Early weaning of premature baby

My son was born 24wks and we was advised to wean at the same stage,,, he's 3yrs old now Looking back I don't think he was ever really into food untill he had teeth lol , he didn't take to purees at all! Also me and my partner came to an agreement not to rush especially being so orem babies aren't textbook! I remember meeting friends at Nandos and he grabbed a chip in was like omg omg haha- He devoured it and he was 8months corrected 6months.... if that makes any sense lol 😆 🤦🏻‍♀️ he just wanted real food didn't care for purees at all ! Weaning is hard so don't put any pressure on yourselves, we've now got a 11month old who was fullterm and well she's completely different , like wet textures etc whereas my son doesn't- won't entertain cereal with milk everything has to be separate 😩 could be a sensory thing we've been told thou x

I think general advice for weaning Premies is still 6 months actual age and not going by adjusted, but you also still want the other signs of weaning to be there. They don't need to sit by themselves, but "with little support". But go by your own judgement. Another 2 weeks and you might feel they are ready, it won't hurt to wait.

Bliss updated their advice this year, but think the earliest they recommend is 5 months corrected https://www.bliss.org.uk/parents/about-your-baby/feeding/weaning-your-premature-baby

Thanks. Yes it was the Bliss guidance I had been looking at which seems to focus on the cues, but also uses corrected age - suggesting 5-6 months corrected. That’s why I was surprised by the dietician’s advice. I wish I had explored it further with her, as to the rationale for going early and the risks of waiting. I don’t think she is ready, and doesn’t meet the general guidance - I think if she was a 4 month old term baby no one would be considering weaning her yet. But she is my first baby so maybe I’m being over cautious.

Our dietician has always said get in touch with any questions, is there the option for you to have another chat with them? I don't think you're being overcautious at all, you know your baby best!

Weaned my 35 weeker at 4.5 months x

I started weaning my 31 weeker at 6 months actual as the HV told me I had to otherwise I risk him not taking well to weaning if I left it later, so I did. A few weeks later went to our check up with the consultant she she said ‘make sure you don’t start weaning until 6 months corrected’ 🤷🏼‍♀️ so I think you probably know best. My son’s actually always been a good eater. Sleep not so much!

You can introduce food without taking away milk. Food under a year can absolutely be for fun/exploration purposes. If you're considering BLW, you could start with tiny tastes of anything she's showing interest in to begin with (keeping allergy prevention advice and her known intolerance in mind - solid starts is a great resource).

Agree with @Desi I was advised to start introducing solids but prioritize breast milk at around 6 months as some babies stomachs are apparently not able to handle anything other than formula or breastmilk before 6 months. I think there's no harm in waiting, babies get their nutrients fine just on milk especially if you take iron.

Yeah I was super apprehensive about weaning my 30 weeker so early too. I think I waited until he was about 5 months adjusted and just started on small portions, we fed him whilst he was being held to keep him sitting up.

Thanks all. She isn’t showing any interest yet, so I think I’m just going to wait until early Jan when she will be 5 months adjusted. The thought of holding her up on my lap, and trying to feed her at same time (I’m a single mum) just feels a bit crazy.

My daughter was born at 24 weeks and she is currently 15m (12corrected) she has a trach and g tube but we started eating purees by mouth last month. No bottles quite yet. But I feel like you should ween when you and your baby are ready.