Baby led weaning versus traditional weaning: a comparative study to assess its impact on eating habits among infants and children

Background: UNICEF article on early childhood development suggests, major physical and social-emotional development happens in age group of 6 months to 3 years. This study was done to compare the impact of traditional weaning and baby led weaning on the overall well-being and social-emotional development of toddlers. Methods: This is a comparative cross-sectional study conducted at Paediatric OP unit of tertiary care hospital in Tamil Nadu for a period of 1 year. Parents of toddler aged 6 months to 2 years were selected randomly using simple random sampling method. Results: The mean weight of the participants was 11.6±2.6 kg and the mean height was 83.2±9.2 cm. 48% of mothers who followed traditional method and 56% of the mothers who followed baby led weaning were not satisfied with child growth. Conclusions: Timely introduction of appropriate feeding practice is essential in reducing the growing under 5 mortality rate.