Carol Stovold Quality Kidz qualitykidz.co.nz

Isn't it amazing how a baby can rapidly move from being completely helpless and reliant upon you to provide their sustenance, to beginning the process of feeding oneself in under a year.

From purely reflexive responses to suckle and swallow liquid, to developing the ability to chew more solid foods and to learn the skills of persistence and determination, even when they do not always have the physical skills required to actually grasp a spoon or even food. Learning to cope with self imposed frustrations is another important social skill attained along the journey.

Most infants have good head control and can sit with support between four and six months. When these skills are developed in conjunction with mouth pattern development, such as the ability to transfer food from the front to the back of the tongue to swallow without gagging, the introduction of semi solid foods, to complement breast or bottle, with a spoon may be appropriate. An infant's ability to control the neck and head as well as balance the trunk are required for the infant to sit without support and use hand and arm movements in the self-feeding process. Your Plunket nurse can guide you in determining if your child is ready for more solid foods.
Two significant developmental skills acquired during the self-feeding process are the palmer grasp and the pincer grasp. At about six to eight months, infants develop what is known as a palmer grasp – the ability to push something into the palm using the fingers. Often they begin by taking fistfuls of food and mashing it in somewhere near their mouths. This while they are also just developing the knowledge that they have a mouth and where it is in relation to their hands. Often they will scrape the food in from their palms with their lips to get it all. Be prepared for mess and have lots of wet cloths handy to wipe it up.

At this early stage of self feeding, it is a good idea to offer finger foods that a baby can hold in their palm, like strips of toast, where there is still food sticking out the end for them to suck or bite off. You can also offer them a spoon to grip while you feed with another and use food that will adhere to the spoon such as mashed fruits, vegetables or baby cereals which can easily be 'gummed” into the mouth. Fill their spoon and help them get it to their mouth. Don't be too ready to offer your spoonful. Let them experiment with the food and feeding.

Each infant develops at their own rate and this readiness will determine the type and texture of foods to feed them with. When infants start to self feed, the mind and physical capabilities don't always mesh. To be able to successfully self feed, infants need to have a well-developed pincer grasp – the ability to pick small items up between the forefingers and thumb. When these skills have developed, often around seven to 10 months of age, infants can begin to feed themselves with their hands and try more finger foods.

Next Week: Tips for transitioning to feeding independence