Parental Engagement with Health Information Resources to Inform Their Practice of Baby Led Weaning

Background. Complementary feeding (CF), occurring during the first 1,000 days of life, is the process of introducing solid foods to milk-fed infants and plays an important role in infant health and development. While traditional spoon feeding (TSF) has been the recommended method since the 1950s, baby-led weaning (BLW) has recently gained popularity among parents. Little is known about how parents using BLW make decisions about how to feed their infant. Methods. This cross-sectional analysis used data from an open, online survey of a convenience sample of parents with children aged 0–7 years. Parents reported their CF method (BLW, TSF, or combination), sources of CF information, and perceived helpfulness/trustworthiness of those sources. Descriptive and statistical analyses were conducted to characterize parent demographics, feeding practices, and patterns of information use. Results. Among the 681 participants included in the analysis, parent characteristics differed by CF method. Parents practicing BLW were significantly more likely to identify as White, female, to have a bachelor’s degree or higher, report an annual household income of $75,000 or more, and introduce CF at ≥6 months of age compared with those practicing TSF. Professionals were commonly relied upon by parents following TSF or a combination feeding approach. Among parents practicing BLW, nearly half (44.7%) reported using online resources when seeking information about CF introduction. Although online resources were the most commonly used source among BLW parents, they ranked third in trust, behind personal or past experience and professionals. Conclusions. Parents’ use of CF information sources varies by feeding method and reveals a disconnect between resource use and perceived helpfulness/trustworthiness. Further research is needed to examine potential inequities in access to CF information and discrepancies between trust and utilization of resources, particularly online sources, to better support parents implementing evidence-based feeding practices.