BLW - Pros &Cons

Over the Christmas period we found ourselves eating with friends and family a lot, and I realised then a lot of people were somewhat confused by the concept of ‘Baby Led Weaning’. A few people were concerned with the mess, some were worried she hadn't eaten anything, a couple tried to feed her (that did not go down well…with her or us) – and the list goes on. Someone told us we couldn't feed her olives as she wouldn't like them. As it turned out she munched them down quite happily, but it wouldn't have mattered if she didn't. Our attitude was ‘how will she know if she does or does not like something if she doesn't give it a go’?

So first to clear up some concerns...
  • If she shows an interest in a food we will let her try it (within reason)
  • We do not spoon feed her or hold food up to her mouth, it annoys her and negates the point of BLW
  • She chooses what to eat and how much. Although that doesn't mean she gets her own way with everything and certainly doesn’t mean we only serve her foods we know she’ll like.
  • It doesn't matter if she doesn't eat anything at a specific sitting. She has the option if she wants it, and if she doesn't maybe she's just not hungry, and that's fine

I have to say I was a little surprised there was quite so much confusion (and of course, as with every aspect of parenting, a lot of opinions) over something that feels so normal to us, but then, I guess I had never heard of BLW until I had a baby.




I first heard about BLW on my second visit from the Health Visitor. She suggested it was the best way to follow on from breastfeeding as breastfeeding itself is 'Baby Led'. However, it wasn’t until a few months later when my husband suggested Baby Led that I really started considering it. My baby has always refused a bottle so my husband was looking forward to being involved in feeding. He had done lots of research and suggested that BLW might be a good option for us. After doing a bit of reading myself I was happy to give it a go. I initially thought a mix of traditional and baby led weaning techniques would be wise but as with everything, my baby had her own ideas and to this day she has never eaten anything I (or anyone else) has tried to feed her! No ‘here comes the choo choo train’ for us it seems!

Ultimately, the biggest pro... it works for us!! And as with every aspect of child rearing, do what is best for you and your family. But to give a bit more understanding and information, here are a list of pros and cons that we’ve discovered on our BLW journey thus far.

Pros
  • Eating together - As neither my husband or I are pre-occupied spoon feeding we can all sit down together and eat at the same time. It has been great to introduce family meal times so early.
  • No need to prepare two meals - We all eat the same thing!
  • The whole family eating healthier meals - We still eat a lot of the same meals we always had before Little Bear arrived, but now they are prepared a little bit more healthily. No added salt, unsalted butter, a spray of oil rather than pouring it in, sauces made from scratch instead of tins/cans full of sugar and salt etc.
  • Meal times aren't a fight - We put food in front of her and she decides whether to eat it or not. There is no battle trying to spoon feed her something she is not interested in.
  • Encourages good eating habits - She has had such a wide variety of flavours and textures from an early age and always been encouraged to try new things. Hopefully she will continue to be open minded to trying anything and not grow up to be a fussy eater.
  • Allows each baby to eat as much or as little as they need - The theory is that this will establish good eating habits as she gets older; learning to eat when she is hungry and stop when she is full. 
  • The whole family trying new foods - My husband and I have tried very hard to ensure our own opinions, likes and dislikes when it comes to food aren’t passed onto our daughter. As an example, neither of us are a big fan of fish so we never used to eat it, but we have made it for little bear and she loves it! Now we have it every week and I am trying all kinds of recipes I would have never thought of pre-child.
  • My cooking skills are improving - Making a lot of food from scratch to avoid the high levels of added salt and sugar in ready made foods and sauces means I am learning to cook so many things. I've made some great curry pastes and stir fry sauces (make a batch them freeze them in little pots, I'm not some wonder mum making delicious homemade food from scratch every single evening!).
  • It's fascinating - Just watching her explore new foods, working out the best way to eat it, experiencing new flavours. It's been almost 10 months and I still find it fascinating watching her eat!
  • Learning to chew then swallow - More relevant when you are just starting out, but the traditional form of weaning means babies learn to swallow before they learn to chew, I just think this sounds a little backwards? Although that is just my opinion.
  • Develops dexterity - Also in the early days of weaning, it helps develop other skills that traditional weaning doesn't so much, helping to develop hand-eye coordination

Cons
  • There is no denying it is messy!! - If you are not a fan of mess, maybe its not for you! Wet wipes will become invaluable and you will spend a good portion of your day on your hands and knees!
  • Difficult to gauge how much she been eaten - I only have experience with BLW but I imagine with traditional weaning you have a bowl of food and you have a pretty good idea of how much has been eaten. With BLW I sometimes find myself trying to piece back together a slice of toast in an effort to work out just how much she has consumed! And that's an easy one – when curry and rice is covering the walls and floor, there is just no guessing!
  • There is a lot of food wasted - It does pain me to see my hours of food prep being chucked all over the floor, and when you are on a budget it can feel frustrating you are wasting so much food. I have been known to eat food straight form the floor just to avoid waste!
  • She may not be getting the right balance of food - Some days it does feel she has only eaten bread and cheese, she is obsessed with cheese!
  • Eating out seems a bit more stressful - There have been times whilst eating out I have witnessed another baby eating some kind of puree neatly from the spoon; at the same time my kid is chucking noodles up the wall as the waiter/waitress glances over in horror. I can’t pretend not to have occasionally thought to myself 'man that looks a lot less stressful, why am I doing this?'
  • Our meals are a bit more bland - We do still have spicy food but perhaps not as spicy as we used to, and although we do occasionally add a little salt, spices or seasoning after cooking, I do sometimes miss cooking with them.
  • It can be worrying when they don't eat a lot - There are some days where it feels like she hasn't eaten anything at all and its hard not to worry sometimes. But it is important to gauge their food intake over the space of a few days as their appetites do change from day to day. She may eat hardly anything one day but another day it might feel like she hasn't stopped eating!
  • Having a pet - We have a dog and with lots of food being flung about the house we have to ensure we separate them at meal times to ensure he doesn't over eat. Our dog has a poorly liver so it is even more important for us, a stray grape could be fatal if he finds it first!

"Children’s food preferences and appetites vary from day to day so let your toddler decide how much to eat"





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