Babies hands are made for eating

Babies hand development progresses through predictable stages which align with the stages of learning to feed themselves.

Intentional grasping begins to develop around 3 months. As the primal grasp reflex disappears, babies begin to learn how to hold things we give them. They begin reaching for things and grasping them.

Around 4-8 months,  the hand-mouth skill begins to develop and they mouth everything they can pick up.

9-12 months the pincer grip begins and small items can be grasped between fingers and thumb.

Releasing these hand-grips is often clunky, so there's lots of dropping  - especially over the side of the high chair around 9-10 months!

Although babies can begin to hold cutlery and move it to their mouth as grasping skills mature, it is usually around 12-18 months that they can use these with enough skill to eat a meal efficiently. So hands remain the main tool for self-feeding throughout the second year.

We cannot rush development. The wiring of the central nervous system works to a master plan and works downwards through the spinal cord in the first year. Gross motor skills come before fine motor skills.

Babies hands are made to hold food and feed themselves in the second six months. Skills appear at the stage they are needed and help us follow nature's instruction book! Starting to eat early through parent-led spoon feeding isn't a sign of great maturity,  just that adults can liquefy food and slip it past the natural tongue thrust reflex intended to keep solid foods out before the gut is ready for them. This reflex gradually disappears from 4 months and is gone in time for food at six months.

Nature knows what it's doing.
#babyledweaning