Does weaning start at four months with fruit and baby food?
Introduction
Should weaning begin at 4 months with fruit and baby food ? There are so many new parents who ask themselves this question.
If you’re doing this, this article is for you.
As you can see, I decided to include an index, inserted to give you the opportunity, if you wish, to delve deeper into the various aspects of the topic simply by clicking on the titles of the individual paragraphs.
For a complete overview of the world of baby-led weaning, I invite you to discover the video course by Doctor Federica Dell'Oro “Practical, easy and stress-free baby-led weaning” (you can find it at the end of this paragraph).
If you want, you can also visit me on Instagram on the profile @drsilva.com_official .
Now, as I often say in my video content, we get to the heart of the action!
Weaning with fruit and baby food at 4 months: why you should avoid it
If you are wondering whether weaning should begin at 4 months with fruit and baby food, know that the answer , as specified in this video by Doctor Federica Dell'Oro, is no.
There are two reasons . The first is that, at 4 months for sure and at 5 very probably, the baby has not yet developed the psychophysical skills necessary to approach foods other than breast milk or formula.
What exactly are these skills? I've summarized them here, but a quick refresher won't hurt:
Mastery of the palmar grip , which is characterized by the fingers moving in a single block and the puppy's ability to pick up objects in the palm of the hand;
ability to maintain a sitting position with the help of minimal supports (a high chair with good lumbar support, I will never tire of saying, is necessary);
interest in food ;
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loss of the extrusion reflex , the innate reflex thanks to which newborns are able to expel from their mouth, via the tongue, everything that is not liquid.
Furthermore, the little one's intestine is not yet mature enough to process foods other than breast milk or formula.
The second reason is, instead, linked to the fact that, if the child is ready to handle foods other than breast milk or formula , he is ready not only for fruit , but also for vegetables, for cereals, for second courses.
Starting with baby food - here I told the story behind their invention specifying that, around the 60s, baby food was the protagonist of a dangerous trend towards early weaning, sometimes around 2 - 3 months - makes no sense since, when the baby is about 6 months old, he is able to manage different consistencies.
In the past , as just mentioned, it often happened that we started with homogenized food because we started the complementary feeding process too early , with the intention of "kicking the habit" of breast milk.
The result ? In addition to a higher risk for the puppy to have to deal with problems such as allergies, obesity, intestinal problems, the inability to handle different consistencies .
At 4-5 months , in fact, the child can only forcefully swallow baby food and products such as homogenized food.
If you think that by starting weaning with baby food you can avoid the GAG Reflex - here I explained what it is and why you shouldn't fear it - you are very wrong!
Starting with baby food and purees , this reflex, which has a protective purpose and "forces" the puppy to chew solid or semi-solid food that has ended up too quickly in the back of the mouth, does not go away, but can remain even when the puppy is 8 - 9 months old.
Finally, the path towards correct development of chewing is much more difficult .
