Feeding babies pureed food is more the norm than the exception these days in most developed countries and the developing countries seem to be fast catching on.
Practically all the one million babies aged from four to 20 months old in Britain, for example, are fed all types of flavored baby food, which are often described as being organic, or being freshly made from local constituents.
However UNICEF childcare expert and deputy director of its Baby Friendly Initiative, Gill Rapley believes that this actually puts the baby's health at risk.
The ideal situation according to her and others of her thinking would be one in which an infant is fed breast milk or formula milk in the first six months and then be gradually weaned to solids.
Rapley is of the opinion that feeding babies food that is already pureed does not require them to learn how to chew and how to use their hands dexterously. Besides this, the smooth foods lead to constipation and the children grow up learning to be over particular about what they eat.
Rapley is aware that a change in attitudes and the feeding habits of babies by parents could affect the baby food industry which now accounts for over £450,000,000. annually in Britain, but she holds it responsible for unnecessarily convincing parents that such foods are essential to a baby's feeding regime.
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According to Rapley, 'Sound scientific research and government advice now agree there is no longer any window of a baby's development in which they need something more than milk and less than solids.'
Having worked as a health visitor for 25 years during which time she experienced infant food related problems first hand constantly, Rapley claims that her argument is supported by government guidance and scientific research.
"In 2002, the World Health Organisation backed research that found breast or formula milk provided all the nutrition a baby needs up to the age of six months,” she says, continuing, “The WHO was so impressed by the research that it rewrote its recommendations on baby feeding. A year later, the Department of Health for England and Wales followed suit."
She now has a DVD to her credit. Titled 'Baby-Led Weaning', it explains the feeding program and encourages parents to ensure that babies past the age of six months have control over what they eat.
According to Ms Rapley babies six months and older are capable of taking food to their mouths and chewing it. Feeding them pureed foods would defeat the purpose of making them independent feeders.
She believes that, "Provided a child is sitting up straight and is supervised by an adult, he or she can feed themselves a variety of healthy finger foods with their hands."
However, Director-general of the Infant and Dietetic Foods Association, which represents manufacturers such as Heinz, Nestlé and Boots, Roger Clarke, said, 'This is very new research and we need to look at it very carefully……UK infant food companies support a flexible approach to feeding infants, and a 'one size fits all' policy is not appropriate."
