor little man is hungry and milk dont seem to be enough right now holding of for another 13 days then start him on his first tastes. not impressed about my old hv advising me to wean my dd at 15wks seeing as its supposed to cause so many problems just hope it dont. although iv had no problems and i was feed from 8wks back then though babys was feed early and there wasnt any warnings

Status: Offline

Apr 2nd, 2012, 16:27 PM	#6
Miss_Bump Mum (Mom) BnB Addict Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: South East Posts: 7,137	Ounce for ounce milk has more calories and nutrients than food and if you are weaning at 4 months I'm guessing you will be starting with somethig like baby rice which will just stodge his tummy out and make him feel fuller without giving him all the goodness that milk provides..

Status: Offline

Apr 2nd, 2012, 23:51 PM	#7
lozzy21 Mum (Mom) BnB Spammer Elite Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Teesside, Posts: 23,583	Your HV is still giving you the wrong advice, guidelines are to wean at 6 months not 4. The 17 week guideline is for baby's with conditions like reflux where weaning can help their condition.

Status: Offline

Apr 4th, 2012, 18:06 PM	#8
Maxy1 Mum (Mom) Active BnB Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 660	My DS is a 'big boy' also and we have got to 5 months (23 weeks) before he started stealing food from us!! He doesn't sleep through and in the past four weeks has been ravenous every 2 hours including nights where he can barely go 3 hours without thinking he is starving. He used to sleep through with one feed!! His dr said I can start giving him some baby rice in the evenings and see if that will let him sleep a bit longer, especially since he has started grabbing at every bit of food he can reach and shoving it in his mouth!! LOL!! Was your previous HV an older lady? I know the old rules in the 60's was '16 weeks or 16lbs whichever came first' for when you could wean. Maybe she was harking back to that???

Status: Offline

Apr 6th, 2012, 17:32 PM	#9
summer rain Mum (Mom) BnB Elite Join Date: May 2010 Location: South East England Posts: 16,297	Maxy1, in the UK the age was only changed to no earlier than 16 weeks in 1993-before this the earliest weaning age was 12 weeks or 12lb! Even up to when my eldest was small many weaning guides in magazines and baby books said if your baby was 12lb by 17 weeks then they should be weaned then-the 6 month guideline had only come in late the previous year and wasn't really being implemented yet. In the UK in the 60s the recommended weaning age was 6 weeks and the ideal first food recommended tended to be weetabix! This guideline only changed in the mid to late 70s but even still I have heard anecdotally of HVs advising solids before 10 weeks to this day! xx

Status: Online

Apr 8th, 2012, 11:23 AM	#10
Amy31 Mum (Mom) Chat Happy BnB Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Aberdeenshire Posts: 1,144	http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12180052 Interesting article.

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