Weaning guidelines help pls!

[2wantedpls]

Hi there, wondering if some one can help. My step daughter has brought her baby down to see us for this week. He was born 11 weeks early and is now 15 weeks actual, I think he's about 4 weeks corrected now.

Anyway she is only 17 and has kinda been left to get on with it. She says that's she's been told that her ds has to be fully weaned by 6 months and that the hospital have advised her to start pretty much at 16 weeks. As the preemie milk she's getting will stop then.

I have a ds but we did blw with him at 6 months and have no idea on what to start on doing TW. We have bought some baby rice.

But my main concern is he's so tiny still. About 8lbs. Should her ds really be fully weaned by then? Can he really deal with food at this stage?

Tia

 

[AP]

Premature babies should be weaned between 5-7 months actual age - they are exempt from the government guidelines. It should be TW though to start with.
https://www.bliss.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Weaning.pdf

 

[kelly6407]

My lg was born at 28+6 and I started weaning her at 6.5m (4adj) on baby rice and when she reached 8m (5.5adj) I did blw, there's no need to start too early.

They aren't ready and it has no benefits for baby at all. U should start when u feel baby is ready, just because some1 tells u to start early u don't have to follow that. Wait till a suitable corrected age, when they can physically handle food and want to eat.

 

[2wantedpls]

Thank you, also what about milk? She says it stops at 6 months.

Do you think the free prescription milk stops then? She says no milk after and cows milk at a year?

Doesnt sound right, maybe go on to normal formula after 6 months? It's the pink sma.

 

[AP]

No milk at all? Doesnt sound right at all there - milk needs to be the priority until one year, then you can move to other milks. I would think a continuation of normal formula would be advised after the stoppage of the prescription.

 

[Foogirl]

It may be that the prescription formula stops at 6 months, but if weight gain etc is ok there should be no problem with going on to normal formula. There has still to be milk in the diet so she has to continue with formula. There is no way a baby can be fully weaned at 6 months and even less reason for a preemie to be fully weaned. Maybe she's just misunderstood. It will be a touchy subject but I would try to broach it with her. One thing though, the "just so small" comment is something you need to forget about. I got many many awful stares from people thinking I was feeding my newborn with chips. She was 8 months at the time and couldn't have been more than ten lbs. As long as LO has adequate head control, then wqeaning can happen. I started weaning at about 5 months actual age, which would have made Abby 2 months corrected. So weaning is fine, but keep on with the milk too.

 

[kelly6407]

My little girl was on the prescription milk till she was 14months. She was on it longer because she was underweight and needed it but if ur baby has caught up then I would put baby on normal baby formula till a yr old! I waited till a yr adj to go to cows milk

 

[Foogirl]

I'm also wondering, given her age, if she's worrying about the cost of formula once the prescription ends?

 

[2wantedpls]

Thanks guys. She's gone home now.

We had another chat and advised her to chat with her health visitor about the milk, as I would assume baby would go to normal formula after 6 months. But to double check.

I also had a friend round to give her advice on TW, and we advised her to go slow & easy with him.

Hopefully she will take our advice, but who knows.