[rootzdawta]

"Spoon-feeding babies pureed food is unnatural and unnecessary, a Unicef childcare expert has warned.

Gill Rapley, deputy director of Unicef's Baby Friendly Initiative said feeding babies in this way could cause health problems later in life.

She said children should be fed only with breast or formula milk for the six months, then weaned onto solids and given control over how much they ate. "

Read full article here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6762795.stm

Interesting point by a paediatric gastroenterologist from the article:
"He said: "Some babies could manage this, but others may not have the oromotor skills necessary to chew the food - they would just push it out of their mouths."

Seems to me if the babe is pushing food out, he's not ready for solids.

 

[TortelliniMama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rootzdawta Seems to me if the babe is pushing food out, he's not ready for solids.

: I also thought this quote was interesting, by the baby food manufacturer rep:

Quote:

He added that generations of parents had relied on baby foods to provide a "safe, sound nutrition" for their babies.

I guess a tobacco company rep could say, "Generations of parents have relied on cigarettes to provide relaxation." Not that baby food is *anything* like tobacco, but it's just pretty silly to claim that because something's been in use for years, then it must be a good idea.

 

[granolalight]

This was the quote from the article I liked:

"Roger Clarke, director-general of the Infant and Dietetic Foods Association which represents members of the food industry, said the research needed to be looked at carefully.

But he said a "one size fits all" policy on baby-feeding was not appropriate."

IMO, some are ready sooner, some later, and some will like pureed foods and some will prefer chunks. It's up to the parent to be sensitive to baby and follow baby's lead.

My ds is 6 and a half months. At this point, BM is of course his main source of food; in the evening when the family sits down for dinner, he joins us, and we just started giving him pureed food that I made: sweet potatoes, and once he tried pears. To me, it's more of a social and cultural issue than a nutrition issue. And he LOVES the sweet potatoes!

 

[alegna]

Cool article...

-Angela

 

[Selesai]

Quote:

Originally Posted by alegna Cool article... -Angela

Until the peds had to chime in at the end.

 

[alegna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Selesai Until the peds had to chime in at the end.

Well yeah, but we know what to expect from them

-Angela

 

[mowilli3]

I remember when I was little that the women in my family and neighborhood would just chew the food a little then give it to the baby. That seems very natural (and a little primative) to me. Why does the UNICEF woman think that babies should be weaned at 6 mo?

My DD loved pureed foods and mashed foods from 4 MO on. My DS is 7 MO and will make himself gag on solids unless he feeds himself.

 

[alegna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mowilli3 Why does the UNICEF woman think that babies should be weaned at 6 mo?

They're not saying weaned at 6 months, they're merely saying that starting solids is the beginning of the weaning process.

-Angela

 

[babygrace]

Quote:

Originally Posted by granolalight This was the quote from the article I liked: My ds is 6 and a half months. At this point, BM is of course his main source of food; in the evening when the family sits down for dinner, he joins us, and we just started giving him pureed food that I made: sweet potatoes, and once he tried pears. To me, it's more of a social and cultural issue than a nutrition issue. And he LOVES the sweet potatoes!

absolutely. i know of older people from other cultures who are robust and active given their age, these people were fed homemade food at a very early age. besides, oftentimes we tend to overlook many other factors that can contribute to health problems in adults, such as diet later in life, physical, environmental and genetic influences.

 

[Collinsky]

And even though foods are introduced at 6 months, since the baby is allowed to self-feed, they won't be getting it too soon. If they're not ready, they don't eat it.

We never did the purees, but simply mashed up table foods. With my first two, we delayed solids, which worked well with my first Dd because she had no interest in solids until she was around 9 mos. But with my second Dd we were fighting her to keep her from eating "too soon". Allowing our son to self-feed on his own schedule has been wonderful. There are some obvious safety issues (raw apple, nuts) but children are remarkably able to deal with a lot more texture than baby food manufacturers would have us think.