Early weaning

[pollydolly]

A girl I have on Facebook is weaning her daughter at 9 and a half weeks
I was disgusted tbh, but I can't say anything - id get so much abuse! X

 

[DecemberWait]

my ped suggested starting solids at 4 months because my daughter was diagnosed with reflux. I gave it a try but in all honesty she wasn't ready...we will try again at 6 months or so and probably with baby led weaning instead of purees...she is definitely interested in food but developmentally cannot eat it yet...

 

[patch2006uk]

I don't get it, either. There was a conversation at the playgroup I go to and every baby except for mine and one other had already started weaning. The oldest of these babies was 22 weeks. And even she was clearly not ready for solids yet. I just sat there a bit speechless.

And I'm so fed up of hearing 'they change guidelines all the time' or 'they're about to change the guideline back to 4-6 months'. The current guidelines have been in place for a good while now. And they've recently been reviewed and they're not changing.

as for allergies, perhaps there is a magical window between 4 and 6 months that all babies could be exposed to allergenic foods and not have a reaction, but it seems very unlikely. I think part of the increase in cases is simply better diagnosis and more recognition of allergies. But our chemical laden lifestyles also can't help!

As soon as DS2 can feed himself, then he can eat. It makes sense to me that babies are ready to eat and are able to eat at about the same age. Why would nature have given them the ability to feed 2 months later than they need it?

 

[patch2006uk]

Oh, and obviously weaning early for reflux or other medical issues is choosing the lesser of 2 evils, as it were. If a baby is ill, struggling to gain weight, failing to thrive, and solids wi help them, then the risk of introducing other food is worth taking. I just don't understand why you would subject an otherwise healthy child to more risk than is necessary simply because they're 'big', 'hungry' or because granny told you to!

 

[Dragonfly]

Nearly every one I know outside of a computer does this. I know someone who had their 9 week old on jars and custard. Her health visitors said it was fine to her. So must be. sigh.

 

[sue_88]

I don't buy the allergy prevelance arguments either. There is two reasons allergies seem to be on the rise even with the 6m guidelines. -A) greater testing diagnosis and general knowledge, and B) majority people do not adhere to the 6month guidelines and are therefore skewing the results.

A baby's gut is near-sterile, and what's known as 'open' . The cells in the small intestine are further apart than a mature 'closed' gut and allow larger molecules to pass through leading a reaction to an allergen (if genetically predispositioned) more likely.

It's particularly important to hold off weaning in formula fed baby's as the milk proteins present strip a baby's natural gut flora (intestine protection essentially) leading them wide open to allergens passing into their bloodstream and if susceptible showing asthma / execema reactions. This doesn't happen with bf babies, the gut remains a near sterile place, allowing the cells to close and then less susceptible to allergens during weaning.

So it's always better to wait for the sake of baby's future, particularly if allergies or reactions within the family (including asthma / execma etc).

Also, I don't personally understand all this purée nonsense, when a baby can feed themselves, that's when they should eat. A couple of hundred years ago people weren't plugging in their blenders getting ready to make baby's meals

 

[sue_88]

Not to mention though, like others, how seriously messy and time consuming it is.

I make everything from scratch for us both, which takes time, tonight I receive a massive eggy cheeses broccoli shower that my LO decided to spray all over me, the floor, the table, the clean washing!! And we're going out for the day on Friday and I'm planning already what I need to take, to keep her happy & full for while we're out.

Boobs, bag, baby was SO much easier!!!!

 

[pollydolly]

Sue I always find your posts so interesting, I had no idea about the formula fed Gut thing and how it doesn't happen to breast fed babies

Very interesting xx

 

[BabyMamma93]

after many tried and failed attempts at getting help for my little boys reflux, my doctor told me that he will refer us for tests if this milk doesnt work (enfamil AR, 2 week later still being sick) he said if by the time he is 20 weeks and still no progress, it MIGHT be worth trying some foods, like bland potatos & carrots mushed up, he did also say im not telling you to try this at 20 weeks, just saying this might help IF he is able to eat and swallow mushed up tattys safely, if not, we will carry on finding a solution to the reflux. im in no rush to wean my LB but if anyone else wants to at whatever age, i leave them to it and dont get riled up about it. No point, everyones always got a better argument

 

[skunkpixie]

Going slightly off topic, I was chatting to my nan the other day and she said that on the advice of the doctor she started giving my Aunt (born in the 50s) baby rice at 3 weeks old because she was a hungry baby :-/ Really shocked me. I knew people weaned earlier back then but I was thinking more like 3 months not 3 weeks! x

 

[Pearls18]

Going slightly off topic, I was chatting to my nan the other day and she said that on the advice of the doctor she started giving my Aunt (born in the 50s) baby rice at 3 weeks old because she was a hungry baby :-/ Really shocked me. I knew people weaned earlier back then but I was thinking more like 3 months not 3 weeks! x

My mum born in the 1960s was fed carnation condensed milk instead of breast milk or formula....!

 

[minties]

So was my mum!