Baby-Led Weaning Part V: Time to Eat, But What?

We often are asked what foods a baby should and should not eat when doing baby-led weaning (BLW). Therefore, our fifth and final installment to our BLW series will tackle this topic.

Foods to avoid or provide Minimally:

1, Honey! Children can’t consume honey before the age of one because of the risk of infant botulism. After one their digestive system has matured enough to be able to move the possible bacteria spores through their body before it would cause harm.

2. Salt. Salt isn’t a absolutely none type of item. However, you should limit the exposure to salt as too much salt for a baby can’t be processed by their kidneys. Thus, the recommendation is less than 1g a day for an infant under the age of one.

3. Milk (Cow, Goat, Sheep). Many know this one pretty easily but your baby needs breastmilk or formula to drink only (read about water next). And these other milk products won’t meet their nutritional need, will fill them, and then they will not receive all that they do need.

4. Water. Water falls under the category of limit but provide especially when participating in BLW. This is because it is helpful for their learning to offer them a cup during their meals. However, a child under one should have only 2-4oz of water a day maximum. Our son will drink maybe 1 oz at nearing 8 months old.

5. Sugar. Sugar is similar to salt in that it needs to be minimized in your baby’s diet. It just isn’t healthy. And especially for babies there are many alternatives like mashing a banana, natural applesauce, and fruits that will provide a natural sweetness without the added health concerns.

6. Soft Cheeses. Soft cheeses are not recommended for your baby again due to bacteria but after one year of age they are safe.

7. Foods High in Mercury (some fishes) should be avoided. This is because mercury can potentially impair the developing brain of a child (in the womb as well as in their early years). Thus, it is not recommended to provide fishes like marlin prior to the age of six.

8. Whole nuts: whole nuts are a choking hazard and should be avoided until age four.

9. Undercooked foods. Undercooked foods such as shellfish, eggs, or meat should be avoided as there are certain bacteria that babies are more sensitive too. Also you run a higher risk of your baby getting food poisoning from undercooked foods.

10. Caffeine. This is purely because their nervous systems don’t need it. This includes chocolate (which is covered under sugars as well), teas, coffee, or sodas.

So these foods/ingredients are the main things to avoid for your baby but if you want an even more (amazing!) checklist go check out The Parent’s Guide to Baby-Led Weaning by Jennifer House. Then your baby’s plate is only up to your imagination. A quick run down of preparing the food for your little one before I send you off to make that snazzy plate.

Food Prep:

- Just make sure when cutting foods they are finger length and about a pinky nail wide (bananas, carrots, celery, meat, etc).

- Fruits should be quartered and berries should be halved or smushed. For us we couldn't imagine trying to cut such tiny round rolling objects so we squash them and they work perfectly (blueberries are a current favorite smushed fruit).

-Many worry about crust on bread, skin on tomatoes, etc. and I admit even after reading House's words saying they were safe I am still cutting the crust off of my 8 month old's bread sometimes. I will say the fear lessens as I have seen how well he can handle himself but know cutting crust, peeling fruit, and removing the skin isn't necessary. My son eats cherry tomatoes and just spits the skin part back out after he has eaten the tomato inside.

-Spreads like peanut butter should be thinly spread on bread to avoid them being a choking hazard as well.

I found this chart to be very helpful on my BLW journey as well. If you have any more questions about your BLW journey feel free to message us here or on our Blog Instagram: Naturalistic_Momma

Our son Patrick's first meal was on St. Patrick's day so naturally I had some fun with it for a picture but in all actuality cut the vegan bread down. Otherwise the plate was perfect to BLW standards and our son LOVED it!