435 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
    • 5.0 • 1 Rating

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!

    Dog Training Tips When Your Baby Starts Solid Foods with Jake Schneider

    Dog Training Tips When Your Baby Starts Solid Foods with Jake Schneider

    Episode 426: Is it safe for your dog to eat food your baby drops on the floor? Should the dog even be around your baby in a high chair? In this episode certified dog trainer Jake Schneider from @ondogtrainingacademy shares tips on establishing boundaries and rules for your dog when your baby starts eating solid food. 

    Check out Jake’s On Dog Training Academy, listen to his podcast Learn, Laugh, Bark and follow him on Instagram @ondogtrainingacademy. 

    Shownotes for this episode are here: https://blwpodcast.com/426 

    🎧 🎧 🎧 🎧 🎧

    Other podcast episodes related to this topic:

    Episode 332 - Baby Foods Your Dog Should Never Eat with @dogmeets_baby Dominika Knossalla-Pado

    Episode 56 - Dog Meets Baby: BLW Do's + Don'ts For The Whole (Furry) Family with Alexandra Parry, DVM

    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    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

    • 32 min
    Gagging vs. Choking: What is the Difference?

    Gagging vs. Choking: What is the Difference?

    #425: What if my baby gags on food? And how is gagging different than choking? In this episode we cover why gagging is a good thing when your baby is learning to eat and what to do if your baby chokes on food.

    Listen to this episode to learn:

    Which foods are choking risks and how to modify them to make them safe for your baby

    Why it is important not to intervene during a gag…and how to react when your baby gags

    What to do if your baby chokes on food 


    Shownotes for this episode can be found here:
    https://www.babyledweaning.co/podcast/425

    Links from this episode:
    Take a refresher infant CPR course before your baby starts solid food. Use affiliate discount code KATIE10 for $10 off lifetime access to the online course I take each quarter here: https://courses.thrivetraininginstitute.com/pages/babyledweanteam


    Other Episodes Related to this Topic

    Episode 221 - Gagging: What do I do if My Baby Gags on Food?


    Episode 390 - Back Blows for Babies: When Do I Administer CPR? with @thrivetraininginstitute Brandon Doerksen



    🌱 🌱🌱🌱 🌱

    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

    • 16 min
    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

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
1 Rating

1 Rating

morganallene ,

Life saver!

When my very independent baby started refusing being spoon fed about a week into solids I knew I had to find a better way and FAST.
I didn’t have time to find/read a book about BLW and this podcast was truly a life saver.
Within a few days of listening on car rides, walks, while making dinner, and cleaning the house I had the tools to safely set up my baby to self feed.
An absolute must listen for any parents starting solids. This podcast completely changed my mind from ‘BLW is trendy and messy’ to ‘BLW is the best way for my baby to learn how to eat solid food.’
Katie for future episodes I’d love to know your high chair cleaning routine and an episode with tips for embracing the mess. An episode on managing food preferences would be great. Also thoughts on smoothies?

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