Hi,

I have been giving our LO rice cakes - salt-free ones, different brands - since she was around 7 or 8 months' old. I just break them into small pieces for her but she manages to break them up with her gums (and by sucking them) anyway. She only has 4 teeth but has never choked on rice cakes - and she eats them very fast because she loves them!

BTW, I've never tried Boots rice cakes but some brands are a little harder than others.

Good luck,



Kasia

 

They are absolutely fine to be given as they are as they do tend to go soft as they are 'gummed'. Even if they don't, she may gag a little but even this isn't bad as she'll learn to chew before she swallows.

Just stay close by!

Chux xx

 

thanks you two ,

I guess its just another 'new' step to take. DD currently really gaggs on lumpy stage 2 jars so I might wait until she is used to that before giving a rice cake again!

shara XX

 

Try toast to start as it is much softer than rice cakes and although she won't eat much of it, it is good to get her used to holding food & putting it to her mouth.

Siobhan x

 

thanks siobhan, I think that might be an idea as I do feel that the rice cakes are hard. Can you use any kind of bread??

shara X

 

I gave Isabel toast and rice cakes from about 6-7 months i started her on finger foods early as i could and she was Ok with them. Toast wise I gave white or brown sliced bread with unsalted butter on.

 

she did eat finger foods long before she ate lumps she was quite late in that around 9 months

 

I'd say bread rather than toast!!  I think toast can be quite dry - rice cakes do absorb the saliva and soften up more than they look like they're going to..

Gagging is good!!! it means they have the right reflex to prevent choking.  It's alarming but reassuring. 

Claire x

 

We started off with bread sticks, which our LO would suck and chew with her gums. They would disintegrate in no time in her mouth (and clothes ). They are a bit softer than rice cakes. After the bread sticks, we gave her small pieces of quite firm (i.e. not sliced or packaged) crusty white bread, which she ate with no problems. She loves it and prefers it to toast. I agree with Claire that toast is more likely to make a baby choke or cough since it can be a bit dry and catch in their throat. I gave her the bread with wee bits of cheese or with olive oil since that's how we have bread and toast ourselves.


Kasia

 

the sooner they get to practice the sooner they'll learn...she'll be gagging in 3 months time if you wait...!!! it is horrid when they gag, but I've really learnt that this reflex is amazing and they always bring up whatever it is rather than choke...sometimes far too easily and with all the rest of the meal they've just eaten! rats!

 

Try bread & toast!

We found bread would stick to the roof of my DS's mouth, which I'd then have to remove with my finger & that toast was a bit better & not too hard if I buttered it as soon as it popped out of the toaster.

The main thing is to keep trying different finger foods and you & she will soon gets used to it.

 

thanks for advice. Before I started her on lumpy food she was getting along fine, eating most meals I gave. Now, although I have changed back to stage 1 smooth, she is very fussy and suspicious of anything I give her. I am going to try some finger foods this week.

thanks
shara X

 

Matthew was exactly the same, fine with fine purees, but never took to lumpy purees.  I gave him finger foods - things like banana, avocado, pieces of cooked veg (the ones he liked in his smooth purees, eg sweet potato, carrot, butternut, courgette, etc)  and he loved them and stuck with them for a long time.  Finger food is still his preferred type of food. 

The main thing is that meals are all a good experience for her at the moment, so don't worry about whether or not she reaches the 'stages' - if she's getting a mix of textures and tastes she'll be fine.  Rice cakes are actually quite an acquired taste for some, they're a very different texture to what they're used to with purees, so try her on fruit and veg she's already used to as finger foods, and then work your way up.

Claire x