Let's breakdown the top three methods and some pros of each according to our resident Pediatric Dietitian, Caroline.
Purees - The puree method involves purees, or steaming and pureeing whole food ingredients into smoother, thinner textures for baby. The parent will start by feeding baby on a loaded spoon themselves before allowing baby to learn to self feed.
Pros include:
- Having easy textures for babies of all developmental levels to accept
- Convenient and cheap for parents
- Sometimes less intimidating for parents to try.
- Don't worry, this still allows for family mealtime!
Baby Led Weaning (BLW) - This method skips purees altogether and involves giving whole foods in graspable shapes.
Pros include:
- Building motor skills and hand-eye coordination
- Promoting baby's independence
- May help reduce picky eating.
- The baby typically eats what the parents eat in this practice.
The Mixed Method - This method takes a blended approach of both purees and BLW methods.
Pros include:
- Allows for the most flexibility
- Great for daycares who don't follow a BLW method
- A great way to work your way into a full BLW approach
- A good method for developmentally delayed child to build skills.
We hope this helped you learn a bit more about different methods for starting solids!
