Abstract
This study aims to construct and validate a questionnaire that allows Parents’ Perceptions of the complementary Baby-Led Weaning feeding method (PaPerc-BLW questionnaire) to be evaluated. An instrumental design was used. Five child nutrition experts took part in the development and content validity. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of 216 Spanish parents of infants aged 0–6 months to determine psychometric properties (construct validity and internal consistency). The factor analysis explained 65.12% of variance with three factors (Promoting infant autonomy and development; Infant’s health; Parents’ fear to apply BLW), and internal consistency was α = 0.67. The mean score of the PaPerc-BLW questionnaire for the total sample was 4.14 (DS = 0.64, 95% CI = 4.06–4.23). Significant differences were found in the parents’ perception of baby-led weaning feeding method based on variables as previous children (p ≤ 0.001). Otherwise, the sample included in the study could bias the results, since 98.6% indicated that they were familiar with the BLW method and 62% had previous experience Despite this limitation, the PaPerc-BLW questionnaire offers adequate validity for evaluating parents’ perception of the baby-led weaning method.
Highlights
The World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund recommend starting breastfeeding within the first hour after birth and maintain it exclusively for at least the first 6 months of life [1]
The mean score of the PaPerc Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) questionnaire for the total sample was 4.14 (DS = 0.64, 95% CI = 4.06–4.23)
Among the main limitations found, the sample included in the study could bias the results since 98.6% indicated that they were familiar with the BLW method and 62% had previous experience
Summary
The World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund recommend starting breastfeeding within the first hour after birth and maintain it exclusively for at least the first 6 months of life [1]. After 6 months, as the infant’s nutritional needs increase, it is necessary to introduce other foods to complement breastfeeding without abandoning breastfeeding for at least two years [1]. From the age of 6 months onwards, it is time to introduce other foods into the infant’s diet, understood as complementary feeding. Complementary feeding is understood as a process in which solid or liquid food is offered to complement breastfeeding [1]. There is evidence for choosing alternative methods like Baby-Led Weaning (BLW). This method consists of offering infants food without crushing or grinding to self-manage infant intake [3], using their own tools, such as their hands
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