BLW - food size?

[Ninetales]

I've been taking solids very slowly. Elsa's only had a few things so far, and I'm not sure how to proceed with it. I thought I was supposed to give her small pieces of things so she wouldn't choke, but what I've been reading has said it should be the size of her fist.

Which is well and good for larger things, but what about small things? Peas, grapes, things that are smaller than her fist on their own? Are those supposed to be mashed up then? Everything I've found talks about pureeing but I was interested in BLW because I wanted to avoid purees. I've given Elsa peas a few times and just made sure to "pop" them so they're not round anymore. Is that enough? Or am I supposed to mash things so they're very fine?

And then when things are soft, like bananas, am I supposed to mash them or can I give her a piece that is too big for her to fit in her mouth and let her just munch on it?

Totally confused. I've looked at a lot of sites but nothing really answers this specific question - just that I shouldn't worry about choking. Well, that's a little hard to do, you know? So any help here would be appreciated.

[triony]

I have the same questions!

Edit: Was your baby 13lbs 8 oz at birth?! Wow! Congrats to you, mama!

[akat]

I always watch for real choking, but I think it means, don't panic over gagging - which happens, is usually okay, and can look really scary.

sorry, I know I'm not answering your actual question though

[MJB]

The idea behind fist-sized pieces is that most 6 mo. olds don't have a pincer grasp and therefore cannot pick up and eat things like blueberries, peas, cheerios, etc. When they develop a pincer grasp a couple of months later, those are fine for them to eat. There's nothing *wrong* with offering those foods earlier, they just might not be able to get them into their mouth as easily as say, a sweet potato fry or a pear slice. With bananas I would cut it up into chunks or give them a whole banana if they can hold it.

[sapphire_chan]

With smaller things, I'd be prepared to give only a few at a time because those can be "stuffed".

With hard-to-chew food, make sure to give large pieces (even bigger than a fist) so that your dd can't put the whole piece in her mouth and has to take tiny baby bites. (She might take a whole bunch of baby bites, but will still end up with a mouthful that's easier to chew than one "big" (e.g. the size you'd normally think to cut food up for a kid) piece of food.)

[Dov'sMom]

Check and see what your baby's skills are like -- my 7 month old can definitely pick up most small foods and could at 6 months. A few things are harder because they stick to the tray, like avocado cubes or banana -- he has no trouble picking up a spear but a cube doesn't work so well for him.

I have also given him a banana whole, but what tends to happen is he bites off a huge chunk and little bits dribble out of his mouth as he chews, making a huge mess. Little pieces still make a mess (face it -- banana is messy when you're a baby) but not as bad.

[Ninetales]

So is the prevailing notion that if she can pick it up and put it in her mouth to eat, it's appropriate?

I wanted to give her some apple but most everything I saw talked about cooking it or baking it. Can't she just have a piece of apple? And if she can, how big is it supposed to be?

I suppose I'm probably just overthinking this as usual.

[Knitting Mama]

I think she can have a thick slice of apple, because chances are, she will take itty bitty little bites off of a large piece like that.

[AislinCarys]

I'd give her a whole apple, un-pealed, and just help her hold it if it is heavy (cut or bite off a chunk first to "open" it). DD grabbed my apple at 7 months - and ate it, despite having no teeth at all! Cut up apple pieces on the other hand are the only things she's actually really choked on. I think this is because with the whole apple she scraped off tiny bits (slow, but fun!), the apple slices would break off easily in her mouth, too big to swallow.

We found it was easiest with bigger pieces in general.

[npl]

Cooking fruits and vegetables is also tolerance issue - when you cook the food the proteins are broken down a little, so are less allergenic and also easier to digest. There's a benefit also that they are softer so easier to chew and less of a choking hazard.

[Ninetales]

Ah, see, I didn't know that either. Is there anyplace out there that explains all this stuff? I've only been able to find information on the benefits, and how to make mushes.

[sapphire_chan]

http://babyledweaning.blogware.com/

What I found to be easiest, after she had grasped the idea of eating food at all, was to just let her take whatever off my plate.


OH! One thing though, cut raisins in half. If those go down whole they can re-hydrate inside the tummy and cause pooping problems. What I'd do is eat half the raisin myself and give dd the other half.

With grapes, I'd only give large ones and I'd watch to make sure she bit into it first, if she went to put the whole thing in her mouth, I took it away and bit it for her.