P04 bottle/breast Feeding BLW
Nurturing Infants: Essential Nutrition and Feeding Practices
PO4
Lesson duration is: 60 minItems in this lesson
Nurturing Infants: Essential Nutrition and Feeding Practices
PO4
III
Intent: Understand key nutrition and feeding practices for infants, focusing on breastfeeding, bottle feeding, and the introduction of solid foods.
Implement: Discuss and review bottle and breastfeeding support practitioners should be carrying out in setting. Complete research tasks around bottle preparation and 'Baby Led Weaning' BLW.
Impact: The ability to support parents and carers with bottle/breastfeeding and weaning babies.
What do you already know about infant nutrition and feeding practices?
Nutrition and Hydration (0-6 Months)
Breast milk is crucial for nutrition and hydration, providing nutrients and antibodies. Formula is an alternative if needed.
When working with babies early years settings usually follow the feeding routines that parents are using with their children. This is usually linked to baby's sleep pattern.
Discuss...
Nutrition and Hydration (0-6 Months)
Some parents will be using formula milk, which they give their babies using a bottle. Formula milk is specially made so that babies can easily digest it.
Other mothers might breastfeed their babies, they might either come into the setting to breastfeed or provide bottles of expressed milk - which they have pumped out if the breast for feeding later.
Some parents choose to breastfeed and also use formula milk at other times. This is known as 'combination' feeding.
Practitioner's Role: Breastfeeding
Provide evidence-based guidance. Offer support and facilitate access to resources. Collaborate with healthcare professionals.
If a baby is being breastfed in the setting, your role is to help the mother feel at ease; Ask her where she would prefer to sit and feed offer her a drink, as breastfeeding can make women thirsty.
Where possible, we should encourage breastfeeding as it has many benefits for babies.
Practitioner's Role: Bottle Feeding
It is important that formula feed is prepared hygienically. if the milk, the bottle or tear are contaminated, the bacteria will be swallowed by the baby.
Previously, parents would pre-make all formula bottles up at the begging of the day. To prevent food poisoning it is now recommended formula bottles are made fresh each feed.
10 minutes Task - create a step by step guide to preparing a bottle. Don't miss anything out!
Complementary Feeding (6-12 Months)
Complementary feeding, also known as weaning, is the process of introducing solid foods to an infant's diet alongside breast milk or formula, typically starting around six months of age. This stage is crucial for providing additional nutrients that breast milk or formula alone can no longer supply in sufficient quantities.
Complementary foods should be rich in iron and other essential vitamins and minerals to support the baby's rapid growth and development. Initially, foods should be pureed or mashed to a smooth consistency to make swallowing easier.
Task - write out the the weaning process
Baby-Led Weaning
Baby-led weaning (BLW) is an approach to introducing solid foods that allows babies to self-feed from the start of the weaning process, typically around six months of age.
Instead of being spoon-fed purees, babies are offered a variety of whole foods that they can grasp and bring to their mouths independently. This method encourages the development of fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and chewing abilities.
BLW - Practitioners Role
They provide age-appropriate, nutritious finger foods, supervise mealtimes to prevent choking, and respect each baby’s hunger cues.
By fostering a positive mealtime experience, they help develop fine motor skills, independence, and a healthy relationship with food while also communicating with parents to ensure consistency between home and nursery.
Kahoot
Plenary Task - Kahoot on Weaning.
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