Healthcare professionals’ and mothers’ knowledge of, attitudes to and experiences with, Baby-Led Weaning: a content analysis study

Abstract

ObjectiveBaby-Led Weaning (BLW) is an alternative approach for introducing complementary foods to infants that emphasises infant self-feeding rather than adult spoon-feeding. Here we examined healthcare professionals’ and mothers’ knowledge of, attitudes to and experiences with, BLW.Design, setting and participantsHealthcare professionals (n=31) and mothers who had used BLW (n=20) completed a semistructured interview using one of two tailored interview schedules examining their knowledge of, attitudes to and experiences with, BLW. Interview notes and transcripts were analysed using content analysis to identify subcategories and extract illustrative quotes.ResultsHealthcare professionals had limited direct experience with BLW and the main concerns raised were the potential for increased risk of choking, iron deficiency and inadequate energy intake. Although they suggested a number of potential benefits of BLW (greater opportunity for shared family meal times, fewer mealtime battles, healthier eating behaviours, greater convenience and possible developmental advantages) most felt reluctant to recommend BLW because of their concern about the potential increased risk of choking. In contrast, mothers who had used this style of feeding reported no major concerns with BLW. They considered BLW to be a healthier, more convenient and less stressful way to introduce complementary foods to their infant and recommended this feeding approach to other mothers. Although mothers did not report being concerned about choking, 30% reported at least one choking episode—most commonly with raw apple.ConclusionsGiven the lack of research on BLW, further work is needed to determine whether the concerns expressed by healthcare professionals and potential benefits outlined by mothers are valid. The current study suggests that there is a mismatch between healthcare professionals' and mothers’ knowledge of, attitudes to and experiences, with BLW.

Parent-led or baby-led? Associations between complementary feeding practices and health-related behaviours in a survey of New Zealand families

“…A concern that is commonly expressed about BLW10 is the potential increased risk of choking when infants self-feed whole foods. In the period when infants transition from milk to solid foods they are at increased risk of choking because they may not have developed the coordination of chewing, breathing and swallowing needed to eat food safely 19 20.…”

A Qualitative Study of Mothers Perceptions of Weaning and the Use of Commercial Infant Food in the United Kingdom

“…The facilitators of the focus groups were not health professionals, thus reducing a social desirability bias and were independent of baby food manufacturers. In considering possible bias introduced by the sample and recruitment strategy, it must be highlighted that many other published studies investigating mothers' opinions on complementary feeding have used either a self-selected or convenience sample, often recruited via online mother and baby discussion forums and often also limited to those who are using a specific weaning style [24][25][26][27].…”

“…More recently, Betoko et al [12] reported that increased use of ready-prepared vegetables and fruit purees was explained by an awareness of nutritional advice about infant feeding, but a lack of time and culinary skills to implement the advice. However it must also be noted that qualitative studies of contrasting weaning approaches, namely baby-led weaning, also report it to be simple, convenient and to require less meal preparation [8,24].…”

Food for thought: A comparative analysis of online narratives of maternal practices of infant feeding in Hungary and Bulgaria

“…Research appears to be concerned primarily with the perceived adequacy, from a medical point of view, of the food intake of babies in light of the feeding practices of mothers/parents (Brown & Lee, 2011;Brown, Ogden, Vögeleb, & Gibson, 2008;Kramer & Kakuma, 2002;Rapley & Murkett, 2008;Rowan & Harris, 2012;Scaglioni, Salvioni, & Galimberti, 2008;Webber, Cooke, Hill, & Wardle, 2010). In the light of a growing interest in baby-lead weaning, where infants above 6 months of age are encouraged to self-feed with a variety of finger foods from the family diet (Cameron, Heath, & Taylor, 2012;Rapley, 2011;Rowan & Harris, 2012). Brown and Lee (2011) focus on how maternal styles of feeding impact children but not mothers.…”