2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21
How to introduce complementary foods? Sooner or later, this question begins to worry all mothers of newborn babies. The Internet is full of different information, but not always correct. Therefore, it is not surprising that in trying to deal with this topic, young parents become even more confused. And “experienced” grandmothers, meanwhile, are advised to start giving “a little bit of juice” almost from the first month of a baby’s life. Familiar? We propose to consider the basic rules for feeding a child, which all modern pediatricians are guided by.
When to introduce complementary foods?
The first thing to do is to forget about all the rules that were set in the days of our mothers and grandmothers. There can be no question of any fruit juice at 2 months of age and cereals at 3 months of age. Such complementary foods can only harm the baby's immature digestive system.
Modern experts are of the opinion that giving the baby a newfood is only allowed when they reach 6 months of age. In some cases, your pediatrician may recommend starting complementary foods a little earlier, at about 4-5 months of age. This usually occurs when the child is not gaining weight well or there are other medical conditions.
What is the danger of early introduction of complementary foods?
In order to process new food in the gastrointestinal tract, special enzymes must be produced. Due to the immaturity of the digestive system of the crumbs, this does not happen. What can this lead to? At best, what the child ate will come out undigested. At worst, it will provoke disturbances in the intestinal microflora, the appearance of allergic reactions, and so on.
How do you know when your baby is ready to feed?
Learning about how to introduce complementary foods can start after the baby:
- began to hold his head well;
- learned to sit;
- doubled my weight since birth;
- opens mouth at the sight of a spoon;
- may demonstrate refusal to eat: turn your head away, move the spoon away with your hand, and so on;
- shows interest in parents food;
- does not perform reflex pushing movements.
As a rule, all this happens at the age of about 5-6 months.
Basic feeding rules
In addition to age restrictions, there are a few other important considerations when considering how to introduce complementary foods. They are also very important to consider before introducing a child to adult food. So:
- Complementary feeding tactics do not depend on what type of feeding the child has (breast or formula).
- You can only give new foods at a time when the baby is completely he althy.
- Complementary foods are suggested before breastfeeding or formula.
- It is best to give a new product in the morning, so that you can control the further reaction of the body.
- If a child refuses a product, then there is no need to force him. It will be possible to try again only after 1-2 weeks.
- New products to be introduced at 5 day intervals.
- Monocomponent products are used for the first complementary foods.
- Always start with a small amount of new food. At the same time, it will need to be gradually increased to completely replace feeding.
- The introduction of a new type of food is allowed only after one feeding has been replaced. For example, you should not add porridge to your child's diet if he has not yet eaten the portion of vegetables prescribed by age.
- It is forbidden to introduce new products 3 days before and the same number after preventive vaccinations.
All mashed potatoes for feeding mom can either cook on her own or buy in a store. In the first case, you need to remember that so far you do not need to add sugar, s alt, oil, and so on to the baby's food. The maximum that can be done is to dilute the puree with your own breast milk. The baby will feel the familiar taste and will eat with great pleasure. Puree must be prepared immediately beforefeeding. Its storage is strictly prohibited.
If parents decide to start complementary foods with mashed potatoes in jars, special attention should be paid to the composition. It is necessary that the product consists only of the puree of the selected vegetable. You can also add a small amount of water. But other additives (rice starch, preservatives, etc.) will not benefit the baby.
Next, let's see how to introduce complementary foods to a baby at 6 months and what sequence of products to keep.
Vegetables
In most cases, pediatricians recommend starting complementary foods with vegetables. These products are rich in microelements, vitamins, fiber, pectins, necessary for a growing organism.
The best puree for the first feeding is squash. It is not allergenic, and the texture of the vegetable is very delicate. Then you can add cauliflower, broccoli, potatoes, pumpkin, carrots.
Be especially careful with vegetables with a bright color, as they can provoke allergies. Carrots also deserve special attention. Due to the high content of carotene, it is better not to give it to your child more than 2-3 times a week.
Kashi
At the age of seven months, you can offer your baby dairy-free cereals boiled in water. Please note that when deciding which cereal to start complementary foods with, it is important to consider that so far only cereals that do not contain gluten are allowed for the baby. These include: oats, barley and wheat. It will be possible to introduce them into the diet of a child no earlier than eight months of age. This list also includessemolina, which caring grandmothers will probably advise giving to a child in the first place.
Then with what kind of porridge to start complementary foods? Rice and buckwheat are best, and a little later - corn grits. Parents can buy ready-made children's cereals in the store, which simply pour boiling water over them, or grind the cereal themselves in a coffee grinder.
Fruit
Expert advice on when to introduce fruit puree may vary slightly. Some are of the opinion that they can be given to a child at 7 months in parallel with cereals. Others believe that there is no need to burden the baby's digestive system, and recommend waiting up to 8 months. Still others are convinced that fruits should be introduced into the baby's diet at the very end, after he has had time to try all other types of foods (including meat, fish, and so on).
Parents are best guided by the recommendations of their local pediatrician. Most importantly, you do not need to start complementary foods with exotic fruits. The only exceptions are banana and a little later kiwi. In other cases, it is better to give preference to domestic apples, pears, prunes. Acquaintance with fruits is carried out in the same way as with vegetables. At the same time, you should not replace the whole feeding with sweet puree. It is best to give fruit to your baby along with cereals or as a snack.
Egg Yolk
The next thing to introduce into complementary foods for a breastfed baby is a boiled egg yolk. The product contains many vitamins,trace elements and amino acids. It is important to remember some nuances. The first time the amount of egg yolk given to a child should be the size of a match head. Then there is a gradual increase in the portion. By the age of one year, the baby can eat only half the yolk no more than twice a week. You can also boil quail eggs. In this case, it is allowed to give one whole yolk up to two times a week.
Meat
Just like the yolk, meat should be given to the child when he reaches the age of eight months. Contains iron, zinc, B vitamins and minerals.
How to feed meat? Everything is very simple. It is enough to start adding it little by little to the vegetable purees that the baby eats. It is best to choose lean turkey, rabbit, veal, beef, chicken breast for the first foods.
Dairy products
Next, we will find out at what age dairy products are introduced into complementary foods for a child. It is easy to guess that this will happen after the introduction of meat, which means at 9 months. It's time to offer the child kefir, children's cottage cheese, milk. Just like all other products, they should be introduced into the diet gradually.
Complementary foods according to Komarovsky
The well-known doctor Komarovsky in the CIS countries has his own opinion on how to introduce complementary foods to a child. He is convinced that it is best to start with fermented milk products, and only then give the baby cereals, vegetables, and so on. Komarovsky explains his position by the fact that in kefir and cottage cheesecontains beneficial bacteria that will help the baby's body quickly adapt to new food.
Whether or not to trust the recommendations of this doctor is up to the parents to decide. But it is worth noting that most experts still do not agree with his opinion and advise adhering to the standard complementary feeding scheme approved by the Ministry of He alth.
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