433 episodes

Is your baby ready to start solid foods but you’re feeling overwhelmed or confused about baby-led weaning? Babies can eat so many more foods than we give them credit for and you don’t have to force-feed or spoon-feed to get them to eat real food!

I’m Katie Ferraro, Registered Dietitian specializing in infant feeding and baby-led weaning. I’m a college nutrition professor and mom of 7, and my goal is to help you start solid foods safely using baby-led weaning.

On this podcast I share practical tips on safe food preparation and starting solid foods, as well as in-depth interviews with other feeding experts. Listen to learn how you can get your baby to safely enjoy real food so that you can start enjoying mealtimes again too!

Baby-Led Weaning with Katie Ferraro Airwave Media

    • Kids & Family
    • 4.9 • 1.4K Ratings

Is your baby ready to start solid foods but you’re feeling overwhelmed or confused about baby-led weaning? Babies can eat so many more foods than we give them credit for and you don’t have to force-feed or spoon-feed to get them to eat real food!

I’m Katie Ferraro, Registered Dietitian specializing in infant feeding and baby-led weaning. I’m a college nutrition professor and mom of 7, and my goal is to help you start solid foods safely using baby-led weaning.

On this podcast I share practical tips on safe food preparation and starting solid foods, as well as in-depth interviews with other feeding experts. Listen to learn how you can get your baby to safely enjoy real food so that you can start enjoying mealtimes again too!

    Breastfeeding & Starting Solid Foods: When Will My Milk Supply Drop Off? with Jessica Smith, MSN, RN, IBCLC

    Breastfeeding & Starting Solid Foods: When Will My Milk Supply Drop Off? with Jessica Smith, MSN, RN, IBCLC

    #424: How often should you breastfeed once your baby starts solid foods? And what if your milk supply drops off once your baby starts eating? Jessica Smith, MSN, RN, IBCLC joins me to explain how you can succeed at continued and extended breastfeeding after 6 months of age and even past age 1.

    Listen to this episode to learn:

    When is the ideal time to drop a milk feed…and which one goes first?

    How to handle declining milk supply after your baby starts solid foods

    Why breastfeeding beyond 1 year has benefits most moms don’t know about


    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://www.babyledweaning.co/podcast/424

    Links from this episode:

    Jessica’s website https://blueridgelactation.wixsite.com/ibclc 

    Kelly Mom https://kellymom.com/ 

    IBL: The Institute for the Advancement of Breastfeeding & Lactation Education: https://lacted.org/ 

    Infant Risk Center MommyMed for Moms: https://www.infantrisk.com/infantrisk-center-resources 


    Other Episodes Related to this Topic

    Episode 55 - How to Drop a Milk Feed


    Episode 235 - When to Move Milk Behind Food with Nicole Boehm


    Episode 404 - Storing Breastmilk Safely with Lara Vu, MPH, CLES @milaskeeper



    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    Not sure about which foods to offer your baby next? Get your copy of my original 100 FIRST FOODS list on my free online video workshop called BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS.

    💯 💯 💯 💯 💯

    Want guided help on how to make all of the 100 FIRST FOODS™ safely for your baby? My program BABY-LED WEANING WITH KATIE FERRARO has a 100 FIRST FOODS daily meal plan and everything else you need to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning. CLICK HERE TO JOIN.

    👀 👀 👀 👀 👀

    Be sure to follow @babyledweanteam on Instagram and our Baby-Led Weaning YouTube channel for more information about helping your baby transition to solid foods safely.

    🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

    If you learned something from this episode and like this podcast, your review means the WORLD to us and helps other parents find this important evidence-based infant feeding info. Click here to leave a review on Apple podcasts and thanks for being a part of this amazing and supportive BLW community!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 30 min
    How to Prepare for Baby-Led Weaning: A Guide for Parents & Caregivers

    How to Prepare for Baby-Led Weaning: A Guide for Parents & Caregivers

    #423: What can you do to help your baby get ready to start solid foods safely? From picking out the best high chair to knowing how to introduce allergenic foods like peanut, here are 5 things parents and caregivers can do to get prepared for baby-led weaning.

    Listen to this episode to learn:

    What the most important safety feature on your high chair should be…and why most high chairs don’t have this

    What to do if your baby chokes on food and how to administer back blows if your baby does choke

    How to safely introduce peanut…and which babies should consider peanut even before 6 months of age


    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://www.babyledweaning.co/podcast/423

    Links from this episode:


    Online Infant Refresher CPR Course - use affiliate code KATIE10 for an additional $10 off lifetime access to this online CPR class

    High Chair recommendations - look for an adjustable footrest…the Stokke Tripp Trapp is my favorite but here are some other high chairs that also have footrests.


    Puffworks Baby Peanut puffs for introducing peanut protein: affiliate code BLWPOD for discount


    ezpz First Foods Set for suction mat, baby-led weaning spoons and open cup: affiliate code KATIE10 for discount

    Other Episodes Related to this Topic


    Episode 132 - CPR Skills that can Save Your Baby's Life when Choking with Brandon Doersken


    Episode 227 - When Does the Food Allergy Prevention Window Close? with @allergykidsdoc David Stukus, MD


    Episode 290 - Pre-Feeding Skills: What Can My Baby Do Before Beginning Solid Foods? with Marsha Dunn Klein OTR/L, MEd, FAOTA



    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 20 min
    Unpacking the Invisible Load of Feeding the Household with Erica Djossa, founder & CEO of Momwell

    Unpacking the Invisible Load of Feeding the Household with Erica Djossa, founder & CEO of Momwell

    #422: What if you don’t love cooking new foods, prepping food for your baby or your other kids…or even just being in charge of food in general? So much of what moms are tasked with falls under this banner of the “invisible load” that you’re probably hearing more mental health people in the parenting space talk about. Erica Djossa from @momwell is here to talk about HOW MUCH WORK being a mom is, and how we can set more realistic expectations to get food on the table without killing ourselves over it.

    Listen to this episode to learn:

    Why you are putting unreasonable expectations on yourself and how to STOP

    If your parenting partner is deploying “weaponized incompetence” and how to handle that

    How to sort the most important values to you right now (...and effectively ignore the rest)


    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://www.babyledweaning.co/podcast/422

    Links from this episode:
    Check out Erica and Momwell’s website: https://www.momwell.com/ and follow Momwell on Instagram @momwell 

    Other Episodes Related to this Topic
    Episode 372 - Mom's Mental Health: Strengthening Parenthood Through Therapy with @momwell Erica Djossa, PHM-C


    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    Not sure about which foods to offer your baby next? Get your copy of my original 100 FIRST FOODS list on my free online video workshop called BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS.

    💯 💯 💯 💯 💯

    Want guided help on how to make all of the 100 FIRST FOODS™ safely for your baby? My program BABY-LED WEANING WITH KATIE FERRARO has a 100 FIRST FOODS daily meal plan and everything else you need to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning. CLICK HERE TO JOIN.

    👀 👀 👀 👀 👀

    Be sure to follow @babyledweanteam on Instagram and our Baby-Led Weaning YouTube channel for more information about helping your baby transition to solid foods safely.

    🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

    If you learned something from this episode and like this podcast, your review means the WORLD to us and helps other parents find this important evidence-based infant feeding info. Click here to leave a review on Apple podcasts and thanks for being a part of this amazing and supportive BLW community!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 38 min
    5 Baby Milestones to Begin Baby-Led Weaning Safely | What Your Baby Should Be Able to Do Before Starting Solids

    5 Baby Milestones to Begin Baby-Led Weaning Safely | What Your Baby Should Be Able to Do Before Starting Solids

    #421: Is your baby developmentally ready to safely start solids? Learn why the 6-month mark is pivotal, the significance of independent sitting, and why the disappearance of the tongue thrust reflex isn't the only readiness to eat signal to begin the weaning process.
    Listen to this episode to learn:

    Unveiling the significance of the 6-month mark for a safe baby-led weaning start, emphasizing exclusive infant milk feeding for younger babies as their primary source of nutrition.

    Exploring the developmental stages of independent sitting after 6 months and its correlation with enhanced head control in babies.

    Debunking myths surrounding the disappearance of the extrusion or tongue thrust reflex as the sole indicator of readiness for solid foods.

    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://www.babyledweaning.co/podcast/2
    Links from this episode:

    Episode 119 - Premature Babies: How to Estimate & Adjust Age for Starting Solids https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/119 

    Episode 158 - How Premature Babies Can Succeed with BLW with @doctorterrimd Terri Major-Kincade, MD https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/158 

    Episode 110 - Catch-Up Weight: Why Starting Solids Early Will Not Help Your Baby Gain Weight with Rosan Meyer, PhD, RD https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/110 

    Episode 144 - What Did Babies Eat Before Baby Food was Invented? with Amy Bentley, PhD https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/144 

    Other Episodes Related to this Topic

    Episode 109 - I Started Purees Too Early: Should I Stop Before Switching to BLW? at https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/109 

    Episode 141 - BLW Basics: Is My Baby Ready to Start Solid Foods? at https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/141 

    Episode 147 - BLW Basics: Help! Nobody Around Me Understands Baby-Led Weaning at https://babyledweaning.co/podcast//147 

    Episode 172 - High Chair Positioning: Reduce Choking Risk Using This One Simple Move with Jeff Durkee of Nomi High Chair at https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/172 

    Episode 199 - Beginner's Guide to Baby-Led Weaning: Starting Solid Foods Safely with BLW at https://babyledweaning.co/podcast/199


    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    Not sure about which foods to offer your baby next? Get your copy of my original 100 FIRST FOODS list on my free online video workshop called BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS.

    💯 💯 💯 💯 💯

    Want guided help on how to make all of the 100 FIRST FOODS™ safely for your baby? My program BABY-LED WEANING WITH KATIE FERRARO has a 100 FIRST FOODS daily meal plan and everything else you need to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning. CLICK HERE TO JOIN.

    👀 👀 👀 👀 👀

    Be sure to follow @babyledweanteam on Instagram and our Baby-Led Weaning YouTube channel for more information about helping your baby transition to solid foods safely.

    🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

    If you learned something from this episode and like this podcast, your review means the WORLD to us and helps other parents find this important evidence-based infant feeding info. Click here to leave a review on Apple podcasts and thanks for being a part of this amazing and supportive BLW community!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 15 min
    Why am I So Stressed Out About Starting Solid Foods? with Andrea Niles, PhD

    Why am I So Stressed Out About Starting Solid Foods? with Andrea Niles, PhD

    #420: Do you feel anxious about your baby starting solid foods? Nervous that your baby will choke on food? Raising babies is stressful…and we don’t always get the support we need as new moms. Today I’m joined by someone who thinks we should be doing things - and supporting new moms differently

    Her name is Andrea Niles, she’s a clinical psychologist and mom of 2. Andrea is the founder of Prospera Mental Health and Wellness, which provides one on one weekly sessions with perinatal certified mental health coaches. 

    …and in this interview she shares how she herself had a traumatic birth experience and recognized that even as a clinical psychologist she needed to ask for help in the post partum period

    Andrea’s website for Prospera Women’s Mental Health is here and you can follow her @prosperamhw on Instagram

    Shownotes for this episode are here: https://blwpodcast.com/420 

    🎧 🎧 🎧 🎧 🎧

    Other podcast episodes related to this topic:

    Episode 292 - Holiday Food Stress Stuff: Coping Tips from @diaryofanhonestmom Libby Ward

    Episode 214 - Overcoming Anxiety in the Feeding Relationship with Jo Cormack, PhD

    Episode 32 - Post-Partum Depression: How a BLW Plan Helped This Mom

    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    Not sure about which foods to offer your baby next? Get your copy of my original 100 FIRST FOODS list on my free online video workshop called BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS.

    💯 💯 💯 💯 💯

    Want guided help on how to make all of the 100 FIRST FOODS™ safely for your baby? My program BABY-LED WEANING WITH KATIE FERRARO has a 100 FIRST FOODS daily meal plan and everything else you need to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning. CLICK HERE TO JOIN.

    👀 👀 👀 👀 👀

    Be sure to follow @babyledweanteam on Instagram and our Baby-Led Weaning YouTube channel for more information about helping your baby transition to solid foods safely.

    🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

    If you learned something from this episode and like this podcast, your review means the WORLD to us and helps other parents find this important evidence-based infant feeding info. Click here to leave a review on Apple podcasts and thanks for being a part of this amazing and supportive BLW community!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 29 min
    What is Baby-Led Weaning?

    What is Baby-Led Weaning?

    #419: Discover the ins and outs of baby-led weaning versus traditional spoon feeding, how it differs from parent-led feeding, and expert tips (pioneered by Gill Rapley, PhD) on safely introducing solid foods to your baby in this episode. Join me as I demystify baby-led weaning as a more developmentally appropriate introduction to solid foods and empower parents to make informed choices for your baby's nutrition journey.

    Listen to this episode to learn:

    How baby-led weaning is different from spoon-feeding and what research supports it

    Who started baby-led weaning and why you should read the original book by Gill Rapley

    What benefits your baby (and you!) get from taking this natural approach


    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://blwpodcast.com/419 

    Link from this episode:
    Gill Rapley’s Baby-Led Weaning book: Baby-Led Weaning The Essential Guide (get the 2019 revised 10th anniversary edition - linking on amazon here, this is an affiliate link).

    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    Not sure about which foods to offer your baby next? Get your copy of my original 100 FIRST FOODS list on my free online video workshop called BABY-LED WEANING FOR BEGINNERS.

    💯 💯 💯 💯 💯

    Want guided help on how to make all of the 100 FIRST FOODS™ safely for your baby? My program BABY-LED WEANING WITH KATIE FERRARO has a 100 FIRST FOODS daily meal plan and everything else you need to start solid foods safely with baby-led weaning. CLICK HERE TO JOIN.

    👀 👀 👀 👀 👀

    Be sure to follow @babyledweanteam on Instagram and our Baby-Led Weaning YouTube channel for more information about helping your baby transition to solid foods safely.

    🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

    If you learned something from this episode and like this podcast, your review means the WORLD to us and helps other parents find this important evidence-based infant feeding info. Click here to leave a review on Apple podcasts and thanks for being a part of this amazing and supportive BLW community!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 25 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
1.4K Ratings

1.4K Ratings

Jocelyn Lundon ,

The BEST info about BLW!

I love the insight and tips provided by Katie! She’s so smart and gives info that is easy to understand and pass along! Love the podcast, newsletter, webinars…all of it! Thanks for all you do!
@jocelynlundon

sambhfbzdfgj ,

❤️

this podcast has significantly improved my blw experience! helps ease my anxiety and i have learned so much !!

Chantel_Kalene ,

My favorite BLW Podcast

I love this podcast so much! Katie is so helpful in the overwhelming world of feeding your baby. I had no idea how controversial some baby feeding things were until I started trying to feed my baby on my own. As she says Katie takes out “all the noise” and really makes it simple. I bought her 100 foods before 1 plan and it has made what was super overwhelming actually really fun! My 10 month old has already has 80 or so foods and he’ll definitely have 100+ by the time he’s one. Not only has he had a ton of food, but i’ve learned more about how to cook and prepare food, along with a ton of baby safety tips I didn’t know about. She’s even replied back to emails with further questions I’ve had. Thanks so much, Katie!! @chantel.neville

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