Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) is a new craze when it comes to feeding our little ones. BLW stands for Baby-Led Weaning, a feeding method that involves going straight from breastmilk or formula to solids, with the ‘weaning’ being led by the baby. The idea is to help the child move from breastmilk or formula to solids at their own pace. Instead of spoon-feeding purees, you allow your child to self-feed whole foods from the outset. The child can explore food to their heart’s content and experiment with their senses by holding, looking at, feeling, touching, tasting, and chewing bright-coloured foods such as banana, cooked carrot, broccoli, and potatoes. Will it help your little one self-feed? Or is it better to continue with the more traditional weaning method? We’ve come up with some pros and cons to help you decide.

Pros of Baby-Led Weaning

1. Promotes Motor Development and Dexterity

The extra strengthening of hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills that BLW provides helps babies to grasp different kinds of food shapes and textures, which further sharpen dexterity and hand movements.

2. Encourages Healthy Eating Habits

Exposing infants to a host of foods from their very start, BLW advocates suggest, will also help them develop some innate taste for a range of more healthful, varied foods. In turn, those early experiences might help reduce ‘picky’ eating in the future.

3. Enhances Self-Regulation

Babies with more control over their own feedings (eg, self-feeding) can learn to regulate their own intake: they can eat until they’re full, rather than until a pre-determined amount of food is consumed. This matters because self-regulation, determined in large part by motor experiences early in life, can result in a baby learning to avoid overeating – and therefore avoiding obesity – when they’re an adult.

4. Facilitates Family Meals

This is partly because BLW empowers babies to take part in family meals, feeding themselves modified versions of the meals others are eating. It’s better for their social skills, and can make mealtimes more pleasant, communal experiences.

5. Cost-Effective and Convenient

BLW frees parents from having to set aside time to prepare separate, pureed meals, or spend money on baby-specific foods, by allowing them to offer the same food that the family is already eating together.

Cons of Baby-Led Weaning

1. Choking Risks

Indeed, one of the biggest worries related to BLW – choking – can be avoided if parents are careful to offer only age-appropriate foods and keep an eye on their babies at all times.

2. Messy Process

Because the baby is learning to handle food as part of BLW, it can be messier than spoon-feeding. This can mean more toileting after meals.

3. Nutritional Concerns

There is the chance that babies can miss out on essential nutrients, especially iron, if using BLW alone. Parents will need to ensure overall balance and are likely to need to supplement where appropriate.

4. Slow Weight Gain

Babies can also eat less at the beginning of BLW, and be a bit slower in their weight gain. If your baby is having a normal, healthy growth curve, then keep encouraging her! But you might want to consult your paediatrician.

5. Requires Patience and Commitment

BLW requires more patience at the beginning as it takes babies longer to eat and they will be more interested in playing with their food. Parents also need to be prepared for the mess. This means committing to see it through.

Conclusion

There’s a lot to like about BLW (from supporting motor skills to encouraging healthy eating habits), but it’s not for everyone. Not all families have the time, energy or patience for it, and though it might be natural, that doesn’t mean it’s mess-free or choking-proof. Like nearly all parenting strategies, what works will vary from child to child and family to family. So, if you’re considering BLW, it’s wise to do your homework, ideally with the help of a healthcare provider, and approach it with caution, just to be safe.