Fast-food baby-led low-allergen-risk weaning

How’s that for a title?

On behalf of all Canadians I should come forward as the true Canadian worrier that Aitch was referring to, and perhaps come clean about my anxious tendencies. This, I hope, will help everyone understand that my worrying is simply a result of being a product of a skilfully nervy family, as opposed to being a citizen of a worrying country. Or maybe it’s about my need to be in control?  Perhaps that’s for my therapist to sort out…

I do feel that my worrying about Bubby and his eating has really stemmed from a legitimate source, as opposed to my own delusions. The fact is, he has a cousin on each side with life-threatening food allergies (egg, dairy, wheat, peanuts), and his parents have had eczema and hay fever.  So clearly Bubby is pretty darn eligible for the food allergy award of the year. 

I met someone over the summer who told me her 18-month-old has a dairy allergy, and that her GP told her it was likely because her child had been both (a) genetically vulnerable to developing this allergy, and (b) introduced to milk too early. Combined, this has resulted in the allergy, she thinks.

It seemed clear to me then that when we began weaning, Bubby’s diet needed to be as cautious as possible when it came to introducing foods since exposure to the food plays a significant role in the development of an allergy.

However, being the queen of not-planning-meals-more-than-five-minutes-in-advance, the fact that almost every pre-prepared baby food out there contains at least dairy, if not other potential allergens, has meant I need to find creative ways of weaning that are both healthy and quick.

Since I’ve taken time to figure it out, I thought perhaps there might be others not so keen to sort through everything like I have (or not so obsessive), and my discoveries might help you.  Even if you’re not Canadian… I mean, a worrier.

Here’s my combination approach:

1. Baby-led weaning

2. Introducing low allergen-risk foods at recommended stages to minimize reaction

3. Foods pre-prepared for speedy, dash-to-the-fridge/freezer-and-grab-what-you-need delivery.

Baby-led weaning?  Well, you’re on the website, and can sort that out pretty easily.  We’ve offered Bubby a range of food options at each meal, which he feeds himself.

Introducing low allergen-risk foods? For the sequence of introducing foods, we’ve followed the guide you can find under ‘links’ to the right of the screen: ‘Sequence of Adding Foods…’ (this by the way came thanks to my frighteningly all-knowing paediatric physiotherapist sister—see my above reference to family for more insight)

But what the heck kinds of foods can I give him?
It’s one thing to know what I’m not allowed to feed him, but what and how I can feed him is another problem altogether. I have to recommend a great book which has helped me through all this stuff: Lucy Burley’s ‘Optimum Nutrition for Children’ outlines best options for food choices.

The pacing of introducing foods
Lucy Burley’s book also has a chart that gives recommendations about the pace of the introduction food. It was her chart I’ve used to guide us through first three months of weaning. It’s been particularly helpful since I’ll be going back to work, have been breastfeeding till now, and needed to plan how to wean him from breastfeeding without using (dairy-based) formula.

I suggest using it only as a guide, of course…surely you’ve read enough of this website by now to understand that BLW means being relaxed about mess and food amounts? But I am someone who always needs to feel some sense of control over the world (surely this is related to my great worrying capacity?) and who needs to have some grasp of the direction we’re moving in at all times, so this chart was a lifesaver. 

It’s simple, but good. Obviously the teaspoon and dessertspoon bits aren’t that relevant to Baby Led Weaning but it’s a good place to start. And it does give you a good idea of just how little babies are supposed to be eating in the early stages.

Adapted from Lucy Burney, Optimum Nutrition for Babies and Young Children
http://www.lucyburney.co.uk/books/index.html

The quick and easy solution.
Remember I said I just don’t do ‘plan-in-advance’ foods very well? I used to think it’s because I work long hours.  Now I’m at home with Bubby, I have had to face the raw truth that I simply just don’t like cooking. Not that I don’t have great aspirations - I’ve read through the recipes on this site a million times, thinking ‘right, next time I won’t buy the organic oat cakes, I’ll bake them’.  Hasn’t happened yet, and I’m coming to terms with the fact it may never happen.  Surely this doesn’t make me a bad mum…?

Here’s what I’ve done to make things really easy:

1. Buy up all the vegetables and fruit for baby in one shop. We’ve gone organic with everything.

2. Set aside all the vegetables and fruit baby can’t eat raw

3. Chop them all up in fist-grabbing sizes

4. Steam them (we are the deliriously appreciative recipients of some fantastic hand-me-down baby things, including a ‘babycook’ which has made things even easier, since it reduces the risk of over-steaming food)

5. Let them cool 

6. Put them in separate plastic freezer bags (and label and date them, if you’re OTT organized). We keep food in the freezer for up to 1 month.

7.Toss out everything you don’t need in your freezer and make room for these bags.

8. At each meal, go through the bags, taking out whatever you want to feed baby. 

We also freeze lentils, brown rice and kidney beans in those ice cube boxes, and toss them into separate freezer bags too.We heat them to piping hot in the microwave then let them cool before letting the baby loose on them

Bubby loves the range and variety of his foods, after all he doesn’t know that I’m limiting him. He can eat off our plates when we’re out without having to dig into the rare prefab baby food that doesn’t have dairy, and we’re all happy.

So there you have the consciously anally-retentive approach to baby-led weaning.  May other control-obsessed (and consequently control-grieving) mothers be buoyed and encouraged:  there is a way!