Baby Weaning Guide

Weaning Guide Nicholas my second child was very fussy, he wouldn’t eat the jarred baby foods and the only books I could find had recipes for bland purees that he wouldn’t touch. Having lost my first child Natasha I really wanted to make sure that he ate well.

I have always been passionate about food and love to cook and after Natasha died I spent two and a half years researching everything about child nutrition interviewing many experts and working closely with a consultant nutritionist at Great Ormond Street Hospital. I spent days, weeks, months in the kitchen, testing all my recipes on a panel of babies and toddlers and in 1991 published my first book The Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner’. [1]

This weaning guide book has been used by millions of parents all over the world.

Weaning baby from milk to solids is an exciting time and a big step for both of you. Your baby will be entering a whole new world of taste and eating is one of the great joys of life. Babies roughly double their weight at 6 months and treble it at one year. Your baby will grow more rapidly in the first year than at any other time in his life.

Weaning Videos [2]

Introducing solids [3]

[3]

The steps involved in introducing your baby to solid food.

The best first foods
[4]

[4]

Very first foods should be easy to digest and unlikely to provoke an allergic reaction.

Cooking methods [5]

[5]

Steaming or microwaving is the best way to preserve the fresh taste and vitamins in vegetables and fruits.

Good foods for baby [6]

[6]

Starchy foods including bread, pasta, rice, cereal and potato – these provide a good source of energy.

Freezing baby food
[7]

[7]

It saves time to make up larger quantities of puree and freeze extra portions.

When can they have? [6]

[6]

Babies should not have honey before 12 months.

Foods to avoid
[8]

[8]

You should avoid these foods when weaning baby.

How to begin? [9]

[9]

Your baby's first taste of 'real' food is a momentous occasion.

New tastes & textures [10]

[10]

Between seven and nine months is a rapid development period for your baby.

Introducing lumps
[11]

[11]

As teeth begin to emerge you can introduce slightly thicker purees and some mashed, grated or chopped food.

Finger Foods [12]

[12]

Introducing finger foods will help to develop the skills of biting, chewing and self-feeding!

Drinking from a cup [13]

[13]

Try to get your baby used to drinking from a cup from around six or seven months perhaps just giving a bottle at bedtime.

Breakfast
[14]

[14]

You can now give wholegrain low sugar adult breakfast cereals like Weetabix or Ready Brek.

Learning to chew [15]

[15]

By this age, your baby should have gained some teeth and graduated to a high chair.

Encouraging self feeding [16]

[16]

As your child’s hand to eye co-ordination matures, she will find it easier to feed herself.

Links:
[1] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/bookshop/new-complete-baby-toddler-meal-planner
[2] http://videos.annabelkarmel.com/weaning
[3] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-6-months/introducing-solids
[4] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-6-months/best-first-foods
[5] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-6-months/methods-cooking
[6] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-9-12-months/good-foods-your-baby
[7] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-6-months/freezing
[8] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-9-12-months/foods-avoid
[9] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-6-months/how-begin
[10] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-7-9-months/new-tastes-textures
[11] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-7-9-months/introducing-lumps
[12] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-7-9-months/finger-foods
[13] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-7-9-months/drinking-cup
[14] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-9-12-months/breakfast
[15] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-9-12-months/learning-chew
[16] http://www.annabelkarmel.com/nutrition/babies-9-12-months/encouraging-self-feeding