Weaning Food

How and when to wean a human infant is a subject of much controversy. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends feeding a baby only breast milk for the first six months of its life, and continuing breastfeeding until the child is at least one year old and for as long after that as the mother and child both wish to continue.[1] However many mothers find breastfeeding challenging, especially in modern times when many mothers have to return to work relatively soon after the birth of their child.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization recommend waiting until 6 months to introduce baby food.[1] However, many baby food companies market their "stage 1" foods to children between 4 and 6 months old with the precaution that the food is meant to be consumed in addition to breast milk or formula and is just for "practice". These practice foods are generally soft and runny. Examples include mashed fruit and vegetables. Certain foods are recommended to be avoided. The United Kingdom's NHS recommends withholding foods including those "that contain wheat, gluten, nuts, peanuts, peanut products, seeds, liver, eggs, fish, shellfish, cows' milk and soft or unpasteurised cheese" until a baby is six months old, as they may cause food allergies or make the baby ill.[2] However, recommendations such as these have been called into question by research that suggests early exposure to potential allergens does not increase the likelihood of allergies.[3]

In many cultures around the world, weaning progresses with the introduction of feeding the child food that has been prechewed by the parent along with continued breastfeed, a practice known as premastication.[4] The practice was important in human history in that it naturally gave a child a greatly improved protein source and also that prevents infant iron deficiency.[5] The prechewing of food also allows gives the baby long-term immunological benefits through factors in the mother's saliva.[4] However, premasticated food from caregivers of lower socioeconomic status in areas of endemic diseases can result in passing the disease to the child.[6]

No matter what age baby food is introduced, it is generally a very messy affair, as young children do not have the coordination to eat "neatly".[citation needed] Coordination for using utensils properly and eating with dexterity takes years to develop. Many babies begin using utensils between 10 and 14 months, but most will not be able to feed themselves well until about 2 or 3 years of age.[citation needed]

Weaning conflict[edit]

At this point, the mother tries to force the infant to cease nursing, while the infant attempts to force the mother to continue. From an evolutionary perspective, weaning conflict may be considered the result of the cost of continued nursing to the mother, perhaps in terms of reduced ability to raise future