[North_Of_60]

A couple of other threads got me thinking about how toddlers eat food, and I was wondering what everyone else does. I haven't cut a grape or a grape-tomato in a long time.

I give DD whole strawberries, whole grapes, whole grape tomatoes, big chunks of melon, and other fruits. She usualy bites the grape tomatoes in half if they're big, otherwise she shoves them in whole and chews them (has 4 molars). Same thing with grapes. And she'll sit there and gnaw and huge hunk of fruit till it's gone.

Since she started solids we've let her feed herself and she is pretty good at not putting in more then she can chew, and if she does, she pulls it out, finishes chewing/swallowing, then keeps going.

Is anyone else in the "let them figure it out" camp as well, or am I the only one walking on the wild side? I have to be honest, it seems odd to cut grapes for an almost 2 year old.

:

 

[FiddleMama]

My son is 17 mo and only just recently got his first tooth so we're still doing a fair share of cutting things up. That said, it's pretty impressive what he's been able chew just with his gums and he's been happily inhaling table food since 9 months or so. He's also a really good self-feeder. The more teeth he gets, the less cutting we will be doing.

 

[North_Of_60]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FiddleMama My son is 17 mo and only just recently got his first tooth so we're still doing a fair share of cutting things up.

Yeah, I didn't think about teeth. DD got her first tooth at 5 months, and had her molars by 11 months. She's had teeth since she started solids, so I have no idea what it's like to offer whole foods without teeth. Good point.

 

[Shanana]

My dd got her teeth early, too, and we've been doing whole foods for a long time now (except for my concern about nuts

). I sometimes cut food smaller because then it means less mess. If I give her a big chunk of watermelon, she'll carry it around and take bites and juice goes everywhere. If I make them bite-sized, it's a lot less messy!

 

[Stinkerbell]

You can do it any way you like but the risk of choking is not made up...it's very, very real. I work in an ER and I'm baffled at how tragedies can be prevented by simple measures so yes, I def. cut up high-choking risk foods like grapes.

 

[AnyMama]

I think it depends on the child. I stopped cutting things up for my older daughter fairly early on because she was just so good at chewing. It seemed like a whole lot of work to cut a grape into quarters when she knew how to put them into her mouth one at a time and chew them well.

My younger daughter is a little different. She didn't have any interest in solids until she was a bit older. I don't often give her grapes, and I still cut her hot dogs into semi-circles.

 

[North_Of_60]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stinkerbell You can do it any way you like but the risk of choking is not made up...it's very, very real. I work in an ER and I'm baffled at how tragedies can be prevented by simple measures so yes, I def. cut up high-choking risk foods like grapes.

I'm curious, how many of these chokings do you see, that are of course not due to developmental delays, or premature feeding of solids (ie, before the child is ready)?

I would think the most common causes of choking would be from allowing the child to self feed before they're ready (not being able to sit up, and thus not being able to swallow properly, tongue thrust, etc), developmental delays or birth defects, and feeding inappropriate foods for the child's ability to self feed.

So outside those causes, how many chokings do you see? In other words, how many preventable chokings do see in children with a mouth full of teeth, who eat one item at a time, don't over stuff their mouths, and chew thoroughly, but spontaneously choked because a small to regular sized grape was not cut in quarters?

I can't imagine there would be that many of them.

ALL the chokings I have heard of were with children who were re-learning to eat solids after already learning to slurp purees. I don't think that's a coincidence.

 

[DebHibb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnyMama I think it depends on the child. I stopped cutting things up for my older daughter fairly early on because she was just so good at chewing. It seemed like a whole lot of work to cut a grape into quarters when she knew how to put them into her mouth one at a time and chew them well. My younger daughter is a little different. She didn't have any interest in solids until she was a bit older. I don't often give her grapes, and I still cut her hot dogs into semi-circles.

Similar with my 2 kids too. My oldest was a good chewer, but my youngest tends to stuff too much food in his mouth and gag more often, so we still cut things up. I occasionally have given him a whole baby carrot, but I usually slice them long ways so they are thinner. He tends to chew them up and spit them out anyhow.

A friend of mine's little boy used to gag on everything. I think some kids take a little longer than others for whatever reason. There are of course freak accidents too though.

 

[ferretfan]

dd is 21m, has almost 14 teeth but i still cut up all her food, especially grapes and hotdogs. she has a tendency to cram the entire food piece into her mouth, whether it be bite sized or not, and we've already had one nasty choking incident. i guess some kids are good at it, some are not. we're at the 'not' end of the spectrum

 

[highdesertmama]

My dd is 17 mos and also has a mouth full of teeth (molars, canines, the whole bit). But she is definitely a mouth stuffer and we have had a close call with a piece of peach in the last month. She has always been a die hard self feeder, so I'm not sure why the concept is eluding her yet. She will bite off a piece of something if I remind her to do so, but will try to stuff the remainder in her mouth soon after.

I've gotten a few comments/laughs from people because I have gotten into the habit of reminding her to "chew, chew and swallow"... but it makes me nervous. I wouldn't trust her with a grape or cherry tomato without cutting it up.

 

[dis]

Quote:

So outside those causes, how many chokings do you see? In other words, how many preventable chokings do see in children with a mouth full of teeth, who eat one item at a time, don't over stuff their mouths, and chew thoroughly, but spontaneously choked because a small to regular sized grape was not cut in quarters?

The thing is, how do you know your toddler isn't going to decide to stuff her mouth? My DD, 25 months, can handle whole grapes, and sometimes I'll hand them to her one at a time and watch to make sure she's biting them in half and chewing them. Because every once in a while she decides to cram handfuls of food in her mouth (I guess she thinks it's funny), so if I'm going to give her a bowl of grapes, they get cut up.

 

[LeslieB]

Our kiddos are same age, and my DS is eating the exact same way. I think letting them learn how to self-feed early on teaches them how to eat properly without choking for a lot of kids, obviously not with all, though. DS has been eating foods whole since around 12 months old. I found he all of a sudden wouldn't eat little pieces of things anymore so I just handed him something whole, and he was happy as a clam.

 

[a(TM)?Star]

I'm curious, how many of these chokings do you see, that are of course not due to developmental delays, or premature feeding of solids (ie, before the child is ready)?

Why would you ever take a chance? I still cut up grapes and hot dogs for ds, and he's 26 months old. They are slippery, and if he puts a whole grape in his mouth, I doubt he wants to choke on it, but it happens! I don't really find that it requires that much effort.

 

[CynicalStar]

I rarely cut up foods, and haven't since about age 1 when my son had a mouth full of teeth. I'm confident in my decision - he eats while sitting at the table where I can supervise; it's not like I give him a bunch of grapes, hotdogs & marshmallows and send him to go play on the swing or slide in the backyard out of sight.

 

[a_cthelen]

I still cut certain foods as ds has very few teeth and no molars at 17 months. This applies mostly to hard foods (fruits and veggies) or items that are small enough to be easily choked on. I will give him a whole mini carrot to gnaw on, which he likes, as well as small, thin apple slices. He definitely prefers to eat big pieces of food, but doesn't have the teeth to do so yet.

 

[Valian]

Hot dogs are a MAJOR CHOKING hazard for children AND adults. I personally know someone whose junior high student (so ~11 yo) choked to death at lunch on a hot dog.

You are welcome to take any risks you want with your child. But accidents are called accidents for a reason. You can't predict when they'll happen, all you can do is take steps to miminze their possibility. Cutting grapes in half and hot dogs into quarters seems like a really small thing to do.

Cutting up food for kids is completely unrelated to letting kids self-feed where the main point is letting kids regulate their intake.

 

[Qestia]

I still cut up foods, but would probably be more laid back about it if DS didn't have a tendency to cram as much in his mouth at a time as it will hold.

 

[North_Of_60]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CynicalStar I rarely cut up foods, and haven't since about age 1 when my son had a mouth full of teeth. I'm confident in my decision - he eats while sitting at the table where I can supervise; it's not like I give him a bunch of grapes, hotdogs & marshmallows and send him to go play on the swing or slide in the backyard out of sight.

Yep, exactly.

 

[ani'smommy]

I never cut anything up for my 2.5 year old. Well, except meat, I guess. She is used to taking bites of things like bananas and peaches and carrots. I babysit for a child a little younger, just turning 2, though, and I think her parents do cut everything up for her. She tries to cram a giant half a banana in her mouth, so she doesn't really get that she has to take a little bite.

I'm not at all worried about choking at this age. I don't let her run around with raw carrots, but if she's sitting at a table and I'm right there watching her, I think she's fine. She has never choked at all. I guess all kids are different.

 

[North_Of_60]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valian Cutting up food for kids is completely unrelated to letting kids self-feed where the main point is letting kids regulate their intake.

I don't think the two are unrelated at all. There is a whole myriad of reasons for allowing children to self feed, and one of those is the benefit of letting them learn how to eat, and how much to eat, etc. Obviously not every child is the same and there will be "crammers", but self regulation is not the only reason we chose baby-led solids.

A little OT, but the few times DD does eat off a spoon it's pretty darn obvious when she's done, so I don't buy the whole "self feeding is the only way for them to self regulate" argument anyways.