BLW Question

emilykathleen511 · October 2013

Hi there. My 8 month old has been doing BLW since he turned 6 months. At home, we offer him food whenever he shows interest or it's convenient, so not every meal, but often. At daycare, he gets breakfast, lunch, and snack every day. He is still eating very, very little. He puts lots of different foods in his mouth and chews them up, but then spits them back out. At daycare, his teachers say that he will eat a bite of bread occasionally, and always eats his crackers, but that is about it. I know some people say that with BLW it takes a while before they become interested, but he is definitely interested in food--just not in swallowing! Is this normal? When should I become concerned?

nanabanana06 · October 2013

It's normal. BLW is more about learning tastes, textures, and learning how to properly chew than actual consumption. They are getting plenty of nutrition from BM or Formula. he'll figure it out.

blu-eyedwife · October 2013

Personally I would worry a little if he still wasn't eating whole foods after he turned one. But that isn't saying much, because I wouldn't worry too much even then. You can almost count on toddlers being not great in the eating department.

As long as there isn't cause for concern due to his weight/growth I wouldn't worry about food intake. It's a battle there's no reason to fight (unless there is because of weight/growth).

SidraJedi · October 2013

I can see why your DC would be weirded out if they aren't used to BLW. I would try to explain to them that it is okay if he doesn't eat all of his food that you send him with.
The DC might be used to feeding babies purée in which case the babies eat much more in volume than a baby who is practicing eating with BLW.
There is no cause for concern if your baby isn't eating solids consistently. My DD usually eats when I eat so that means three "meals" a day. But some days she only eats once b/c of naps or whatnot. It doesn't bother either me or her b/c she gets what she needs from breastfeeding.
As PP have said as long as he is growing fine and your pedi has no worries then your LO is eating enough and you can just relax and talk to your DC about what to expect with BLW.

ec0983 · October 2013

i know i'm late to the game here, but i thought i'd share my similar experience. we started BLW with DS at 6 months as well. i swear, he didn't actually consume more than a bite or two until he was 10 (almost 11) months. it was getting to the point where i was embarrassed to feed him around other people because 1. he wasn't eating and 2. they didn't understand the way i fed him. and he's such a shorty and slept so poorly at night that i'm pretty sure my friends, family, and DCP thought i was being a negligent mom and not giving him sufficient nutrition. i even started to question our decision to do BLW instead of traditional spoon feeding with purees. and then one day, he started eating EVERYTHING. i remember one meal, i stopped halfway through to pick him up out of his high chair because i was convinced he had stuffed all his food next to his hips where i would always find it after he was done "eating". but there was nothing there. because he had eaten all of it. he is an awesome eater now and i wouldn't change a thing; i'm so glad we stuck it out. whenever our next one comes around, we'll do BLW again, and if that LO does the same thing, i'll know to ignore what everyone is saying and just keep on keepin' on!

Want a personalized experience?

BLW Question

Re: BLW Question

Choose Another Board

Search Boards