BLW - Choking

[pinkmummy]

Please correct me if I am wrong but I am sure that I once read that when doing BLW if your baby was choking not to panic and just leave them to bring the food up themselves Orhave I just dreamt it up

 

[Pyrrhic]

There is a vast difference between a gag reflex, and choking.

True choking is where the airway is blocked by an object, and the child cannot breath or swallow. No child should ever be left like this, and you should make every attempt to clear the airway.

The gag reflex is where the child coughs or splutters, and is fine. It's how they learn to move food around their mouths. The gag reflex in babies is a lot stronger than in adults, so they will cough and splutter a lot sooner than adults will for them to learn how to chew and swallow food properly. As babies grow, they lose the ability to gag early. The gag reflex has an important function though. It teaches them not to over load their mouths, to chew things correctly, etc.

I am yet to talk to a Mum myself who's child has choked properly using BLW, and apparently it's rare. Coughing happens more often, but I would still say Niamh has done it only a few times in the 2 months she's been weaned.

 

[pinkmummy]

Thank you hun x

 

[XKatX]

Exactly what Nic said!! It is natural for a baby to gag quite a lot when they first start weaning. The trick is tokeep calm. If you panic every time shes gags, she will put 2 and 2 together and think feeding is a scary thing.

 

[Nemo and bump]

bethany gagged a bit when we went onto lumpier food. i just stayed calm and told her it was ok. as said above if you start to panic then they start to panic. never let a baby choke though.