Baby-Led Weaning - 5 Top Tips To Get Started

What is Baby-Led Weaning??

Put simply, it means letting your child feed themselves from the very start of their weaning journey. It is a relaxed and unstructured approach where soft pieces of food are offered to bubs to hold in their hand, rather than being spoon fed by an adult. We did Baby-Led Weaning with both our daughters and I have compiled 5 tips to help you get started:

1. Wait until your baby is ready – you can gauge this by whether your baby is sitting in a high chair with good neck control. This is usually between the ages of 6 months – 9 months old.

2. Continue breastfeeding or formula feeding as this is your baby’s biggest source of nutrition.

3. Sit as a family – this is a great way for your baby to join in at mealtimes. You are setting a great example right from the beginning as this promotes socialisation and family time.

4. Give your baby soft foods – my personal favourites are banana, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli etc.

5. Expect mess! BLW can be a messy approach so you are going to need to accept the mess! Investing in bibs with good coverage that are easy to clean is key – our Wipe Away Bibs were designed for this purpose. Check them out here

There are a variety of benefits of Baby-Led Weaning. It supports the development of eye-hand coordination, chewing skills, dexterity, and healthy eating habits. It also offers babies an opportunity to explore the taste, texture, aroma, and colour of a variety of foods – and it teaches them how to know when they have had enough.