interested in BLW but afraid he'll choke

[rhii]

I'm debating between making purees for charlie or blw..but I'm terrified of him choking on regular food .. im waiting until 6 months either way. He's five months now and doesn't even have teeth yet! I'm petrified of him choking.. any advice /thoughts? I have a feeling I'll end up not doing it out of fear lol

 

[GracieGoo]

Hi ,

We started bow the week before dd turned 6 months. I won't lie the first few are scary, with lots of gagging and not much eating. But perseverance is key and I would 100% recommend buying the blw book. My daughter got her first tooth just a few weeks ago and since she started weaning she has had everything - loads of meat, veg, noodles, rice... ribs, chicken legs.. absolutely anything. She has an amazing appetite and very very rarely gags now (please undress`nd their is a huge difference between choking and gagging). She amazes anyone that meets her with her eating. She has never had a puree and we have never put food to her mouth, everything has been her own work. She amazes us daily, we can't believe how well she manages it and it is honestly one of the best parenting decisions I have made

Good luck in your choice, and don't forget that there is no wrong way of weaning, just be confident in the way in which one you choose. We have done it both ways, and my preference is blw - would it have suited my ds?! Not sure but it sure does suit dd.. xx

 

[GracieGoo]

First tooth at 10 months, and still managed all food like a pro - def don't need teeth to eat ;-)

 

[special_kala]

All mine have been BLW and i have never had a choking incident. Willow didnt get teeth until 12months+

A babies gag reflex is actually much further forward then older childre/adults so evolution has given them a time to adjust and learn how to safely eat proper food. It starts moving back as they get older so IMO its safer to introduce real food at 6 months then it is to wait until older.

 

[HKateH]

My LO is nearly 8 months and has been fully BLW. He's never choked. He gagged a bit at first but now devours his food like a pro. I can't advocate BLW enough.

 

[lanaross]

I didn't even know about BLW before I came to this forum when I had my DD. We tried BLW at 6 months on the dot and she wasn't ready. We waited for a couple weeks and tried again and she absolutely loved it. Like GracieGoo said, there is a huge difference between chocking and gagging, and there was tons of gagging but a lot of smiling and keeping at it so I just let her figure it out. I have to admit that the first couple months it was hard not to come and "rescue" her but she loved it and kept eating even after gagging After two months or so she was eating like a pro. At one she was using her utensils. Great appetite, unfortunately she did grow up to be a very picky toddler.

One thing that completely threw us off track was her daycare. They refused to do BLW with her even after I presented various sources confirming this approach. They insisted on purees, so we did have to go backwards at least for lunches. To this day I think it affected how picky she is with vegetables since she stopped eating them once she was on purees (gotta blame someone for this right?
We started with soft veggies and fruits and progressed from there. Her favorite (still!!) is little pasta with red sauce. All my friends' kids loved it too when I make it even if they were on purees.
Do not be scared hun, it was intended to be this way, just a very natural thing.

Oh just FYI be prepared for the biggest mess you've ever seen. And I mean blackberries face and hair masks, tomato flavored red floor, pasta in places you've never thought pasta can get etc. etc.

 

[Hangin_On_AGS]

We did purees for about 2 weeks and DD wasn't having it. so we started feeding her everything and anything in little bites, she has gagged a few times but has never really choked. It was said before but it really is best to start when their gag reflux is very forward in their mouth. Mia has been BLW for 2 1/2 months now and she is a champ. If she has something in her mouth she tries to chew it and if it's still to much she just spits it right out. She still has no teeth and this girl eats anything you will put in front of her. And we've been able to really expand her food horizons because we just give her what ever we are eating. Who knew my daughters favorite food would turn out to be Chinese beef and chicken and broccoli with egg rolls, and turkey and coleslaw.

 

[TMonster]

what about the sugar and salt content in these foods?

 

[GracieGoo]

You just need to keep an eye on this type of thing. My dd actually eats better than my son did - she tends to fill up on proper meals rather than have a pureed meal followed by a sweet yogurt or a sugary dessert (ya know like the jarred puds).

We tend to make any sauces for our food so I will add salt last after I have served her kids up. We offer plenty of veg, and tend to have a lot of meaty foods, chicken breasts, steaks etc. We also look at salt on a weekly basis rather than daily, one day she may have more salt in her diet the next she may have hardly any...

 

[HKateH]

what about the sugar and salt content in these foods?

I cook all our meals without salt and only season once I've taken LO's portion out. I do use herbs and pepper though. I keep a stash of extra portions in the freezer for days that my husband and I eat takeaway etc. We check the salt content of things like bread, waffles, bagels and potato cakes and always buy the brand with the lowest. If LO has had toast or crumpet for breakfast, he gets mashed potato or pasta for tea - no salt. Cheese contains salt so I don't give too much.

When we eat out, I order something salt free and if that isn't possible, I bring LO something from home. I also watch sugar - I make yoghurt with Greek yoghurt and fruit purée

 

[Reno]

I recommend reading the BLW book, it dispelled all my fears! We've never had a choking incident where we had to intervene, probably only had 3 'food stuck' incidents and he's got them up on his own! He eats too fast!

Fully recommend BLW though, lots of fun and now at 19 months DS still loves his food!

 

[MindUtopia]

My daughter is 10.5 months and has never had a puree and never choked. She did gag a bit in the early weeks, but no big deal, they are meant to gag and she was fine. She also only has 2 teeth but we started BLW before she had any. They manage! It's amazing what a baby can chew without teeth. She has sandwiches, and chicken strips, and baked fish, and whole broccoli florets, etc.

Only you know what feels right for you, but the reality is, he won't be on purees forever and he'll have to master finger foods without choking in a couple more months anyway. So you can do it at 6 months or you can do it at 9 or 10 months. I think better to save yourself the hassle of all those purees and all that spoonfeeding and just do it earlier. The great thing about BLW is that you actually get to eat too! My daughter has been feeling poorly the past week and getting her to eat at all is a challenge, so she's been mainly eating yogurt, which I've been spoonfeeding her. Spoonfeeding is work! I barely get to eat my lunch because I'm feeding her the whole time. It's so much nicer to sit back and relax and enjoy your food along with them without having to be shoveling food in every few seconds. I've never been more thankful that we did BLW than I am this week and I can't wait til she's feeling well enough to eat normally again.

 

[sevenofnine]

We started BLW with my daughter at 6 months.

She's 10 months now and feeds herself and eats just about anything you put in front of her. She didn't get any teeth until 9 months. (They've come in now, but they were late!)

 

[HKateH]

My LO gagged a bit at first when he was learning to move food around his mouth. It never worried me though. There is a real difference between gagging and choking. I do watch foods though still - I don't give grapes whole and I'm wary of hard foods like apple as my LO tends to take big bites (I grate apple for him).

 

[Hangin_On_AGS]

I also make almost everything from scratch and use no salt. We flavor with other herbs and spices such as garlic, basil, cinnamon, chilli. The same way I would do my own food to eliminate the need for extra salt.