My HV visit...a breath of fresh air!

[Urchin]

My HV came to do my PND questionnaire today and what a nice change from the HV's at clinic!

I haven't seen her for ages and she asked how I'm getting on etc. I told her Brody has been waking every 2 hours and straight away she said "Have you thought about weaning" (Brody is 4 months old today)

She basically said I cannot be expected to carry on like this, especially with a 4 year old to take care of aswell, and the 6 month rule has a lot to do with the obesity statistics and the third world etc.

I told her I have tried him with a bit of Baby Rice and he gobbled it up, so she agreed it sounded like he is ready and needs a bit extra now to fill him up and to just go for it! Just this week at clinic I mentioned the sleeping to them and they were all "Well don't get tempted to wean until he's 6 months "

My HV also said that weaning used to be done on weight and a baby over 15lbs was seen as being ready to wean.

What a breath of fresh air from the usual HV preaching!

 

[Rosieroo]

My HV are completely different and are very pro weaning which I find disturbing - especially when one of the HV said he'd been to one house and found the mum was giving her 6 week old baby 3 meals a day. How can they be giving good advice if that happened?

I think that you're right to wean though Urchin. He's obviously ready for it. It's good that you're following him rather than guidelines I will be doing baby led weaning - she'll be weaned when she's ready. She's 15 weeks on Monday and there is no way at the moment she's showing any interest in feeding on anything other than boob!!

 

[Layla]

it really bugs me when HV tell you not to give soilds before 4 or 6 months, its textbook stuff and its only a guildline, yet they tell mums it and they belive it.

every baby is diffrent, they are all born at diffrent weights etc.

some babies are ready for solids at 3 months, other can go till 6 months, it all depends on the child.

also there is nothing wrong with giving your baby soilds (rusks, baby rice) from 3 months plus, just as long as you dont wean, alot of people get mixed up between the two, HV forget to mention that to mums tho!

parents know there babys needs best, so i think they are a better judge then HV

 

[Lucy]

Sorry if this is a daft queston but how many wks is 4 months.6 months etc? Is 4 months 18 wks?

They were talking about weaning at my post natal grp today and said what your HV had, that they say 6 months now because there's so much child obesity.

Lucy

 

They say 17 weeks or 4 months. 26 weeks is 6 months.

I'm going to start weaning Damien at 4 months, he is looking ready to wean, although I will take him slowly through it - he's been through enough without having mushed carrot thrown down his neck twice a day after 2 weeks!!

 

[Urchin]

also there is nothing wrong with giving your baby soilds (rusks, baby rice) from 3 months plus, just as long as you dont wean, alot of people get mixed up between the two, HV forget to mention that to mums tho!

A very good point Layla. Weaning is substituting milk with other foods, what I will be doing is topping up his milk diet with something a bit more substantial. HV's NEVER tell you there are 2 different ways to give your baby solids.

 

[BubbleOne]

I started giving Phoebe Baby Rice last Friday and she loves it.

Yesterday I started her on pureed Carrot and she loves that too.

She loves the whole spoon thing

So after less than a week of weaning she is enjoying Baby Rice with her breakfast feed and pureed veg with her lunch bottle.

They say 2meals this soon is too much but she loves it so I am going to continue.

Although she happily eats an oz of rice and carrot. Much more than the 2 tea spoons they reccomend?

 

[Yvonne]

I had no idea about the difference between the 2 and i have had 2 kids!!
So the baby rice and the rusk, when do you give them that in the day if it isn't classed as weaning?
I just weaned Amy at 4 months as the HV told me to, but Jack is 14Lb 5oz and is on 7-8 oz a feed! and he is still feeding every 3 hours.

Last time i told my HV this she said that because he is having his daily amount of milk in the day time (with him feeding 3 hourly) she said that this is why he sleeps so well at night.
He is 11.5 wks old now but is 8 oz too much??

 

[Lauz_1601]

Ella is the same, well she has 7oz every 3 hours and she sleeps 10hours at night (sometimes more!), so I think the HV is right (for a change) he must be having all his feeds catching up from not feeding at night - which is a good thing

 

[Yvonne]

I'm just paranoid he's gonna get too fat

 

[Layla]

I had no idea about the difference between the 2 and i have had 2 kids!!
So the baby rice and the rusk, when do you give them that in the day if it isn't classed as weaning?
I just weaned Amy at 4 months as the HV told me to, but Jack is 14Lb 5oz and is on 7-8 oz a feed! and he is still feeding every 3 hours.

hun, i give Coby half a rusk before bed, i started doing it at teh beinging of the week, i make it very runny so it doesnt sit on his tummy. he takes it off a spoon and loves it! he even shouts at you if you take to long to fill the spoon up lol

you can give Jack a rusk now, maybe in the evening, make sure he is not to hungry whren you try or he will not enjoy it first go.

your not replaceing a milk feed with a rusk so its not classed as weaning, its just an extra to help then if they are hungrier babies

hope that help
xxxxx

 

[Yvonne]

Ah thanks alot Layla that has made it clearer.
What does coby weigh now? they were born on the same day so it's just to give me an idea, i am paranoid he is over weight.

I will try the rusk, he is sleeping from 8pm-7am so i'm not sure if it would be better to give it in the morning as he doesn't need any extra at night time.

Thanks again Layla!

 

[Layla]

hi hun,

Coby was 12lbs 8oz nearly 3 weeks ago, i was going to get him weighed last monday but i didnt get time, so im going to do it this monday, so i will let you know.

if Jack is feeding loads in the day then give him a rusk in the morning time if you feel happy doing it

xxxx

 

[BubbleOne]

Sorry to sound like a nagging old bint but....

I was told (and agree) that you should not introduce babies to rusks until they have had pureed fruit and veg etc because it can give them a sweet tooth so you can have a lot of hassle getting them to like healthy things.

I am not a health freak but will not be giving Phoebe rusks at all if I can help it. Easier said than done I guess

A baby I know was weaned on rusks and Banana porridge And she is a fat baby!! (Ask Sami. She's seen a pic!! lol)

 

[Strangeness]

Like was said on here there's a huge difference between weaning and introducing a bit of solids. Aaron had a bit of baby rice from 3 months, he was feeding every hour and I couldn't keep up. It's only now that's he's 6 months that I am properly weaning him but he is still having milk but his food comes first now.

 

[Yvonne]

I started Amy on Rusk and she loved (and still does) fruit and veg- she eats it over chips etc.

If you child is going to like fruit and veg they will like it whether it was the first thing they were introduced to or not i think.

I get told alot of different things by different people i think it's all very confusing!

 

A baby I know was weaned on rusks and Banana porridge And she is a fat baby!! (Ask Sami. She's seen a pic!! lol)

I can confim this statement as true - half the size of her mum at 6 months I swear!

 

[Yvonne]

Rusk isn't to wean with its just to add a little extra to a feed as well as bottle, your not to replace the milk with rusk! Blimey no wonder the baby was big!!

 

[Urchin]

Well Brody has not been interested in babyrice AT ALL today, I've tried 3 times, and he's just been spitting it out...the first few days he loved it!

I bought some Aptimil today and might just give him a top up of a few oz last thing tonight and hope he sleeps for longer than 2 hours!

 

[BubbleOne]

Tell me about it Yvonne!!

She used to have rusk with milk, bananas mashed, baby rice and flavoured porridge.

She is large!!!

Nearly 9mths now and probably eats roast dinners!! lol